Kellen Forrest, Dinos Communications
CALGARY – The third-ranked University of Calgary Dinos put up a dominant performance in all three phases of the game Friday night, eliminating the University of Regina Rams from playoff competition with a 58-6 win at McMahon Stadium.
With first place in Canada West clinched, the Dinos put on a show offensively, with quarterback Adam Sinagra racking up another 428 yards of passing on just 20 completions. With his total, Sinagra sits just 308 yards behind Noah Picton's U SPORTS single-season passing record, a feat he'll look to beat when the Dinos (7-0) close the regular season next weekend at Alberta.
After Calgary took an early lead with a rouge and safety, the teams exchanged field goals. On the very first play from scrimmage after the Regina field goal, the Dinos scored the game's first touchdown on an outstanding throw form Sinagra across the middle that was hauled in by Dallas Boath and taken 75 yards to the end zone.
After Regina responded with their best offensive drive of the game, resulting in an Aldo Galvan field goal, the Dinos offence kicked into high gear. The Dinos' final four drives in the second half ended with a 51-yard Niko DiFonte field goal and three touchdowns.
The first score came from the 3-yard line, as short yardage quarterback Josiah Joseph tossed a touchdown to fifth-year linebacker Boston Rowe, who came into the game as a fullback. After another defensive stop, Sinagra and Boath connected again for the touchdown, this time from 27-yards out.
With time ticking down in the second half, Regina turned the ball over in their own end, and the Dinos would make no mistake punishing them for it. A trick play with just 12 seconds remaining led to receiver Justin Julien throwing a 19-yard touchdown pass to Tyson Philpot. Those two touchdowns came just 22 seconds apart and the Dinos took a 40-6 advantage into halftime.
There was less scoring in the second half, but the game's most exciting play came late in the third quarter. After the Dinos opened the quarter with another DiFonte rouge and converted field goal, Regina looked to finally get in the end zone after the Dinos returner fumbled the punt, giving the Rams the ball deep in Dinos territory.
Josh Donnelly's throw was intercepted by Sterling Taylor IV on the goal line, and taken 110-yards back all the way for the score. With his father in the stands all the way from Atlanta, Taylor set the Canada West record for longest interception return in league history.
�� @CANADAWEST RECORD ALERT ��
— UCalgary Dinos Football �� (@Dinos_Football) October 20, 2018
Sterling Taylor IV with the longest interception return in conference history as he goes 110 yards to score!#GoDinos pic.twitter.com/fqbrR2Bjko
Fifth-year defensive lineman Joel Van Pelt would join in on the fun, catching a 1-yard touchdown pass near the end of the fourth quarter from backup quarterback Josiah Joseph. That would be the final scoring play of the game, and Calgary would take this one 58-6.
"We certainly had some concerns there in the first quarter," said Dinos Head Coach Wayne Harris. "We had some trouble catching the ball, and we took some very undisciplined penalties that we certainly want to clean up.
"We executed much better in the second quarter, and anytime you win on all three phases of the game, you have to be happy with that."
Tyson Philpot racked up 191 yards receiving on six catches while Sinagra's favorite duo of Boath and Hunter Karl would finish with 126 yards and 110 yards respectively.
Grant McDonald and Boston Rowe led the way on defense, each leading the team with 7.5 tackles. Rowe would also add a sack and a forced fumble to his stellar night.
For Regina, freshman QB Josh Donnelly performed well in his first U SPORTS start, completing 20 of 33 passes for 243 yards. Ryan Schienbein was his top target, hauling in nine catches for 119 yards.
The Dinos will have one final tune-up before the playoff begins when they close the regular season in Edmonton against the Golden Bears next week, while the Rams will play their final game of the year at home against Saskatchewan.