CIS Football Report (Week 3)
The CIS went into the third week of the season with the top teams asserting their dominance over the competition. This was true of the Western Mustangs as they took on their equals from last year in the Ottawa Gee Gees. Last year the Gee Gees were one of the best teams in the nation and won the OUA regular season title. As they marched towards the Vanier Cup they met the Western Mustangs in the Yates Cup final. The Gee Gees season ended when the Mustangs beat them in the Yates Cup. This year the Mustangs are favorites to win the OUA but the Gee Gees were hanging on through two weeks of the season. The opportunity to assert themselves as the top team in the OUA came in week three when Western faced off against Ottawa and a 2010 Yates Cup rematch. The Mustangs have used a surprising star in their young season and against the Gee Gees they leaned on him again. Freshman running back Tyler Varga has been the centre of the Mustang offence and against Ottawa he was used this way again. Varga ran for 145 yards and 2 TDs against the Gee Gees on Saturday leading his team to the win. The game started with both teams battling hard as Western could only manage 2 field goals to go up 6-0. In the second quarter Ottawa was able to get within a field goal of the Mustangs as the first half finished with Western ahead 6-3. The second quarter opened with Ottawa kicking a field goal again to tie the game up 6-6. That was the last time the Gee Gees got close as the Mustangs began to pull away behind the arm of Donnie Marshall and the legs of Varga. Marshall was able to find Zach Bull in the second half to widen the gap in the game. As the #2 team made sure everyone knew they were the best team in the OUA the #1 team in the nation made sure everyone knew they were still the team to beat in Canada. The Rouge et Or took on their rivals in the RSEQ in Sherbrooke Vert et Or and the big red machine was just that as they remained undefeated. Laval survived an early scare as they were led by Bruno Prud’Homme threw three TDs and over 300 yards as they seem like they are on their way to another undefeated season and another Vanier Cup berth if they continue their strong play.
The rest of the CIS was also hard at work as the two Toronto teams made an impact and two teams from the other conferences also remained undefeated. The Toronto Varsity Blues made it on TV for the first time in years and they took advantage of it beating the Guelph Gryphons. The other Toronto team was the York Lions who were challenging the Varsity Blues at their longest losing streak as they had not won a game in the last three years. This week they went up against the Waterloo Warriors who are starting over after a program suspension last year. York surprised most as they were able to snap their streak and beat the Warriors to get their first win in three years in overtime. In the CanWest conference the Calgary Dinos pulled away for the top spot as well when they beat Regina 51-1 while their biggest challengers, the Saskatchewan Huskies, could not keep up losing to Manitoba giving Calgary the undisputed first place spot in the West. The AUS started their cross conference series as the four teams took on teams from the RSEQ. The two teams looking to take the top spot were the favorite Saint Mary’s Huskies and the Acadia Axemen. The Huskies took on a good team from Montreal and came very close to earning the win but lost 11-10. Acadia took on the McGill Redmen and were able to get passed the McGill team easily winning 38-9. Acadia remained undefeated and took the top spot in the AUS while the Huskies dropped to second place at 1-1. The CIS is underway in week three and the cream is rising to the top as the Western Mustangs, Laval Rouge et Or, and the Calgary Dinos seem to be making their bid already to earn a spot in the Vanier Cup playoffs.
CIS Top 10:
1. Laval Rouge et Or (1)
2. Western Mustangs (2)
3. Calgary Dinos (3)
4. Montreal Carabins (6)
5. Sherbrooke Vert et Or (5)
6. McMaster Marauders (7)
7. Saskatchewan Huskies (4)
8. St. Mary’s Huskies (8)
9. UBC Thunderbirds (–)
10. Manitoba Bisons (–)
Standings
AUS:
1. Acadia Axemen (2-0)
2. Saint Mary’s Huskies (1-1)
3. Mount Allison Mounties (0-2)
4. StFX X-Men (0-2)
CanWest:
1. Calgary Dinos (3-0)
2. Manitoba Bisons (2-1)
3. Saskatchewan Huskies (2-1)
4. UBC Thunderbirds (2-1)
5. Alberta Golden Bears (0-3)
6. Regina Rams (0-3)
RSEQ:
1. Laval Rouge et Or (3-0)
2. Concordia Stingers (2-1)
3. Montreal Carabins (2-1)
4. Sherbrooke Vert et Or (2-1)
5. Bishop’s Gaitors (1-2)
6. McGill Redmen (0-3)
OUA:
1. Western Mustangs (3-0)
2. McMaster Marauders (2-1)
3. Ottawa Gee Gees (2-1)
4. Toronto Varsity Blues (2-1)
5. Windsor Lancers (2-1)
6. Guelph Gryphons (1-2)
7. Laurier Golden Hawks (1-2)
8. Queen’s Golden Gaels (1-2)
9. York Lions (1-2)
10. Waterloo Warriors (0-3)
Key Scores:
#2 Western Mustangs 41 vs. 13 Ottawa Gee Gees #9
– The Mustangs faced off against their Yates Cup opponents from last year and remained undefeated.
#1 Laval Rouge et Or 40 vs. 27 Sherbrooke Vert et Or #5
– Laval took on what might be their last big challenge this year as they took on Sherbrooke and remained undefeated.
York Lions 20 vs. 18 Waterloo Warriors
– The York Lions broke their long losing streak of three years beating the Waterloo Warriors in overtime
Key Matchups Next Week:
#4 Saskatchewan Huskies vs. #3 Calgary Dinos (Sept. 23rd; 7:00 pm MDT)
– The Calgary Dinos are in first place but the Huskies want to take it away as they will look to beat the Dinos and draw even in the CanWest conference race.
Saint Mary’s Huskies vs. Mount Allison Mounties (Sept. 24th; 1:00 pm ADT)
– Saint Mary’s and Mount Allison will face off as a part of Touchdown Atlantic in Moncton, N.B. as a precursor to the CFL game on Sunday.
StFX X-Men vs. Acadia Axemen (Sept. 24th; 7:00 pm ADT)
– The rivalry will be renewed as StFX will try to get their season back on track against the best team in the AUS so far.
The Sport Addiction 