CIS Football Report (Week 9)
Week 9 means the end of the season for the OUA as their regular season is officially finished with the last games solidifying the upcoming playoffs.
In the big battles that were left for the conference, a few teams came out on top. The Mustangs and the Golden Hawks took the top two spots and earned byes through the first round.
Meanwhile, the Queen’s Gaels lost pace with a loss and they were officially eliminated from the playoffs in the final week of the season.
The OUA will prepare for the most important time of the season as any mistake becomes that much more costly with seasons made or broken in one game.
As Ontario prepares for the pursuit of the Yates Cup the rest of the country will look to the final week of the regular season.
There is still a lot not figured out in the other conferences with the final week of the season potentially providing a lot of heartbreak and a lot of celebration as teams continue to fight for their place in the playoffs.
Every team has a chance if they can just get to the conference playoffs as the season resets and any game can end in any way giving every team a chance to make the national playoffs.
The final week of the season will see plenty of teams with a chance to get the opportunity to play in Hamilton November 26.
When looking around the country there are the very much expected results in some places like Montreal and Laval being on top of the RSEQ for another year.
Like Calgary rising to the top of the CanWest division or Western winning the OUA regular season.
Those are not surprises for anyone who has followed the CIS for years as they are all the top teams in the country and have been for years.
There are some surprising results so far this year and the biggest might be the fact that a team everyone expected to take over is struggling to find their way to the playoffs.
The UBC Thunderbirds were the best team in Canada a year ago when star quarterback Michael O’Connor led them to the Vanier Cup in his first year in the CIS.
Many thought he was the answer for the T-Birds and that this program was going to take over the CanWest and the nation.
They were supposed to be just on the edge of a dominant period in the history of the program.
Then the season began and the Thunderbirds began to fall behind early while the Calgary Dinos took over the conference.
There is no question that the Dinos have always been one of the best teams in Canada and certainly the most dominant team in CanWest history.
Their reign was supposed to end when the Thunderbirds began to take over.
Now with only one week left in their season, the Dinos are on top of the conference for another year and look like one of the best teams in the country.
Meanwhile, the Thunderbirds have been up and down all season and now enter the final week of the season outside of the playoffs.
They need a win to even have a chance at repeating this year and from their season it might be tough just to get to the finals in the CanWest conference.
The Thunderbirds were supposed to take over and yet now they sit like many other teams looking at their final game of the year and beginning playoff football a week early.
They will now need a win and possibly some help if they want to make the playoffs and a win is going to be tough as they face the Dinos for their final regular season game.
Of course, they aren’t alone as Acadia will be looking to make their final stab at the playoffs along with Sherbrooke.
All of these teams are not gliding into the playoffs as they will being their tough play now with their seasons on the line next week.
Key Scores:
Regina Rams 35-33 UBC Thunderbirds
– The Thunderbirds could have made their lives easier in this week as a win would have helped them stay in playoff position for the last week but the Rams took the win and a playoff spot while the T-Birds fell out of playoff position
StFX X-Men 33-29 Acadia Axemen
– The Axemen needed a win as they continued to pursue the final playoff spot in the AUS playoffs but they couldn’t get the win against the top team in the conference as the X-Men just padded their conference lead
Ottawa Gee-Gees 42-41 Queen’s Gaels (OT)
– The Gaels needed this win if they wanted to make the playoffs as they were tied with a number of teams who all had a chance to pass them but they couldn’t get the win losing in overtime and losing their playoff spot
McGill Redmen 21-8 Concordia Stingers
– The Redmen are a team on a mission this year as they have looked better than any other season in the past decade but they still need to fight for a playoff spot and a win against a playoff position team was a big boost to their playoff hopes
Next Week:
Acadia Axemen vs. Saint Mary’s Huskies (Saturday, October 29th; 2:00 pm ADT)
– The Axemen get their last chance as they hope to beat the Huskies and take the Huskies out of the playoff race while earning their own spot in the playoffs with a win in the final week of the season
Montreal Carabins vs. McGill Redmen (Saturday, October 29th; 2:00 pm EDT)
– The Redmen are now in a position to control their own destiny but it won’t be easy as they still have to get through the Carabins if they want to earn a playoff spot while the Carabins need a win to try to get first place
Calgary Dinos vs. UBC Thunderbirds (Saturday, October 29th; 5:00 pm PDT)
– The Thunderbirds and Dinos fought for the Hardy Trophy a year ago and now the Thunderbirds are simply trying to get into the playoffs as a win is a big help but is not an easy task against the Dinos
The Sport Addiction 