By Todd Penney
Looking at the score, you can only ask yourself one question. What the hell happened?
Sat., Sept. 27, saw the undefeated Dinos football squad in enemy territory, ready to face off against the also undefeated University of Saskatchewan Huskies. Football enthusiasts and critics alike were looking forward to this one all week, as they anticipated the clash of the nationally ranked #6 Dinos and #2 Huskies.
Unfortunately, they didn’t get their money’s worth.
The Dinos fell flat on their collective keister, getting routed 54-13 by the Huskies. The win puts the Huskies atop Canada West with a 5-0 record while the Dinos fall to 3-1, tied with the University of Alberta Golden Bears for second place.
Huskies quarterback Steve Bilan had the night of his university football career as he passed for 219 yards, completed 14 of 19 passes, and hooked up with four different players for touchdowns. For his effort, Bilan received the Canada West football offensive player of the week.
However, the Dinos could not muster any kind of offense against the Huskies. The first and only points contributed by the Calgary offense came in the early stages of the fourth quarter when backup quarterback Jeff Pockett completed an 18-yard pass to Drew Carpenter for the score. This after starting quarterback Charles Guedo was yanked following a less-than-stellar game, throwing three interceptions and fumbling once. Guedo was not completely to blame however, the offensive line offered little protection and he was sacked four times.
The going was just as tough for the Dinos’ defence as Saskatchewan racked up 532 yards in total offense and held a 45-0 lead halfway through the third quarter. Huskies running backs Tyler Siwak and Craig Stevens had outstanding games, piling on the yards from the ground.
"Part of playing well is controlling the line of scrimmage, and we just could not seem to do that on either side of the football," said Dinos Head Coach Tony Fasano. "We made a lot of mental mistakes and the Huskies executed very well, which made the difference in the game."
One player with an outstanding effort in the loss was Dinos linebacker Agustin "Goose" Barrenechea, who had 15 tackles, one sack, one fumble recovery, one forced fumble and one interception. He was basically a one-man army. For his efforts, he was named Canada West football defensive player of the week.
Ryan Saurette, Dan Federkeil and Ryan Folk also gave it their all, each recording several tackles. Folk was the one who finally got the Dinos on the scoreboard, returning a blocked Huskies punt for a touchdown in the third quarter. A valiant effort to be sure, but sad that a defensive tally in the third marked the first points the Dinos could muster.
To make things worse, Dinos kicker Matt Nimik had trouble finding the space between the uprights as his kick conversion attempts after both Calgary touchdowns failed.
The Dinos simply could not find their stride in this forgettable tilt.
The Dinos are at home Sat., Oct. 4 to take on the University of Regina Rams who broke a three game losing skid this week beating the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds and will be thirsty for more Ws.