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Football Weekend Watch: Top 10 matchups set in Calgary, Hamilton

U SPORTS Staff

The third week of the U SPORTS football regular schedule is highlighted by Top 10 matchups in Calgary and Hamilton, as well as the return of the reigning Vanier Cup champions, who enjoyed an early bye on Labour Day weekend.

2019 U SPORTS Football Schedule & Results

2019 U SPORTS Football Standings

Action kicks off Friday night with the nationally fourth-ranked Calgary Dinos (1-0) hosting the No. 6 Manitoba Bisons (1-0) in Canada West play at McMahon Stadium  (7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT, Canada West TV Presented by Co-Op & SaskTel maxTV, TELUS Optik TV).

On Saturday afternoon in the OUA, the No. 2 Western Mustangs (2-0) visit the No. 5 McMaster Marauders (2-0) at Ron Joyce Stadium (1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT, OUA TV & Cable 14).

Meanwhile, also on Saturday afternoon in the RSEQ, the top-ranked and defending national champion Laval Rouge et Or (1-0), who opened the season on Aug. 25 with a solid 41-10 home win against Sherbrooke, travel to Montreal to face Concordia (0-2). Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT, live on TVA Sports and Yare TV.

Here is a game-by-game look at all Week 3 confrontations, as well as a detailed schedule, including all television broadcast and webcast info.

OFF THIS WEEK

Carleton (1-1), Sherbrooke (0-2), Mount Allison (0-2).

FRIDAY

Bishop’s (1-1) at Saint Mary’s (1-0)

6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT

AUStv & Bell Aliant TV1

Last week (Bishop’s): 32-19 home win vs. StFX... Last week (Saint Mary’s): 27-25 road win vs. Mount Allison... Last head-to-head matchup (Oct. 6, 2018 – regular season at Saint Mary’s): Saint Mary’s 18, Bishop’s 9… In a nutshell: Thanks to their impressive home victory against defending conference champion StFX last Saturday, the Gaiters put an end to a 14-game losing streak which dated back to Week 3 of the 2017 schedule... The Huskies are 4-0 against Bishop’s since the Gaiters joined the AUS two seasons ago, including 42-19 and 18-9 decisions last fall... Keep an eye on (Bishop’s): Freshman quarterback Charles Aubry had the best game of his young university career against StFX, completing 27 of 38 passes for 264 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions... Keep an eye on (Saint Mary’s): Fourth-year kicker Brian Hope, who kicked the game-winning field goal with 49 seconds left in regulation against Mount Allison, ranks fifth in AUS history with 52 career field goals, 13 shy of the team and conference record held by former Huskies standout Justin Palardy (2006-2009).

No. 9 Acadia (1-0) at StFX (1-1)

6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT

AUStv

Last week (Acadia): Bye... Last week (StFX): 32-19 road loss vs. Bishop’s... Last head-to-head matchup (Nov. 3, 2018 – conference semifinal at StFX): StFX 33, Acadia 10… In a nutshell: StFX won all three head-to-head matchups last fall, including a pair in the regular season and a conference semifinal triumph, after going 0-2 against Acadia in 2017... After winning their conference opener for the first time since 2016, the Axemen are looking for their first 2-0 start since 2015... The X-Men are struggling on offence so far this season and rank last in U SPORTS after two games with an average of 239.5 yards of total offence per contest... Keep an eye on (Acadia): Linebacker Bailey Feltmate had a remarkable season opener against Bishop’s two weeks ago with a game-high 11 tackles and a touchdown off a fumble recovery... Keep an eye on (StFX): Linebacker Gordon Whyte leads the nation in total tackles (20.5) and solo tackles (17) after two contests.

No. 6 Manitoba (1-0) at No. 4 Calgary (1-0)

7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT

Canada West TV Presented by Co-Op

Last week (Manitoba): 43-19 home win vs. Saskatchewan... Last week (Calgary): 41-31 road win vs. Alberta... Last head-to-head matchup (Nov. 3, 2018 – conference semifinal at Calgary): Calgary 37, Manitoba 13… In a nutshell: Calgary was 2-0 against Manitoba in 2018, winning 34-16 in conference play and 37-13 in the Hardy Cup semifinals, both times at McMahon Stadium... The Dinos survived a scare in their 2019 opener as they almost let a 20-point, third-quarter lead slip away and saw Alberta come back to within two points with less than four minutes left in regulation... Following their convincing season-opening win over defending Hardy Cup champion Saskatchewan, the No. 6 Bisons are back in the national Top 10 for the first time in two years (No. 10 in first rankings of 2017)... Keep an eye on (Manitoba): Macho Bockru proved too much for Saskatchewan’s defence last Friday, racking up six catches for 99 yards and three scores... Keep an eye on (Calgary): With Calgary up by only three points and Alberta driving at midfield in the final seconds of the game, defensive back Deane Leonard sealed the Dinos’ season-opening win with a 62-yard interception return for a touchdown as time expired.

UBC (0-1) at Saskatchewan (0-1)

8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

Canada West TV Presented by Co-Op & SaskTel maxTV, TELUS Optik TV, Bell MTS Fibe TV

Last week (UBC): 46-16 home loss vs. Regina... Last week (Saskatchewan): 43-19 road loss vs. Manitoba... Last head-to-head matchup (Nov. 3, 2018 – conference semifinal at UBC): Saskatchewan 31, UBC 28 (OT)… In a nutshell: The rematch of last fall’s Hardy Cup final will feature many new faces as both the Huskies and Thunderbirds lost a number of key players following the 2018 campaign, including senior quarterbacks Kyle Siemens (Saskatchewan) and Michael O’Connor (UBC)... UBC struggled on defence in its 2019 opener, allowing 27 first downs and 378 passing yards to Regina, while Saskatchewan was hurt by three lost fumbles and a pair of interceptions against Manitoba... Keep an eye on (UBC): Linebacker Ben Hladik, the reigning Canada West defensive player of the year, was a bright spot in the T-Birds opener with a game-high eight tackles, including one for a loss... Keep an eye on (Saskatchewan): In his first game taking over from graduating senior Kyle Siemens as the Huskies’ starting quarterback, Mason Nyhus completed 27 of 39 passes for 313 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted twice...

Alberta (0-1) at No. 7 Regina (1-0)

8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

Canada West TV Presented by Co-Op & SaskTel maxTV, TELUS Optik TV

Last week (Alberta): 41-31 home loss vs. Calgary... Last week (Regina): 46-16 road win vs. UBC... Last head-to-head matchup (Oct. 12, 2018 – regular season at Regina): Regina 32, Alberta 17… In a nutshell: Regina has won four straight “on the field” against Alberta dating back to a 19-18 loss in Edmonton on Oct. 15, 2016, but did forfeit its first head-to-head win of the 2018 season due to the use of an ineligible player... The Rams’ defence was all over the field last Saturday in the team’s impressive opener against UBC, racking up five sacks, two forced fumbles and one interception... A stunning 51 penalties were called in the Alberta-Calgary contest, including 26 infractions by the Golden Bears for losses of 192 yards... Keep an eye on (Alberta): New Golden Bears starting pivot Brad Launhardt racked up 368 yards and a pair of TD passes in Alberta’s opener but was intercepted three times... Keep an eye on (Regina): Sam Varao carried the ball three times in the Rams’ opener, with each run resulting in one-yard scores.

SATURDAY 

Waterloo (1-0) at Windsor (1-1)

1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT

OUA.TV & YourTV

Last week (Waterloo): Bye... Last week (Windsor): 54-26 road loss vs. Toronto... Last head-to-head matchup (Aug. 26, 2018 – regular season at Waterloo): Waterloo 53, Windsor 37… In a nutshell: In last year’s 90-point shootout at Waterloo, the two teams combined for 1,120 yards of total offence (578-542 in favour of Waterloo) and 941 passing yards (478-463 in favour of Windsor)... That trend continued for the Warriors two weeks ago in their 33-30 season-opening victory over Toronto as they racked up 30 first downs and 422 yards of offence but allowed 29 first downs and 550 yards to their opponents... Among teams that have played two games in 2019, the Lancers rank first in the country with 28.5 first downs per contest and rank second in total yards gained per outing (456.0)... Keep an eye on (Waterloo): Receiver Tyler Ternowski, who last season set a single-season OUA record with 14 TD catches – one shy of the U SPORTS mark – needed only 70 seconds in the Warriors’ opener against Toronto to score his first of the 2019 campaign... Keep an eye on (Windsor): Wide receiver Carson Ouellette leads the nation with 433 all-purpose yards in two games, including 128 on receptions, 152 on punt returns and 153 on kickoff returns.

York (0-2) at No. 8 Guelph (1-1)

1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT

OUA TV & tape delayed on Rogers TV

Last week (York): 18-10 home loss vs. Laurier... Last week (Guelph): 37-20 road win vs. Carleton... Last head-to-head matchup (Sept. 3, 2018 – regular season at Guelph): Guelph 33, York 18… In a nutshell: York, which has started the season with two losses for the third straight year, got its first win of 2018 in Week 3, a 29-22 success against Windsor... Guelph is riding a 10-game head-to-head winning streak dating back to a 22-15 loss at York on Sept. 24, 2005... Keep an eye on (York): With 31 passing attempts on Monday, fifth-year quarterback Brett Hunchak became the 23rd pivot in U SPORTS history to reach the 1,000 plateau in his career (he now ranks 21st all-time with 1,014)... Keep an eye on (Guelph): Linebacker Job Reinhart spent the afternoon in Carleton’s backfield last Sunday, finishing the game with 2.5 sacks and four tackles for losses.

No. 2 Western (2-0) at No. 5 McMaster (2-0)

1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT

OUA TV & Cable 14

Last week (Western): 40-23 home win vs. Queen’s... Last week (McMaster): 35-22 home win vs. Ottawa... Last head-to-head matchup (Sept. 8, 2018 – regular season at Western): Western 44, McMaster 6… In a nutshell: Western has won 22 straight overall against OUA opponents dating back to a 43-40 home loss to Laurier in the 2016 Yates Cup final and is riding a 24-game regular season winning streak dating back to a 38-31 loss at Carleton on Sept. 4, 2016... McMaster is 2-0 for the first time since 2016 and is looking for its first 3-0 start since 2014, when the Marauders won their first seven games before losing the regular season finale against Ottawa... Keep an eye on (Western): With 74 field goals and 364 points since the start of his university career, fourth-year kicker Marc Liegghio needs four field goals to break the Western record of 77 set over five seasons by Lirim Hajrullahu (2009-2013) and eight more points to join the all-time U SPORTS top 10 in that category... Keep an eye on (McMaster): Defensive back Josh Cumber has a U SPORTS-leading three interceptions in two games for a unit that leads the nation with 10 picks.

Queen’s (0-2) at Ottawa (0-1)

1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT

OUA TV & Rogers TV

Last week (Queen’s): 40-23 road loss vs. Western... Last week (Ottawa): 35-22 road loss vs. McMaster... Last head-to-head matchup (Oct. 20, 2018 – regular season at Queen’s): Ottawa 27, Queen’s 22… In a nutshell: Ottawa has won the last five head-to-head confrontations since the start of the 2014 campaign, all in the regular season, but four of those games were decided by seven points or less... The last time they started the season 0-2, in 2017, the Gaels lost their first four conference games before racking up four straight wins to finish with a .500 record... The Gee-Gees are looking to avoid their first 0-2 start since 2012, when they lost their first five en route to a 2-6 mark... Keep an eye on (Queen’s): Wide receiver Ben Ahren is averaging exactly 100 all-purpose yards per game after two contests, thanks to his 117 receiving yards and 83 more on kick returns... Keep an eye on (Ottawa): Receiver Carter Matheson was a force in a losing cause against McMaster with eight catches for 144 yards and one touchdown.

No. 3 Montreal (2-0) at McGill (1-0)

1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT

StretchTV

Last week (Montreal): 18-9 home win vs. Sherbrooke... Last week (McGill): 40-14 home win vs. Concordia... Last head-to-head matchup (Nov. 3, 2018 – conference semifinal at Montreal): Montreal 48, McGill 2… In a nutshell: The Carabins are riding a 25-game overall winning streak against their cross-town rivals dating back to a pair of shutout losses in 2002, which marked their first season back in the league after a three-decade hiatus... In three head-to-head confrontations last fall, McGill managed a total of two points against the stingy Montreal defence (on a safety with 18 seconds left in their RSEQ semifinal), losing 33-0, 16-0 and 48-2... Keep an eye on (Montreal): Named the RSEQ’s defensive MVP in 2018, defensive back Marc-Antoine Dequoy was dominant against Sherbrooke with a game-high 7.5 tackles and a pair of interceptions, returning the second one for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter... Keep an eye on (McGill): Running back Donavan Martel was stellar in McGill’s season debut with 135 yards on only 14 carries.

No. 2 Laval (1-0) at Concordia (0-2)

2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT

Yare TV & TVA Sports

Last week (Laval): Bye... Last week (Concordia): 40-14 road loss vs. McGill... Last head-to-head matchup (Sept. 29, 2018 – regular season at Concordia): Laval 53, Concordia 2… In a nutshell: Laval has won the last 31 head-to-head contests dating back to a 38-30 road loss on Oct. 4, 2003, including a pair of lopsided victories last season (47-9 / 53-2)... After holding nationally third-ranked Montreal to 10 points and 215 yards of total offence in their 2019 opener, a close-fought 10-3 loss, the Stingers’s defence conceded 485 yards in a 40-14 setback against McGill... Keep an eye on (Laval): Running back Joanik Masse, a former MVP at the CEGEP level who didn’t dress for a single game in 2018, made the most of his university debut against Sherbrooke with 108 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, one on the ground and one through the air... Keep an eye on (Concordia): James Tyrell was a bright spot for the Stingers in their disappointing loss to McGill with six catches for 84 yards.

Toronto (1-1) at No. 10 Laurier (1-1)

7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT

OUA TV

Last week (Toronto): 54-26 home win vs. Windsor... Last week (Laurier): 18-10 road win vs. York... Last head-to-head matchup (Aug. 27, 2017 – regular season at Laurier): Laurier 39, Toronto 0… In a nutshell: The two teams were non combatants a year ago in the OUA regular schedule and are set to face off for the first time since their 2017 opener... After two games in 2019, Toronto leads the country in total offence (607.5 yards) and passing yards (486.0) per contest... Laurier counters with a defensive unit that has allowed only 290.5 yards per game in its first two outings, good for fourth in the nation... Keep an eye on (Toronto): Quarterback Clay Sequeira is off to a sensational start with 935 passing yards and 10 touchdown passes in two games... Keep an eye on (Laurier): Levondre Gordon has been the busiest ball carrier in the country so far in 2019 with 39 rushes - for 212 yards - in two contests.