BOX SCORE CALGARY – Fifth-year running back Matt Walter set a pair of school rushing records as the third-ranked University of Calgary Dinos scored early and often in a 61-7 assault on the Alberta Golden Bears Sunday afternoon at McMahon Stadium.

BOX SCORE

Walter rushed for 178 yards to become the Dinos' all-time leading rusher with 3,788 yards, eclipsing Elio Geremia's (1983-87) mark of 3,784. He also scored three touchdowns on the day to move ahead of J.P. Izquierdo (1987-90) on the all-time rushing touchdowns list with 28. The victory improves Calgary to 5-0 on the season, their best start since 1984, and gives the Dinos a two-game cushion over the rest of the conference heading into the Thanksgiving bye. Alberta drops to 0-5 on the season.

The rushing performance put Walter into third place on the Canada West all-time rushing list and ninth in the CIS record book. He now sits 212 yards away from 4,000 in his career, a feat only eight other players in CIS history have accomplished. He also moved into a tie with Bryan Fryer (Alberta, 1972-75) in second place on the Canada West career all-purpose touchdowns list.

“It definitely means a lot and will be a nice thing to look back on after my career,” said Walter, who was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in May's CFL Canadian Draft. “Ultimately, though, I still want to win a Vanier Cup, and that's what we're focused on as a team. I've been on some very good teams in my time here, but this one feels different – there's a chemistry and a unity that we haven't had before.

“I think it's healthy to have individual goals, combined with the collective goals of the team. That will only help you as a player – you're able to get yourself to another level to help your team and really achieve those collective goals. This is one step for me toward that ultimate goal, which is to win the Vanier Cup.”

“We wanted to get Matt that record, and we wanted to do it at home,” said Dinos head coach Blake Nill. “Matt was a key recruit for this program back in 2006 when he and his family decided to stay in Calgary, and from day one he has been a superstar with us.”

Needing 174 yards to break Geremia's record, Walter got things started early with a 78-yard touchdown romp just over five minutes into the game. He added two more majors from seven and 12 yards out as the Calgary offence put up 624 total yards in a performance that dominated in all facets of the game. Five different Dinos scored touchdowns in the game, with Anthony Woodson, Jake Harty, Steven Lumbala, and Taylor Nill joining Walter in the end zone. It was Nill's first career touchdown, and it came as an Eric Dzwilewski pass was tipped by a Dino and a Bear, nearly picked off, and then continued downfield another 10 yards into the waiting arms of Nill who ran uncontested to the end zone for a 42-yard score.

It was that kind of afternoon for the Golden Bears, who at one point in the game had 31 total yards when the Dinos had already scored 34 points.

“We thought we had a very good week of practice, and we came out with the intent that we were going to be in a tough football game,” said Nill. “You need to prepare for every program the same way, and you need to show respect for that program by doing that. We talked about that all week – coming out mentally sharp and physically prepared.”

Dzwilewski had his best game of the season, throwing for 295 yards and two touchdowns on 17-of-25 passing in just under three quarters of action. Nill was Calgary's leading receiver on the afternoon with five catches for 129 yards, with Richard Snyder hauling in three passes for 68 yards and Jake Harty four for 59 and a touchdown.

Alberta starter Julian Marchand completed just three of 13 passes for 22 yards and was picked off twice before giving way to Curtis Dell. Dell fared slightly better, completing six of 14 attempts for 71 yards with one interception. Laine Rogers and Porter Brown had four and two catches, respectively, with each recording 27 yards.

KK Sonuga scored the Golden Bears' lone points of the day on a one-yard run at the 11:01 mark of the fourth quarter with Calgary in full mop-up mode. He finished the game with 16 carries for 46 yards.

Defensively, Calgary cornerback Michael Lau picked up a pair of interceptions on the day with safety Wyatt Getty adding a third. Linebacker Cory Roboch had a fumble recovery for 36 yards, while Jordan Verdone and Mike Edem each recorded four tackles to lead the way for the Dinos. Thomas Spoletini also had a solid outing, picking up three tackles for loss and a pair of sacks.

Both teams head into the conference-wide Thanksgiving bye next week before returning to action for the home stretch. Alberta (0-5) visits Manitoba (2-3) on Saturday, Oct. 15, then closes the season with back-to-back home games against UBC and Saskatchewan. The undefeated Dinos head to Saskatoon to face the Huskies (3-2) on Friday, Oct. 14 before closing the year with a home game against Manitoba and a road trip to Vancouver to take on the Thunderbirds.

SCORING SUMMARY
1st Quarter
CGY – Johnny Mark 27-yard FG, 2:51, 3-0 CGY
CGY – Matt Walter 78-yard TD run (Johnny Mark convert), 5:31, 10-0 CGY
CGY – Johnny Mark 22-yard FG, 8:42, 13-0 CGY

2nd Quarter
CGY – Anthony Woodson 3-yard TD run (Johnny Mark convert), 3:19, 20-0 CGY
CGY – Jake Harty 8-yard TD catch from Eric Dzwilewski (Johnny Mark convert), 6:36, 27-0 CGY
CGY – Matt Walter 7-yard TD run (Johnny Mark convert), 7:45, 34-0 CGY
CGY – Taylor Nill 42-yard TD catch from Eric Dzwilewski (Johnny Mark convert), 14:00, 41-0 CGY

3rd Quarter
CGY – Matt Walter 12-yard TD run (Johnny Mark convert), 2:25, 48-0 CGY
CGY – Johnny Mark 17-yard FG, 9:24, 51-0 CGY

4th Quarter
CGY – Steven Lumbala 11-yard TD run (Johnny Mark convert), 1:29, 58-0 CGY
CGY – Johnny Mark 17-yard FG, 3:49, 61-0 CGY
ALTA – KK Sonuga 1-yard TD run (Steve McCaffery convert), 11:01, 61-7 CGY

-UC-