CALGARY – Based on the Canada West preseason coaches' poll, Friday night's game at Mosaic Stadium in Regina between the Rams and the Calgary Dinos – their only meeting of the 2011 season – looked like it might very well decide first place at the end of the year. While that's still possible, this contest now features a battle between first-place Calgary and last-place Regina as the Canada West campaign opens Week 3.

GAME NOTES (.pdf)

Regina began the year as the favourite in Canada West – but that all changed with an 0-2 start after losses to UBC and Saskatchewan, both of which cost the Rams a quarterback as well. Frankie Gray, a true freshman from Regina's Campbell Collegiate High School, is expected to be under centre for the Rams as they face the 2-0, No. 3-ranked Dinos.

On the other side, Calgary has managed to go 2-0 despite trailing in the final minute of both games this season. The Dinos have put up big offensive numbers, averaging 492 yards per game, but the defence has given up almost as many (477) and the three-time defending conference champs are, in many ways, fortunate to be sitting undefeated.

Much of the credit for that goes to the vaunted Calgary run game, which hasn't skipped a beat with Steven Lumbala emerging as the feature tailback. The Dinos have racked up nearly 300 yards per game along the ground, almost 120 yards per game better than second-place Manitoba – and you can be sure they'll be looking to pound the ball downfield again as they try to extend their seven-game win streak against the Rams.

Saturday's game kicks off Friday night at 7 p.m. Dave Rowe and Erik Glavic will have the call on QR77 radio, while CanadaWest.tv will have live video coverage of the game as well.

Here's a look at the two teams:

No. 3 Calgary Dinos (2-0)
Last week: defeated UBC 30-25
Next week: host Saskatchewan

Another week, another nail-biting, come-from-behind, last-minute victory for the Calgary Dinos – who improved to 2-0 and the No. 3 national ranking after upending then-10th-ranked UBC 30-25 last Friday night in their home opener at McMahon Stadium.

The game-winning drive was a microcosm for the entire game – a dominant Calgary run offence picked apart the Thunderbirds, racking up all 85 yards on the drive along the ground – 80 of those coming from Steven Lumbala. The 2011 campaign, just two weeks old, is already a career year for the third-year product of St. Francis High School, who was named the Canada West offensive player of the week after romping for 204 yards and two TDs. With 314 yards he's first in the conference and second in the nation in rushing and will likely go head-to-head with Regina tailback Adrian Charles, who with 281 yards through two games sits second in Canada West.

Chris Dobko has emerged as Calgary's top receiver, hauling in 11 catches for 150 yards in the young season while developing a noticeable chemistry with sophomore quarterback Eric Dzwilewski. Dobko's lone touchdown was the game-winner Week 1 at Manitoba. He's joined by Jake Harty, who caught his first career CIS touchdown last week against UBC and leads the Dinos in all-purpose yards with 387 through two games.

Defensively, middle linebacker Sam Hurl continues to lead the Dinos with 17 tackles already on the season, while redshirt freshman Cory Roboch has quickly established himself and is tied for the conference lead with three sacks on the year. Newcomer Mike Edem, a transfer from McGill University, has bolstered a secondary that lost Doctor Cassama for the year to a knee injury in practice last week.

Last Friday's game was a milestone for Blake Nill, who earned his 75th career CIS regular season victory in his 14th season as a head coach. During that time he has posted a 75-31 (.708) conference record while adding a 20-9 (.690) post-season mark in his eight-year tenure at Saint Mary's (1998-2005) and his five-plus years with the Dinos (2006-present). In that time, Nill has won two Vanier Cups, six Bowl games, and nine conference championships – including the last three Canada West Hardy Cup titles with the Dinos.

The Dinos return home for a three-week span after Friday night's game – they host Saskatchewan Sept. 23, then welcome Alberta for a rare Sunday contest Oct. 2, then enjoy the conference-wide Thanksgiving bye week before embarking on the stretch drive.

Regina Rams (0-2)
Last week: lost to Saskatchewan 33-10
Next week: at Alberta

With the conference's top passer in both 2009 and 2010 returning for a final season, quarterback wasn't a position that the University of Regina's football team expected to have issues with.

Unfortunately for the Rams, that's exactly what has happened. Marc Mueller was knocked out of commission during the first offensive series of the season and backup Dylan Hart suffered a back injury last week against Saskatchewan, sending the Rams even further down the depth chart at arguably the most critical position on the field.

Enter Frankie Gray, who entered the season as the No. 3 quarterback and was expected to redshirt the season. That's all changed now, as Gray – who led Campbell Collegiate to a 4A city championship last year – will become the first Rams quarterback to make a start as a true freshman since Teale Orban in 2004.

Gray will lead a Regina offence that has been heavily reliant on the running game this season – understandable, given the quarterbacking situation and the presence of first-team All-Canadian running back Adrian Charles. Charles ranks third in the nation in rushing yards, but the Rams rank last in Canada West with 293 passing yards – an unfamiliar position for a University of Regina team that has finished in the top two in the conference in passing in each of the previous five seasons.

Middle linebacker Austin Bates has stepped up for the Rams this season, as he's tied for third on the team with nine tackles and scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery in the end zone in Week 2 against Saskatchewan. Defensive end Akiem Hicks and halfback Justin Edralin are tied for the team lead with 9½ tackles on the season.

The Rams will travel to Edmonton next weekend for a matchup against Alberta (0-2) on Saturday, Sept. 24.

-UC-