NOTE: The University of Calgary forfeited this game on Sept. 29, 2014 due to the use of ineligible student-athletes.
The official final score of the game is 1-0 for Alberta; all statistics remain intact, other than those of the ineligible student-athletes, which were stricken from the record.
-----CALGARY – The second-ranked University of Calgary Dinos scored on their first two drives of the game and then just kept…on…scoring, trouncing their provincial rival Alberta Golden Bears 71-3 at McMahon Stadium Friday night.
In front of a KICKOFF crowd of 5,534, the Dinos (1-0) sent the student body home happy with a nine-touchdown, 734-yard offensive performance for their 11th consecutive win over Alberta (0-1). And it could have been even worse, if not for an illegal block penalty that negated a 125-yard missed field goal return by
Jake Harty.
Andrew Buckley completed 17 of 23 passes for 313 yards and three touchdowns – all in the first half – and ran in another major himself as the Dinos built up a 43-0 lead at half time.
Brett Blaszko and Harty combined for 308 of the Dinos' 443 receiving yards in the game as the six-time defending Hardy Cup champions simply dominated in all facets of the game.
And the success wasn't limited to the Dinos' starters, either – running backs
Quentin Chown and
Bryce Harper, listed behind reigning conference MVP
Mercer Timmis on the depth chart, combined for more than 150 yards on the ground as the first-stringers gave way to the bench after half time.
Eric Dzwilewski added another 114 passing yards in the second half for Calgary.
"The offence did well, and they're going to be strong," said Dinos head coach
Blake Nill. "We just need to execute and work on getting better every week. And I look at a guy like
Quentin Chown – he came in to spell Timmis, he's a very heavy runner, and I thought he did a great job."
While Calgary's offence lit off the fireworks, the Dinos did a solid job defensively as well, limiting the Bears to 23 first downs and picking off Alberta quarterbacks five times on the night.
Adam Laurensse picked up a pair of interceptions, while
Nathan Mitchell,
Tanner Doll, and
Thomas Spoletini each had a single. Calgary also picked up a quartet of sacks, with
Cory Robinson and
Micah Teitz recording two apiece.
Timmis, for his part, recorded 47 yards on 10 carries in a light outing for him – but he added two more touchdowns, from one and eight yards out, to his ever-growing career total, picking up where he left off in 2013. Buckley's TD came on a seven-yard run, and his three passing majors went to
Brett Blaszko on a perfectly-placed 65-yard catch-and-run play, an eight-yard strike to Harty, and a 49-yard bomb to Brendan Thera-Plamondon. Chown added a pair of rushing majors from nine and six yards out less than two minutes apart in the third quarter, and
Austen Hartley picked up the ninth major on a five-yard run in the fourth. Two field goals and two singles by
Johnny Mark rounded out the scoring for Calgary.
The Bears managed just a single field goal on the night, when Vuyani Ndhlovu split the uprights from 42 yards out on a rare trip inside Calgary territory for Alberta. The Bears managed just 277 offensive yards, with starting quarterback completing 12 of 27 passes for 124 yards and four picks. His replacement, Scott Pearson, fared little better with 55 yards on seven completions. Running back Joel Mukendi was a bright spot for the Golden Bears, picking up 97 yards on 14 carries along the ground.
Alberta returns home next week to host the tenth-ranked Saskatchewan Huskies (1-0), while the Dinos head on the road to take on the No. 7 UBC Thunderbirds (0-1) in Vancouver.
-UC-
