CALGARY – The first half of the season comes to a close Friday night in Regina as the University of Calgary Dinos make their final regular season trip to old Mosaic Stadium.

Their schedule to this point might be the toughest in the nation, and has certainly been the most grueling: three of four games on the road, back-to-back lengthy bus trips to Saskatchewan, and four consecutive games against teams in the CIS Top 10. So far, so good, however: the Dinos sport a 3-0 record and the No. 2 national ranking, led by the stingiest defence west of Wilfrid Laurier.

It'll be another tough test for the Dinos this week, however, as they take their 11-game conference winning streak on the road to face the upstart Rams (2-1) for the lone meeting of the year between the two squads. Kickoff goes at 7 p.m. MT Friday night, live on Shaw TV and CanadaWest.tv.

GAME NOTES (.pdf)

HEADLINES

• First and only meeting of the two teams in 2016. They did play each other in an exhibition game Aug. 25 in Medicine Hat, Alta., with the Dinos winning 37-13
• Calgary enters the game riding a CIS-long 11-game regular season win streak dating back to 2014 as well as a six-game overall win streak against the Rams
• The last of a first-half schedule for the Dinos that saw them play three of four on the road. Calgary will play its next three games at home before ending the year at UBC

No. 2 Calgary Dinos (3-0)
Last week: defeated Saskatchewan 20-19
Next week: host Alberta

• The Dinos needed a 101-yard drive in the final minute to set up Niko DiFonte for the game-winning field goal in a 20-19 win at Saskatchewan last week
• Calgary linebacker Micah Teitz was the Canada West defensive player of the week, recording 12 tackles, a sack, and two TFLs
• Calgary's defence has allowed just 41 points in three games, and teams are averaging less than 250 passing and only 80 rushing yards against the Dinos. They will need another solid effort against the top-ranked Regina offence, which averages 544 yards per game
• The Dinos return home for their 'Battle of Alberta' game against the Golden Bears next Saturday, Oct. 1, when they will celebrate the University of Calgary's 50th anniversary at McMahon Stadium.

No. 9 Regina Rams (2-1)
Last week: Defeated Alberta 29-17
Next week: host Saskatchewan

• Led by MVP frontrunner Noah Picton, the Rams have bounced back from an 0-8 season to appear in the national rankings at No. 9 this week, with a 2-1 record that could easily be 3-0 but for a couple of bad breaks against Saskatchewan in Week 1.
• Picton leads the nation in passing with 420.7 yards per game and is on pace to set a new national single-season passing record
• The Rams head home after defeating UBC 20-10 last week in a defensive gem, without allowing an offensive TD by the thunderbirds.
• After the Calgary game, the Rams will open the new Mosaic Stadium in Regina against the Saskatchewan Huskies on Oct. 1, likely to set a Canada West attendance record

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