CALGARY – All signs point to a very different game than was witnessed Sept. 7 when the University of Calgary Dinos head to Vancouver this weekend to face the UBC Thunderbirds.

Last time out, it was a dominant 57-7 win for the Dinos. They held UBC to one scoring play and fewer than 300 offensive yards while piling up the points, including a school record-setting 107-yard pass-and-run play from Adam Sinagra to Tyson Philpot. This time, though, the Dinos have no illusions of a repeat performance.

GAME NOTES (.pdf)

"They're getting healthy," said Dinos Head Coach Wayne Harris. "(Michael) O'Connor is one of the premier quarterbacks in the league, and they have a number of other weapons. They're going to be hungry to get back home and they always play tough, they're always competitive, and always in the game.

"We expect a vary, very tough game out of them this weekend – they're going to be out there with a lot of pride wanting to execute and put on a great show for their fans."

It'll be a hostile environment for the Dinos to head into with attendance expected to reach five figures at Thunderbird Stadium at UBC's Homecoming. Add to that the desperation of a T-Birds team looking to avoid a 1-3 start at all costs and a return to the lineup of several key pieces that missed the first tilt against Calgary, and it should be a stiff test for the No. 3 Dinos.

TELUS Optik TV 997 and CanadaWest.tv will have live coverage from Vancouver, with kickoff set for 6 p.m. MT Saturday night.

HEADLINES

• Second of two meetings in three weeks between the rivals, with Calgary owning a 50-point advantage in the tiebreaker following a 57-7 win Sept. 7 at McMahon Stadium. Calgary is 2-0 on the front half of the four-week span that sees them play only UBC and Saskatchewan
• Calgary quarterback Adam Sinagra returns to action after his incredible 569-yard passing performance last week against Saskatchewan, the second-highest single game total in U SPORTS history (Greg Vavra, Calgary, 1983 – 627 yards)
• The Dinos are 7-1 against Blake Nill since he switched programs and went to UBC in 2015. That one UBC win was a big one – the 2015 Hardy Cup. Including the last two CW title games, the Dinos have won six straight against the Thunderbirds overall.

No. 3 CALGARY DINOS (3-0)
Last week: defeated Saskatchewan 37-28
Next week: host Saskatchewan

 

• Adam Sinagra remains the leading passer in the nation, averaging a whopping 461.7 passing yards per game. Unsurprisingly, that puts two of his receivers in the top seven nationally: Hunter Karl at 123.3 yards per game, and Tyson Philpot at 107.7. Philpot, the Delta native, is averaging an astounding 35.9 yards per catch, with Karl's 26.4 not far behind.
• The Dinos are second in the nation in total offence, despite having played only three games. Calgary's 633 yards per game is the best in Canada by almost 80 yards.
• Fifth-year defensive lineman Joel Van Pelt leads CW with three sacks and has been in on all but one of the Dinos' four on the season.
• Wayne Harris on Adam Sinagra: "Adam has been on fire – he's very comfortable in the offence, able to find a lot of different targets, even from game to game. We have a lot of weapons there, and he's doing a good job reading the defences and getting the ball to the open receivers. Hopefully we can continue with the same type of productivity."

UBC THUNDERBIRDS (1-2)
Last week: lost to Regina 17-19
Next week: at Alberta

 

• Following the loss at Calgary, UBC fell on a heartbreaking last-second, second-chance field goal at Regina last week, dropping out of the national rankings in the process
• QB O'Connor is on the mend after a hand injury earlier in the season, and many of his weapons that missed the Calgary game are expected back in the lineup including receiver Trivel Pinto (10 catches, 131 yards vs Regina) and running back Ben Cummings
• UBC's defence leads Canada West with nine sacks along with seven fumble recoveries

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