CALGARY – Canada West, meet
Tyson Philpot – a name you'll hear plenty in the next few years.
The rookie receiver put on quite the offensive show as the University of Calgary Dinos dominated the UBC Thunderbirds 57-7 in the team's home opener Friday night at McMahon Stadium.
The Surrey, B.C. native had four catches for a total of 186 yards and two touchdowns, including a remarkable 107-yard score that broke the record for the longest offensive play in school history. After just two U SPORTS contests, the 2017 B.C. high school player of the year is second in the conference in receiving, trailing only teammate
Hunter Karl – and that by just three yards per game.
"It's amazing," said Philpot following the game. "Being in my freshman year and breaking the school record in my second game is amazing. I just got to keep breaking records."
Philpot contributed to half of quarterback
Adam Sinagra's 372 passing yards on the night, and the duo was nearly impossible to stop.
"We're showing that we have great chemistry," said Philpot. "With me being a rookie we aren't the closest off the field, but we're going to continue to get closer and try to get that Vanier and build something here."
Despite the Dinos' success throwing the football against UBC, Philpot admitted to not expecting his team's passing game to be as good as it was, and praised his quarterback's efforts.
"We knew they have some studs on defence and that we would have to work hard for everything. I have to give a shout-out to
Adam Sinagra for balling out and getting us the ball."
With the Dinos' being ranked fifth and the Thunderbirds sixth in the Canada West, this particular game was significant to the team and especially Philpot due to his roots.
"It was huge for us," said Philpot. "Coming into the game we knew that they are our closest competition in (Canada West) and since I'm from B.C. this was an important game for me. I'm glad our team put on and we were able to get the win."
Philpot, the first-year open studies student, was much more active in the game against UBC compared to last week's game in Regina where he caught only one pass for 47 yards. The Dinos' high-powered offence has been put on display early on in the season, scoring 106 points in their first two games of 2018 while surrendering just 42.
Next up for Philpot and his squad are the 2-0 Saskatchewan Huskies, whose defence has given up only four more points than the Dinos this season with 46. The Huskies are off to a hot start and edged Manitoba 48-46 in a shootout Friday night in Winnipeg.
"Back to work tomorrow," said Dinos Head Coach
Wayne Harris. "We'll watch the film on Saskatchewan – they're always tough at home. They always have a great crowd at their home field, and it'll be a battle – it has always been a tight game right to the finish."
Philpot and Sinagra will look to continue their passing dominance next Friday in Saskatoon and improve to 3-0 on the season. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. MT from Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon, live on CanadaWest.tv and TELUS Optik 997/998.
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