CALGARY – A postseason berth is on the line Saturday at McMahon Stadium as the University of Calgary Dinos football team hosts the Manitoba Bisons for a 2 p.m. contest.

The Dinos (2-5) have gotten healthy at the right time and have taken down a pair of ranked foes the past two weeks to give themselves a chance at the fourth and final playoff spot in Canada West.

Manitoba (3-4) currently sits in fourth in the Canada West standings and needs a win to avoid tiebreaker scenarios to advance to the postseason for a fifth straight season.

HEADLINES

• This is the second meeting between Calgary and Manitoba this season. The Bisons used a strong ground game, rushing for over 300 yards en route to a 34-21 win in Manitoba back in Week 5.
• The home team has had a decided advantage in this series, winning the last nine games overall and seven in conference play. Calgary's last win in Manitoba came in 2017 and the Bisons last victory in McMahon Stadium was in the 78th Hardy Cup all the way back on Nov. 15, 2014.
• Saturday will mark the first time the Bisons have come to Calgary since a Canada West Semifinal contest back on Nov. 2, 2019. In that one, the Dinos held a 33-16 lead to start the fourth quarter only to see Manitoba pull within one at 47-46 following a Hail Mary touchdown with no time left on the clock. Head coach Brian Dobie elected to go for the win and the two-point conversion attempt was intercepted by Nick Statz at the goal line to seal the win for Calgary.
• Despite a three-game losing skid in the series, the Dinos still own a 69-44 head-to-head record against the Bisons all time, including a 64-41 mark in conference games.

Calgary Dinos (2-5)

• After suffering through a number of key injuries through the first five weeks of the season, the Dinos have been their healthiest all season the last two weeks and it has shown with back-to-back wins over ranked foes in UBC and Saskatchewan.
• Kicker Vince Triumbari played a big role in last weekend's win at Saskatchewan, connecting on a pair of fourth-quarter field goals. The third year hit a 40 yarder midway through the fourth to tie the game at 10-10 before pinging one off the uprights and in from a tough angle with just 1:48 to play to give Calgary its first lead of the game in what proved to be the game winner.
• With three more interceptions last week, the Dinos now have nine takeaways in the air on the year. Nate Beauchemin is tied for the U SPORTS lead with four picks, while Jordan Chizda hauled in his third last weekend and is in a three-way tie for third in the conference.
• The Dinos are looking to end a two-year playoff drought. Their last playoff game was the 27-13 Vanier Cup win over Montreal back on Nov. 23, 2019.
• A playoff berth for Calgary would send them either to Alberta or UBC depending on Saturday's Week 8 matchup between the Golden Bears and Thunderbirds in Edmonton.

Manitoba Bisons (3-4)

• The Bisons head into the final week of the regular season coming off a 35-25 loss at home to league-leading Alberta. Manitoba pulled within three at 28-25 with less than seven minutes left in regulation, but a 68-yard touchdown run with 16 seconds left clinched the win for the Bears.
• Manitoba is looking to make it five trips to the postseason in a row - which would be a program record for the Bisons.
• Third-year QB Jackson Tachinski not only leads the Bisons with nearly 1400 yards passing on the season, but also has a team-high 412 yards on the ground heading into Week 8 and has six rushing touchdowns, thus far.

-UC-