Frankly Speaking: Hardy Cup Bound
By Greg Urbanoski

What a difference a week makes.

Last week the University of Regina Rams and University of Saskatchewan Huskies played in a still wind in Saskatoon with the Rams clinching second in a 34-31 win.

On Friday night in relatively mild conditions at Mosaic Stadium the Rams won the Canada West semi-final rematch with the Huskies 19-13 to move to the Hardy Cup.

It was a gutsy and physical game between the Saskatchewan rivals which saw the emphasis move from offense to defense as each side only put up one touchdown apiece. The game was decided on the final Husky drive of the fourth quarter when the Huskies tried a gamble on third and one and were stuffed by Paul McDill of the Rams to seal the win.

“It was a tough game,” said Rams Head Coach Frank McCrystal. “And I give full marks, full credit to those guys (University of Saskatchewan).

“They played to the bitter end. They played hard, they played tough and they didn’t give it up easy. We left a lot of points on the field but we won the game.” 

McCrystal said a major reason for the drama of the game was the Rams inability to make the most of their opportunities.

“We turned the ball over. We didn’t first downs when we needed first downs. We didn’t get touchdowns and settled for field goals. But I really give credit to the Huskies. They were hurt, they’ve got some young guys and they worked hard.”

McCrystal said in response to a media question that contrary to popular belief, the Rams mission this season was not to beat the Huskies but to get first to the Hardy Cup and hope to get to the Vanier Cup.

“The one thing you really recognize in this league is how tough this league is and how physical this league is,” said McCrystal.

“These teams are banged up and Can West is a hard league to get out of and you hope you’re healthy as you move forward.”

The Rams had a number of injuries but McCrystal said after the game it was too soon to tell if those injuries would affect the team line-up against either the University of Manitoba or University of Calgary who were playing Saturday in the other semi-final.

“You would expect to go to Manitoba but you wouldn’t be surprised to have Calgary here,” said McCrystal.

“You have an extra day of rest and an extra day to heal up so maybe you can get some of those guys back who weren’t able to play. Maybe we can get Graham Mosiondz back and I’m confident we can get Brenden Owens back so we’ll see what will happen.”

For Rams quarterback Teale Orban, the win Friday night was his first playoff win as a Rams quarterback and as he stood on the turf and took questions, he said the Rams had come a long way from when he first started and the Rams went 0-8.

“It is an intense game always against them,” said Orban of playing against the Huskies. “You’ve got a lot of buddies on the other team and that always makes the game more intense. It’s nice to play them, beat them and get them out of the way because that is one that is close to home.”

Orban was asked about the importance of getting that first playoff win.

“Our whole thing this year was hitting milestones,” said Orban. “At first it was getting our first win and then our first playoff game last year and this year getting our first win. Now there is nothing left to do but go to the Vanier.

“Now we’ve got to stay focused, obviously that is still three games away and we can’t get cocky. We got to focus on every game but it is stepping stones that make it and we want to get it here.”

Orban said he had no preference about playing either Manitoba or Calgary in the Hardy Cup.

“This is Canada West and you are not going to blow anyone out,” said Orban. “An extra day of rest will be nice and we’ll sleep it and watch the game and see what happens.”

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