OTTAWA (CFL.ca wire) -– As the university football regular season comes to an end in the OUA on Saturday, the playoff picture will become much clearer in the three other CIS conferences as well as No. 1 Laval (Sunday), No. 3 Manitoba (Saturday) and No. 4 Saint Mary’s (Friday) can all clinch first place this weekend.
Here’s a look at the playoff races across the country and at players who continue to climb up the CIS career and single-season record lists.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
AUFC
In the AUFC, the No. 4 Saint Mary’s Huskies (5-1, 10 pts) can clinch their first regular-season title since 2003 with a home win over second-place Acadia (3-3, 6 pts) on Friday night.
StFX (2-4, 4 pts) currently holds a two-point lead over Mount Allison (1-5, 2 pts) for the third and final playoff spot. StFX has games remaining against Sherbrooke (2-4) and Acadia (3-3), while Mount Allison finishes against Montreal (2-4) and Saint Mary’s (5-1).
QUFL
In the QUFL, the top-ranked Laval Rouge et Or (6-0, 12 pts) can clinch first place for the third straight season with a win over No. 6 Bishop’s (5-1, 10 pts) on Sunday. Should the Gaiters upset the Rouge et Or, they could secure the season title on Oct. 27 with a victory over Montreal (2-4), while Laval finishes at No. 10 Concordia (4-2).
Third-place Concordia (8 pts) still has an outside shot at first place. The Stingers hold the head-to-head tie-breaker over Bishop’s by virtue of a 20-18 season-opening victory, and could get the advantage over Laval with a head-to-head win next Saturday.
Sherbrooke (2-4) and Montreal (2-4) are currently tied for fourth place, and one of these teams will likely earn the final post-season berth. Sherbrooke has games remaining against StFX (2-4) and McGill (0-6), while Montreal finishes against Mount Allison (1-5) and Bishop’s (5-1).
OUA
In Ontario, No. 2 Ottawa (7-0), No. 5 Laurier (6-1) and No. 9 Queen’s (5-2) have already secured the first three spots, in that order, going into the final weekend of the OUA regular schedule.
Ottawa and Laurier will enjoy a bye in the first round of the playoffs, while Queen’s will host the sixth-place finisher, either Western (3-4) or Waterloo (3-4). The Mustangs and Warriors go head-to-head for the final post-season berth Saturday at 1 p.m. in Waterloo, live on The Score.
McMaster (4-3) and Guelph (4-3) are currently tied for fourth place and will square off twice over the next two weekends. The first battle is set for Saturday in Guelph to decide home-field advantage for a head-to-head OUA quarterfinal scheduled for Oct. 27.
Canada West
In Canada West, the No. 3 Manitoba Bisons (6-0, 12 pts) can secure first place on Saturday with a home win over the No. 7 Regina Rams (5-1, 10 pts). The Rams need to beat the Bisons by at least 23 points as Manitoba took the first head-to-head duel 36-13 on Sept. 1, in the season opener.
Manitoba rounds out the schedule against winless Simon Fraser (0-6) on Oct. 27, while Regina faces No. 8 Saskatchewan (4-2).
Saskatchewan needs one win in its final two outings against Alberta (2-5) and Regina to secure at least third place. UBC (3-4, 6 pts) currently has a two-point lead over Alberta and Calgary (2-4) for the fourth and final playoff spot.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
QUARTERBACKS
Regina’s Teale Orban has 62 TD passes for his career (2004-07) entering the weekend, one shy of the Canada West record set by Calgary’s Greg Vavra (1979-83), and tied for sixth on the CIS all-time list, only three behind third place. Orban, who set a Canada West single-season mark last year with 26 TD tosses (third on the CIS season list), has two games remaining in 2007.
Ottawa’s Josh Sacobie (2004-07), currently tied with Orban for the 2007 CIS lead with 18 passing TDs, is not far behind on the career list with 60 entering his final outing of the OUA regular season against Windsor. The OUA career mark of 65 is held by Laurier’s Bill Kubas (1990-94).
McGill’s Matt Connell (2003-07), who has two games remaining, enters the weekend in fifth position on the CIS career list for passing completions with 557 (a Quebec conference record), and should move into fourth place on Saturday past UBC’s Blake Smelser (2002-06), who had 566.
CIS career TD passes
87 Chris Flynn, Saint Mary’s (1987-90)
73 Bill Robinson Sr., St. Mary’s-Western (1970-73 / 1974)
65 Bill Kubas, Laurier (1990-94)
64 Larry Jusdanis, Acadia (1991-95)
63 Greg Vavra, Calgary (1979-83)
62 Chris Hessel, Western (1998 / 2001-04)
62 Shane Munson, Manitoba (1999-03)
62 Ryan Pyear, Laurier (2001-05)
62 Teale Orban, Regina (2004-07)
60 Darryl Leason, Calgary- Regina (1996-98 / 2000-01)
60 Josh Sacobie, Ottawa (2004-07)
CIS career passing completions
611 Greg Vavra, Calgary (1979-83)
609 Ben Chapdelaine, McMaster (1997-01)
592 Larry Jusdanis, Acadia (1991-95)
566 Blake Smelser, UBC (2002-06)
557 Matt Connell, McGill (2003-07)
RUNNING BACKS
Western’s Randy McAuley (2003-07) could move up on both the CIS career all-purpose touchdown and rushing TD lists Saturday in his final regular-season game against Waterloo.
McAuley enters the weekend with 40 all-purpose majors, in a tie for sixth place on the CIS all-time list, and only one shy of the fifth position shared by Western’s Andy Fantuz (2002-05) and Waterloo’s Mike Bradley (1997-01). McAuley also has 37 career rushing TDs, good for fifth on the CIS list, one behind Bradley and two shy of the third spot held by Manitoba’s Dominic Zagari (1991-95).
Bishop’s Jamall Lee leads the nation this fall with 1200 rushing yards, already a Quebec conference single-season mark with two games remaining on the schedule. Currently 19th on the CIS all-time single-season list, Lee could move up to 10th place with a 100-yard tally against top-ranked Laval on Sunday. Only two players in CIS history have maintained Lee’s current pace of 200 rushing yards per outing over an eight-game schedule, record-holder Jesse Lumsden of McMaster (1816 yards in 2004) and Mount Allison’s Éric Lapointe (1619 yards in 1996).
CIS career all-purpose TDs
51 Paul Brule, StFX (1964-67)
48 Dominic Zagari, Manitoba (1991-95)
47 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster (2001-04)
41 Mike Bradley, Waterloo (1997-01)
41 Andy Fantuz, Western (2002-05)
40 Kojo Aidoo, McMaster (1998-02)
40 Randy McAuley, Western (2003-07)
CIS career rushing TDs
49 Paul Brule, StFX (1964-67)
46 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster (2001-04)
39 Dominic Zagari, Manitoba (1991-95)
38 Mike Bradley, Waterloo (1997-01)
37 Randy McAuley, Western (2003-07)
CIS single-season rushing yards
1,816 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster, 2004
1,619 Éric Lapointe, Mt. Allison, 1996
1,515 Éric Lapointe, Mt. Allison, 1998
1,497 Jesse Lumsden, McMaster, 2003
1,415 Akbal Singh, UBC, 1999
1,377 Akbal Singh, UBC, 1998
1,367 Andre Durie, York, 2004
1,329 Kojo Aidoo, McMaster, 2000
1,306 Daryl Stephenson, Windsor, 2005
Currently 19th: 1,200, Jamall Lee, Bishop’s, 2007
RECEIVERS
McGill’s Charles-Antoine Sinotte has a CIS-leading 51 receptions this season with two games left, an average of 8.5 per outing. The CIS single-season record of 63 was set by Queen’s Craig Spear in 2003, while the Quebec conference mark of 61 was established by Ottawa’s Don Burns in 1982 (tied for second on CIS list).
Sinotte already set a Quebec single-game record with 18 catches against Bishop’s on Oct. 6 (second on the CIS list) and also hauled in 16 balls against Acadia on Sept. 22 (tied 4th all-time CIS, tied 2nd QUFL).
CIS single-season receptions
63 Craig Spear, Queen’s, 2003
60 Don Burns, Ottawa, 1982
60 Frank Marof, Guelph, 1991
59 Josh Borger, Calgary, 1983
58 Brian Fryer, Alberta, 1974
58 Jock Climie, Queen’s, 1988
57 Mark Magee, Toronto, 1981
57 Andy Fantuz, Western, 2002
Currently tied for 22nd: 51 Charles-Antoine Sinotte, McGill, 2007
KICKING
Ottawa’s Ara Tchobanian and Alberta’s Hugh O’Neill enter their regular-season finale on Saturday with 18 and 17 field goals on the year, respectively. Only nine kickers in CIS history have reached the 20-FG plateau in a single season, including CIS and Canada West record-holder Jamie Boreham of Manitoba (23 in 2001) and OUA leader Michael Ray of McMaster (22 in 2003).
CIS single-season field goals
23 Jamie Boreham, Manitoba, 2001
22 Jamie Boreham, Manitoba, 2002
22 Michael Ray, McMaster, 2003
21 Jim Direnzo, Acadia, 1981
21 Arek Bigos, Waterloo, 1997
20 Jeff Crews, Western, 1985
20 Frank Jagas, Western, 1993
20 Derek Livingstone, McMaster, 1999
20 Warren Kean, Concordia, 2006
Currently tied for 13th: 18 Ara Tchobanian, Ottawa, 2007
Currently tied for 22nd: 17 Hugh O’Neill, Alberta, 2007
DEFENCE
UBC’s Scott McCuaig leads the nation this season with 10 quarterback sacks. McCuaig will have to wait one more week to take a shot at the Canada West single-season mark of 11 sacks and the CIS record of 12 shared by current Bishop’s head coach and former Gaiter Leroy Blugh (1988) and Queen’s Jim Aru (1996).
CIS single-season quarterback sacks
12.0 Leroy Blugh, Bishop’s, 1988
12.0 Jim Aru, Queen’s, 1996
11.0 Rod Ambrosie, Manitoba, 1981
11.0 Jason Riley, UBC, 1982
11.0 Karim Grant, Acadia, 2001
10.5 Troy Cunningham, Concordia, 2004
Currently tied for 7th: 10.0 Scott McCuaig, UBC, 2007
CIS FOOTBALL WEEK 8 SCHEDULE (all times LOCAL to home teams)
Friday, Oct. 19
6:30 p.m. Acadia at No. 4 Saint Mary’s (The Score)
Saturday, Oct. 20
1 p.m. Windsor at No. 2 Ottawa
1 p.m. No. 9 Queen’s at Toronto
1 p.m. Western at Waterloo (The Score)
1 p.m. No. 5 Laurier at York
1 p.m. McMaster at Guelph
1 p.m. No. 7 Regina at No. 3 Manitoba
1 p.m. Simon Fraser at Calgary (Shaw TV / Access in Regina)
1 p.m. No. 10 Concordia at McGill
2 p.m. Montreal at Mount Allison (EastLink)
2 p.m. No. 8 Saskatchewan at Alberta
4 p.m. StFX at Sherbrooke
Sunday, Oct. 21
1 p.m. No. 6 Bishop’s at No. 1 Laval
