CFL.ca Staff
OTTAWA — The Laval Rouge et Or top the Football Reporters of Canada – CIS rankings for the sixth time in as many polls this season.
The reigning Vanier Cup champions received 24 of 29 first-place nods – two more than last week – and 285 points from FRC voters to remain in front of the No. 2 Western Mustangs (264 points) and No. 3 Calgary Dinos (236). The defending OUA champion Mustangs received the remaining first-place votes.
Laval, Western and Calgary, all sporting 5-0 records, are the only remaining undefeated teams in CIS football.
Rounding out the new national poll are the No. 4 Sherbrooke Vert & Or (4-1), No. 5 McMaster Marauders (4-1), No. 6 Montreal Carabins (3-2), No. 7 Saskatchewan Huskies (3-2), No. 8 Saint Mary’s Huskies (3-1), No. 9 UBC Thunderbirds (3-2) and No. 10 Windsor Lancers (4-1).
Laval, which occupies the No. 1 position for the 62nd time in 66 polls dating back to the start of the 2005 season, extended its CIS-record streak to 47-straight overall wins at home on Sunday with a convincing 37-4 defeat over Concordia (2-3).
It was also the Rouge et Or’s 18th consecutive overall victory since a loss to Queen’s in the 2009 Mitchell Bowl, only one shy of their own CIS mark set over the 2004 and 2005 seasons. The eight-time defending Quebec champions will have a chance to match the remarkable feat on Saturday when they visit No. 6 Montreal, a matchup televised across the country by Radio-Canada at 1 p.m. ET.
The Carabins are the only Quebec team to beat Laval – three times – since 2004.
No. 2 Western easily defeated York (1-4) 48-23 thanks in large part to Nathan Riva’s four rushing touchdowns. Freshman Tyler Varga also had a major on the ground to up his CIS-leading total to 13 in only five outings.
No. 3 Calgary thumped provincial rival Alberta (0-5) 61-7. Senior Matt Walter racked up 178 yards and three touchdowns on the ground to become the Dinos’ career leader in rushing yards (3,788) and TD runs (28).
In what many considered the CIS Game of the Week, Sherbrooke downed Montreal 20-11 on home field to take sole possession of second place in the RSEQ. The Vert & Or are up one position in the new Top 10 to reach their best ranking since they returned to CIS football in 2003, while the Carabins are down two spots.
No. 5 McMaster also moved past Montreal thanks to a 46-20 home win over Waterloo (0-5).
In another Top-10 battle, this one taking place out west, Saskatchewan edged UBC 36-33 in Saskatoon to stop a two-game skid. With the result, the Huskies move up two spots in the poll, while the Thunderbirds are down one.
Squeezed between Saskatchewan and UBC at No. 8 are the Saint Mary’s Huskies, who surprisingly fell one position in the rankings despite an 8-3 win over Acadia (3-1) in a battle for first place in the AUS.
Finally, No. 10 Windsor, the surprise team of the 2011 season, moves back into the Top 10 after a two-week absence following a 41-21 domination of Guelph (1-4). The Lancers host Queen’s (2-3) on Saturday night hoping to improve to 5-1 for the first time since they went 6-1 in conference play back in 1976.
There are only 10 games on the CIS schedule this weekend as the Canada West conference takes its traditional Thanksgiving break.
| Rank | Team | Pts. (1st place) | Last Week |
| 1. | Laval (5-0) | 285 (24) | 1 |
| 2. | Western (5-0) | 264 (5) | 2 |
| 3. | Calgary (5-0) | 236 | 3 |
| 4. | Sherbrooke (4-1) | 203 | 5 |
| 5. | McMaster (4-1) | 163 | 6 |
| 6. | Montreal (3-2) | 136 | 4 |
| 7. | Saskatchewan (3-2) | 103 | 9 |
| 8. | Saint Mary’s (3-1) | 83 | 7 |
| 9. | UBC (3-2) | 54 | 8 |
| 10. | Windsor (4-1) | 38 | NR |
Other teams receiving votes: Wilfrid Laurier (21), Acadia (18), Concordia (2), Queen’s (1).
