The Montreal Carabins will look to move to 2-0 on the young season, as they host Laval in an RSEQ conference showdown. (U SPORTS Photo)
While the CFL season is entering its back nine, the U SPORTS football season is just beginning to move into the middle portion of its eight-game schedule.
Week 3 brings with it two of the biggest matchups of the regular season in the Canada West and RSEQ conferences. The UBC Thunderbirds and Calgary Dinos face off at McMahon Stadium in a rematch of the last three Hardy Cups (Can-West final), while the Montreal Carabins host Laval in a repeat of the last five Dunsmore Cups (RSEQ final).
To say we’re likely watching at least one conference final preview this weekend would be an understatement: These are four of the blue-blood programs in Canada, with bad blood between them from years of recent playoff competition.
Each of those four teams has made the Vanier Cup in at least one of the last four years, with three — Montreal (2014), UBC (2015) and Laval (2016) — winning the championship.
This week’s #UniversityBlitz matchups are:
Windsor at York (OUA) | Friday, 6 p.m. ET
Two teams anchored to the bottom of the OUA standings will collide north of Toronto on Friday evening, as the Windsor Lancers (0-2) visit the York Lions (0-2). Windsor’s issues lie on defence — the Lancers have allowed a nation-high 91 points this season — while York’s trouble has been on both sides of the ball, with an offence (19.5 p.p.g.) and defence (37.5 p.a.p.g.) both ranking bottom three in the conference.
UBC at Calgary (CW) | Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET
What a way to start a home schedule for the Calgary Dinos (1-0): A rematch against the hungry UBC (1-0) team they knocked off in last year’s conference final via unforgettable last-second kick. It’s a game the T-Birds have had circled on their calendars since Nov. 11, 2017, and should be a party atmosphere with incoming students — great combination.
Saint Mary’s at Mt. Allison (AUS) | Saturday, 1 p.m. ET
The only two undefeated teams remaining in the AUS conference square off in Sackville on Saturday afternoon, as the Mt. Allison Mounties (1-0) entertain the Saint Mary’s Huskies (2-0); the Mounties opened the season with a 14-point win over Bishop’s, while the Huskies have scored victories over St. FX and the same Bishop’s team. Some see this as the first true test for Mt. A, while a 3-0 start would set SMU up well for home-field advantage.
Laval at Montreal (RSEQ) | Saturday, 2 p.m. ET
Two programs which have defined the gold standard of university football in this country will meet at the cozy CEPSUM Stadium in Montreal, where the Carabins (1-0) host the Laval Rouge et Or (2-0) in a battle of Quebec powerhouses. Our panel is split, but judging by the scores posted early this season — Laval 47, Concordia 3; Montreal 33, McGill 0 — it looks unlikely that anybody other than these two will appear in the Dunsmore Cup come November.
Week 3 Schedule
Friday, Sept. 7
OUA | Windsor at York (6 p.m. ET)
CW | UBC at Calgary (7:30 p.m. ET)
CW | Saskatchewan at Manitoba (8 p.m. ET)
CW | Regina at Alberta (9 p.m. ET)
Saturday, Sept. 8
AUS | Saint Mary’s at Mt. Allison (1 p.m. ET)
OUA | Carleton at Waterloo (1 p.m. ET)
OUA | Toronto at Queen’s (1 p.m. ET)
OUA | Guelph at Ottawa (1 p.m. ET)
RSEQ | Sherbrooke at Concordia (1 p.m. ET)
AUS | Acadia at Bishop’s (2 p.m. ET)
RSEQ | Laval at Montreal (2 p.m. ET)
OUA | McMaster at Western (4 p.m. ET)
