OTTAWA (CIS) – The Western Mustangs top the CIS football national rankings for the fourth consecutive week following a record-breaking performance which allowed them to wrap up the regular season with an unblemished 8-0 mark for the first time since 1998.
Western (8-0) and the second-ranked Laval Rouge et Or (7-0) once again received 20 and 10 first-place votes from the Football Reporters of Canada panel, respectively, with the Mustangs earning 290 total points in the media poll compared to 279 for the reigning Vanier Cup champions.
Rounding out the ninth Top 10 of the campaign are the No. 3 Calgary Dinos (7-0 / no change), No. 4 Queen’s Gaels (7-1 / up one position), No. 5 Guelph Gryphons (7-1 / down one), No. 6 Montreal Carabins (5-2 / no change), No. 7 Bishop’s Gaiters (5-2 / up one), No. 8 McMaster Marauders (5-3 / up one), No. 9 Manitoba Bisons (4-3) / previously unranked) and No. 10 Saskatchewan Huskies (4-3 / down three).
Western dominated York 50-10 last Saturday in its league finale to secure first place in the OUA standings and a bye in the first round of the conference playoffs. It marked the seventh 50-plus-point effort of the regular schedule - a CIS mark – for the Mustangs, who finished conference play with an OUA-record 458 points scored.
In the victory, sophomore quarterback Will Finch of Burlington, Ont., set a new CIS standard for most passing yards in a campaign (3,047), while fifth-year kicker Lirim Hajrullahu of St. Catharines, Ont., became the highest-scoring player in CIS history with 422 career points.
Other results from Top-10 teams this past weekend included Laval 38, Sherbrooke 3 (at Laval); Calgary 46, Regina 27 (at Calgary); Queen’s 37, Guelph 23 (at Queen’s); Montreal 28, McGill 3 (at McGill); Bishop’s 44, Concordia 36 (at Concordia); Manitoba 33, Saskatchewan 26 (at Saskatchewan); McMaster 45, Carleton 3 (at Carleton).
With their success over Sherbrooke, the second-ranked Rouge et Or clinched first place in the RSEQ for the ninth year in a row and extended their CIS-record streak to 62 straight overall wins on home turf, dating back to 2004.
In the marquee matchup of Week 9, Queen’s erased an early 16-7 deficit with 30 consecutive points to hand Guelph its first loss of the season. The Gaels leapfrogged the Gryphons in the standings and earned the second bye for round one of the OUA playoffs.
In the OUA quarter-finals this Saturday, No. 8 McMaster hosts Ottawa (5-3) at 1 p.m., live nationally on Sportsnet East, Ontario & Pacific, while Guelph hosts Windsor (4-4) at 8 p.m.
The coming weekend also marks the end of league play in the three other CIS conferences.
Laval visits Montreal in the RSEQ game of the week, Saturday at 1 p.m., live nationally on Radio-Canada.
NOTES: The AUS game of the week on Eastlink TV is Saint Mary’s (4-3) at StFX (3-4) Saturday at 2 p.m. AT... The Canada West game of the week on SHAW TV is Saskatchewan at Regina (2-5) Saturday at 1 p.m. CT.
FRC – CIS FOOTBALL TOP 10 (#9)
Pts (1st place) Last week
1. Western (8-0) 290 (20) 1
2. Laval (7-0) 279 (10) 2
3. Calgary (7-0) 232 3
4. Queen’s (7-1) 211 5
5. Guelph (7-1) 173 4
6. Montreal (5-2) 154 6
7. Bishop’s (5-2) 110 8
8. McMaster (5-3) 87 9
9. Manitoba (4-3) 52 NR
10. Saskatchewan (4-3) 27 7
Other teams receiving votes: Ottawa (9), UBC (9), Sherbrooke (4), Saint Mary’s (1).
WEEK 9 RESULTS
Mount Allison 27, Saint Mary’s 24 (at Saint
Mary’s)
Calgary 46, Regina 27 (at Calgary)
Manitoba 33, Saskatchewan 26 (at Saskatchewan)
Acadia 27, StFX 11 (at Acadia)
McMaster 45, Carleton 3 (at Carleton)
Queen’s 37, Guelph 23 (at Queen’s)
Ottawa 45, Windsor 15 (at Ottawa)
Toronto 50, Waterloo 18 (at Toronto)
Bishop’s 44, Concordia 36 (at Concordia)
Montreal 28, McGill 3 (at McGill)
Western 50, York 10 (at Western)
UBC 60, Alberta 0 (at UBC)
Laval 38, Sherbrooke 3 (at Laval)
WEEK 10 SCHEDULE (all times local)
October 25
18:00 UBC (4-3) at No. 3 Calgary (7-0) (video webcast)
October 26
13:00 OUA quarter-final: Ottawa (5-3) at No. 8 McMaster (5-3) (Sportsnet East, Ontario & Pacific)
13:00 No. 2 Laval (7-0) at No. 6 Montreal (5-2) (Radio-Canada TV & video webcast)
13:00 McGill (3-4) at No. 7 Bishop’s (5-2) (video webcast)
13:00 No. 10 Saskatchewan (4-3) at Regina (2-5) (SHAW TV & video webcast)
14:00 Saint Mary’s (4-3) at StFX (3-4) (Eastlink TV & video webcast)
14:00 Acadia (3-4) at Mount Allison (3-4) (video webcast)
16:00 Concordia (0-7) at Sherbrooke (2-5)
17:00 No. 9 Manitoba (4-3) at Alberta (0-7) (video webcast)
20:00 OUA quarter-final: Windsor (4-4) at No. 5 Guelph (7-1) (video webcast)
About Football Reporters of Canada
Football Reporters of Canada (FRC) represents journalists and broadcasters in every region of the country covering CIS Football. Since 1958, Football Reporters of Canada has been an organization of media members who have covered the Canadian Football League, serving to select the league’s outstanding players, coach-of-the-year and all-star teams through voting conducted by its members. In 2009, the FRC amalgamated with the University Football Reporters of Canada (UFRC) to give the organization greater scope in its affiliation with amateur and college football. FRC also works with the CFL and CIS to establish guidelines and working conditions for the men and women who report on the game. Selected members of FRC also help to choose builders, players and media members for induction into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
About Canadian Interuniversity Sport
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