“The tide’s turning. The Rams are for real.”
Article content
Noah Pelletier soaked in the noise and the grins Saturday, a brand-new Canada West-championship ball-cap perched on his head.
Nobody knew which heads those caps would rest on until the final few seconds of Saturday’s 19-14 Regina Rams’ win over the host University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
“It’s been a super-long time since the Rams have been able to put this on,” Pelletier said after his team claimed its second-ever Hardy Cup — the first was way back in 2000. “To be the quarterback of the team that gets to put it on is amazing, and I hope we can continue, and put a couple more hats on in the coming weeks.”
Advertisement 2
Article content
While the Rams turned Griffiths Stadium into their own personal celebration zone, the Huskies walked off, quietly.
“I’m in shock right now, to be honest with you,” said Huskies head coach Scott Flory.
It was an improbable victory in front of a full house at Griffiths Stadium, one for the record books.
The Rams — who up until last weekend hadn’t won a playoff game since 2012 — are the first and only team with a 3-5 regular-season record to win the Canada West title. At one point, they lost five games in a row. They got to the final by beating the Alberta Golden Bears 29-22 in a must-win closer, then upset No. 1 Manitoba 28-25 in last weekend’s semifinal on a last-minute touchdown.
Now they’ll host the Quebec-champion Laval Rouge et Or in next weekend’s Mitchell Bowl, with the winner of that game moving into the Vanier Cup.
“It’s always tough losing a football game,” said Saskatchewan linebacker Seth Hundeby. “They’re a physical team and we respect the hell out of them. It’s what we’ve been saying — Can West is a coin-toss. They wanted it; we wanted it. At the end of the day, a one-touchdown game … and it’s frickin’ Can West.”
Article content
Advertisement 3
Article content
The Huskies, who went 5-3 during the regular season, emerged out of a close-packed conference and were trying to win their third league championship in four seasons. But they couldn’t puncture a stingy Regina defence after putting up two Daniel Wiebe touchdowns in the game’s first 18 minutes.
They led 14-1 after those twin majors, but didn’t score the rest of the game against a Regina defence that allowed the fewest points in Canada West. Meanwhile, Huskies quarterback Anton Amundrud threw four interceptions, three of them in the second half.
One of those picks turned into the game-winning points. The ball tipped off the hand of Huskies receiver Jesse Kuntz and into the arms of Regina’s Carson Sombach, who returned it 45 yards for touchdown midway through the third quarter.
He didn’t know it at the time, but that stood up as the play that clinched a title.
“Even when we went on that five-game losing streak, we still felt we had a chance,” Sombach said. “We were close in every game. Here, we went down 14-1 and didn’t give up. We kept fighting.”
Rams’ head coach Mark McConkey talked at game’s end about how much he respects the Huskies, who compete directly with his team for recruits and a place in the provincial football hierarchy. He said this win made a statement.
Advertisement 4
Article content
“I don’t think they’ll ever say it, but the Huskies saw us as a little brother for the longest time,” McConkey said. “They won eight in a row prior to this year. Even when I played, they dominated us. We beat them a few times in ’12, but they’ve had the upper hand. Like I said after the win … the tide’s turning. The Rams are for real. I’m so proud of the team, and it means a lot.”
Pelletier completed 22 of 33 passes for 228 yards and one touchdown. Amundrud hit 29 of 43 for 230 yards, two touchdowns and the four interceptions.
Both teams put up 19 first downs, and the Rams put up 318 yards of total offence to 304 for the Huskies.
Wiebe’s touchdowns came on catches of 13 and seven yards. Regina’s other TD was a five-yard catch from Emmett Steadman, and Isaac Wegner added a 29-yard field goal.
“We just didn’t make enough plays,” Flory said. “We had everything set up — we’re at home here and everything. It’s too bad. I’m proud of the guys. They kept fighting, nobody quit. Congratulations to (Regina). We’ll reflect back, and it’s unfortunate we missed some things, but that’s football. That’s the way it goes sometimes.
Advertisement 5
Article content
“We all feel like crap right now,” he added. “We had an opportunity and we let it get away. That’s on us. I’m proud of the guys; proud of the effort all year. They fought and kept playing, and we just came up a few plays short.”
McConkey, meanwhile, will now prepare for Laval — Regina’s first out-of-conference opponent since they won Canada West in 2000 and reached the Vanier Cup before losing 42-39 to Ottawa. The Rouge Et Or beat the nation’s No. 1-ranked team, the Montreal Carabins, 22-17 in Saturday’s Quebec final.
“We lost a bunch of those games earlier in the year on that five-game losing streak,” McConkey said. “But our defence … unbelievable. I think they’re one of the best defences in the conference. They didn’t start out super-hot (Saturday), giving up 14, but they regrouped and the offence did enough. I’m so proud of the players, the coaches. We wanted this one bad. We got … not a lot of respect at 3-5, and now the first 3-5 team to win the west. It’s pretty cool.”
Pelletier, meanwhile, was hurting physically after a mishandled snap on a short field goal attempt with just over two minutes to play. He told McConkey, during a post-game hug, that he would be ready for next weekend against Laval. He told reporters later that it didn’t seem too bad, and he’d know more after getting checked over.
Advertisement 6
Article content
“We’re excited to get in the film room, see what (Laval’s) been doing, and then be able to play a different opponent,” Pelletier said.
The Saskatoon Star Phoenix has created an Afternoon Headlines newsletter that can be delivered daily to your inbox so you are up to date with the most vital news of the day. Click here to subscribe.
With some online platforms blocking access to the journalism upon which you depend, our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark thestarphoenix.com and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed. Click here to subscribe.
Article content
