Game Notes

The University of Regina Rams have started off 2008 with an 0-2 record and will be looking to put one in the win column on Friday night against the UBC Thunderbirds to get back into the thick of things in Canada West.

The season is off to a wild start in the conference. Going into the weekend, four teams (Saskatchewan, UBC, Simon Fraser, and Calgary) are tied for first place with a 2-1 record. Manitoba and Alberta are tied for fifth with a 1-2 mark, with the Rams awaiting their first victory of the season.

The Rams are coming off of a bye week which followed their 42-14 loss to Saskatchewan on Sept. 6. The week off might have come at a favourable time for the Rams, as wide receiver Jordan Sisco is now expected to see his first game action of the season on Friday. Sisco, who led the Rams with 678 receiving yards last year, missed the first two games of 2008 due to complications resulting from mononucleosis.

Without Sisco in the lineup, Rams quarterback Teale Orban has placed a greater emphasis on involving his backfield in the passing game. Fourth-year fullback Sheldon Tillotson is tied for the team lead with 10 catches, while running back Luke Derkson is third on the team with eight receptions. In comparison, Tillotson and running backs Graham Mosiondz and Derek Belvedere combined for 33 catches during the entire 2007 season.

First-year wide receiver Mark McConkey has started both of the Rams' two games and has performed well. McConkey, who redshirted the 2007 campaign, is tied with Tillotson for the team lead with 10 catches and has 92 receiving yards. Fifth-year slotback Chad Goldie has seven catches and a team-leading 116 receiving yards.

Just two games into the season, Orban has already rushed for a career-high 112 yards, breaking his previous high of 94 yards set during the 2006 season. Derkson leads the Rams with 172 yards on 32 carries.

Fourth-year linebacker Brandon Ganne has led the Rams defensively this season, recording a team-leading 16 total tackles, two sacks, and the team's lone interception of the year. Darren Geddert and Mike Picken have both broken up two passes, while Picken, Bruce Anderson, and Stan Van Sichem have all recorded one sack.

After an opening-game loss to Simon Fraser, UBC has rebounded with a pair of strong performances to grab a share of the Canada West lead. The Thunderbirds have won their last two games by a combined score of 55-9, including a 28-0 shutout on the road over the defending Vanier Cup champion Manitoba Bisons last Saturday.

UBC quarterback Marc McVeigh has thrown for 590 yards and two touchdowns through the first three games of the season. Cheng Wei (212) and Dave Boyd (108) have both rushed for over 100 yards and Blaine Kruger (194), Spencer Betts (157), and Braden Smith (103) have all recorded at least 100 receiving yards for the Thunderbirds.

UBC leads Canada West in defence, allowing an average of just 11 points per game through the first three games. Defensive end Scott McCuaig has led the Thunderbirds defensively. A Canada West all-star in 2007, McCuaig leads the T-Birds with 20½ tackles and is tied for the conference lead with five sacks. He became the conference's all-time sack leader after recording his 23rd career sack on Saturday against Manitoba.

The game is scheduled to kick off at 7:00 p.m. PDT (8:00 p.m. CST) at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver on Friday. Michael Ball and Chad Ehman will have the call live on 620 CKRM and Access7 will rebroadcast the game at 6 p.m. on Sept. 23.