Complete Game Notes

THE GAME
The University of Regina Rams travel for their first road game of the season this weekend, as they'll take on the defending Canada West champion Calgary Dinos on Friday. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. at McMahon Stadium.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Michael Ball and Marco Ricci will have the call live at 620CKRM.com - click the "Home of the Home Teams" link on the bottom of the page to get to the live streaming site.

THE HEADLINES
- After their convincing 45-11 win over Manitoba last week, the Rams have jumped into the rankings at No. 9 - their first CIS Top Ten appearance since the 2007 season
- Rams dimeback Steve Famulak was named the Canada West Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday after recording 2½ sacks, 5½ tackles, and a forced fumble that went for a TD
- Calgary debuted as the No. 1-ranked team in the first poll of the season, but have fallen to No. 5 this week after losing at home to Saskatchewan on Saturday
- A win on Friday would give the Rams their best start since the 2002 season (4-0)
- The teams will also play in Regina on Oct. 22, marking the second consecutive season that the Dinos and Rams have met twice in the conference schedule
- The Rams are 4-6 all-time against Calgary on the road
- The Rams have a 5-8 record against Calgary in conference games and are 2-1 against the Dinos in the postseason
- Besides scoring three touchdowns and forcing two safeties last week, the Rams' defence also had five sacks, four interceptions, and allowed just 170 passing yards against the Bisons
- The Rams were the only Canada West team not to commit a turnover in Week 1
- Calgary's Sam Hurl is the early conference leader in tackles (12½)

UNIVERSITY OF REGINA RAMS (1-0)
The Rams couldn't have asked for a better start to the season after recording a 45-11 win over the Manitoba Bisons on Friday.

The defence was the story, scoring three touchdowns (two interception returns and one fumble return) and forcing Manitoba to concede two safeties. Steve Famulak (more below) was brilliant for the Rams, while Bruce Anderson, Jamir Walker, and Mike Kerr scored the defensive touchdowns.

Brenden Owens was the leader on the offensive side of the ball, hauling in five catches for 97 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Marc Mueller was 16-for-25 for 189 yards, while running back Adrian Charles didn't get the start but still ended up with 18 carries for 83 yards, including a 25-yard rush in the third quarter and a 26-yard rumble in the fourth.

The Rams went into the game with a kicker not named Perri Scarcelli for the first time since the 2004 season, but Chris Bodnar introduced himself nicely to the Rams faithful. Bodnar was 2-for-3 in his field goal attempts and showed off a powerful leg with a 44.1-yard punting average, including a 60-yard bomb late in the game that went for a single.

UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY DINOS (0-1)
Calgary entered last week as the No. 1-ranked team in the CIS, but lost 34-13 to Saskatchewan and dropped four spots in this week's poll to No. 5.

The Dinos have been decimated by injuries early in the season, as linebackers Andrea Bonaventura, Geoff Paiement, and Chris Folk were all unavailable for last week's game. Compounding the problem, Calgary lost two 2009 Canada West all-stars (quarterback Erik Glavic and receiver Anthony Parker) and a 2007 conference all-star (running back Anthony Woodson) during the Saskatchewan game.

Sam Hurl filled in nicely at linebacker for Calgary, and Paiement and Folk should return this week to help solidify the Dinos' front seven. In place of Glavic, the Dinos will start Eric Dzwilewski, a first-year quarterback out of Centennial HS in Boise, Idaho.

After Friday's game against the Rams, the Dinos will travel to Edmonton on Sept. 18 to square off with the Alberta Golden Bears in their first road game of the campaign.

FAMULAK NAMED CANADA WEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Steve Famulak was named the Canada West Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in the big win over Manitoba. The third-year dimeback had two solo sacks during the win and teamed up with Akiem Hicks on a third. His sack early in the second quarter forced a fumble by Manitoba quarterback Khaleal Williams, which teammate Bruce Anderson scooped up and rumbled in for a 48-yard major.

All told, Famulak's 2½ sacks – the first sacks of his three-year career with the Rams – went for a total loss of 23 yards. He also tied for the team lead with 5½ tackles and recorded a pass breakup late in the game for good measure.

Famulak is the first U of R player to be named the Canada West Defensive Player of the Week since Bruce Anderson earned the award on Sept. 29, 2008.

FORMER RAMS IN THE PROS
The impressive list of former University of Regina players now toiling in the professional ranks is led by the Seattle Seahawks' Jon Ryan, who ranked No. 8 in the NFL last season with an average of 46.2 yards per punt. Seven former University of Regina Rams are now in the CFL, including Chris Bauman (Hamilton), Jason Clermont (Saskatchewan), Chris Getzlaf (Saskatchewan), Neal Hughes (Saskatchewan), Nick Hutchins (Saskatchewan), Brendon LaBatte (Winnipeg), and Jordan Sisco (Saskatchewan).

THE RAMS' FRONT SEVEN: THEN AND NOW
What a difference a year makes - just one of Regina's starting front seven from last year's season opener got the start against the Bisons. That lone starter was middle linebacker Bruce Anderson, in his final season of CIS eligibility.

Logan Brooks and Benton Gieni both started the 2009 campaign as supporting cast members, but have jumped into starting roles. Brooks starts at the left end position, while Gieni will start at nose tackle. The other two starters on the line are newcomers, including tackle Akiem Hicks and right end Stefan Charles.

Chris Sciog (pronounce it “stuke”) has stepped in at outside linebacker in place of the Brandon Ganne and was impressive against Manitoba, tying for the team lead with 5½ tackles. The position left open by the graduation of Thomas Irving is filled by dimeback Steve Famulak.

(Complete game notes available here)