QUICKLY
• The Rams enter Saturday tied with Manitoba for third in Canada West at 2-2, behind Saskatchewan and UBC at 3-1. Calgary and Alberta are both 1-3. A Regina win would move the Rams into third place at 3-2 heading into the conference-wide bye week.
• Saturday marks the only Canada West meeting between Regina and Calgary this season. The Rams have won seven of eight meetings since 2021, including two last year, though the Dinos defeated Regina 39-24 in an exhibition game on Aug. 23.
• QB Owen Sieben and RB Marshall Erichsen both returned to the Regina lineup last week. Sieben threw for 196 yards and a touchdown after missing two games due to injury, while Erichsen rushed 11 times for 80 yards in his first game since suffering a major injury in last year's playoffs.
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THE SERIES: The Rams have had the edge in the head-to-head series in recent years, winning seven of eight regular season and playoff meetings between the two teams since the start of the 2021 season. Regina won twice last year in close affairs, taking a 43-36 overtime victory on the road in Week 1 before earning an 18-12 win over the Dinos in a low-scoring Week 6 battle at Mosaic Stadium. Though Saturday will be the only Canada West meeting between Regina and Calgary this season, the teams also met in Medicine Hat for an exhibition game on Aug. 23 with the Dinos taking a 39-24 victory. All-time, Calgary holds a 23-14 edge in regular season games against the Rams and a 5-2 advantage in postseason meetings.
BACK IN ACTION: The Rams rolled out a new-look offence last Saturday with both QB
Owen Sieben and RB
Marshall Erichsen returning to the lineup. Sieben, who was injured in Week 1 and missed the next two games, completed 22 of 34 passes for 196 yards including a 26-yard touchdown to WR
Nicholas Sirleaf. Erichsen made his season debut after suffering a major injury in last year's playoffs and carried 11 times for 80 yards, averaging 7.3 yards per rush.
SHARING THE BALL: With Erichsen back in the lineup, the Rams made full use of their depth in the backfield last Saturday. Erichsen led the way with 11 carries for 80 yards, RB
Christian Katende rushed 10 times for 44 yards, and RB
Carter Ashman had eight carries for 33 yards including a pair of one-yard touchdowns in short-yardage situations. RB
Kaiden Banfield also dressed for the Rams, who plan to again have all four running backs available Saturday in Calgary. The Rams are averaging 178.5 rushing yards per game, which ranks second in Canada West and seventh in U SPORTS.
SCOOP & SCORE: DB
Chase Murray pounced on a fumbled snap on a Saskatchewan field goal attempt last week and returned it 72 yards for his first U SPORTS touchdown. It was the third-longest fumble return in U of R history, trailing only Michael Stefanovic's 108-yard return in 2015 and a 75-yard return by current defensive coordinator
Sheldon Gray during the 2002 season. In a historical oddity, all three of those lengthy fumble returns came in games against Saskatchewan.
TAKE IT AWAY: The Rams have done an excellent job protecting the football while creating turnovers through the first half of the Canada West schedule. Regina has committed just two turnovers through four games (one interception and one lost fumble), while the defence and special teams have combined for seven takeaways with three interceptions and four fumble recoveries. That gives the Rams a +5 turnover margin heading into Saturday's game.
STILL STINGY: Despite two consecutive losses, the Rams continue to rank near the top of Canada West in several important defensive metrics. Regina has allowed the second-fewest points (79) in the conference, conceded the second-fewest yards per game (350.8), and is tied for the conference lead with four fumble recoveries. On a national scale, the Rams rank ninth in U SPORTS in both fewest points allowed per game and fewest yards conceded per contest.
SPLITTING THE UPRIGHTS: Gorniak has connected on 11 of his 12 field goal attempts this season for a success rate of 91.7%, the best single-season mark by a U of R kicker with more than six attempts. Gorniak leads Canada West and ranks fourth in U SPORTS in field goal percentage among kickers with at least eight attempts.
ON PACE: K
Ty Gorniak has 11 field goals, 11 extra points, and a single for 45 points this season, ranking second in Canada West and tied for sixth in U SPORTS. Gorniak is also on pace to challenge the U of R's single-season points record of 84, set by Jason Clermont with 14 touchdowns in 2001. Gorniak already ranks second on that list after scoring 78 points during his rookie season last year.
TD LEADERBOARD: Now back in the lineup, RB
Marshall Erichsen will look to continue his ascent up the U of R's all-time rushing touchdowns list. Erichsen enters Saturday third in program history with 16 rushing majors, just one behind second-place Neal Hughes (17) and six back of all-time leader Atlee Simon (22).
TOP 20: WR
Nicholas Sirleaf had a big game last week against Saskatchewan, tying for the game high with seven receptions and collecting a team-leading 87 receiving yards. Sirleaf now has 1314 career receiving yards after passing both Neal Hughes and Chris Getzlaf on the U of R's all-time list and currently ranks 19th in program history. Next up is Kolten Solomon, who finished his Rams career with 1352 receiving yards. Sirleaf is also 14 receptions away from breaking into the U of R's career top 10 in that category.
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