The University of Regina Rams renew their provincial rivalry with the Saskatchewan Huskies on Saturday afternoon in a matchup of two teams tied atop the Canada West standings. The U-Prairie Challenge clash is set for a 2:00 PM kickoff at Mosaic Stadium.
QUICKLY
• Saskatchewan, Regina, Manitoba, and UBC enter Week 4 locked in a four-way tie atop the Canada West standings with 2-1 records. The deadlock will be split in two on Saturday with all four 2-1 teams playing each other.
• Saturday's game is part of the U-Prairie Challenge. The two schools and SaskMilk announced a renewed three-year partnership this week that will see the organization continue as presenting sponsor of the U-Prairie Challenge through the 2028-29 season.
• One of the top defensive units in the country, the Rams have allowed a Canada West-low 41 points through three games and lead the conference with just 327.3 yards conceded per game. The Rams are third in U SPORTS in scoring defence at 13.7 points allowed per game and sixth nationally in yards allowed per game.
CHECK YOUR PULSE: The recent history between these two teams has been nothing short of electric. Including the postseason, Regina and Saskatchewan have met five times since the start of the 2024 season, with all five games decided by five points or fewer. The teams split their two regular season meetings in 2024 before the Rams went into Saskatoon and won the Hardy Cup. Last season, Saskatchewan earned a two-point win in the lone regular season matchup before defeating Regina 25-24 in the Hardy Cup.
KATENDE CLIMBING: RB
Christian Katende enters Saturday as one of the top rushers in Canada West, leading the conference with 51 carries while ranking second with 296 rushing yards and tied for third with three rushing touchdowns. His average of 98.7 rushing yards per game is tied for sixth in U SPORTS. Katende is also just 10 yards shy of Kyle Borsa (1092) for sixth place on the U of R's all-time rushing list.
WONG BREAKS THROUGH: The Rams entered last week's game at UBC without a sack through their first two games of the season, but LB
Brandon Wong changed that with two against the Thunderbirds. Wong now has both of Regina's sacks this season, accounting for 19 yards in losses. He also has eight solo tackles, eight assisted tackles, three tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery through three games.
TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS: The Rams have committed just one turnover through three games while forcing five, giving Regina a +4 turnover margin. The Rams have recovered all three opponent fumbles and intercepted two passes, while Regina's offence has yet to lose a fumble this season. DB
Carson Sombach and DB
Jacob Tkachuk have the U of R's two picks.
ON TARGET: K
Ty Gorniak converted on both of his field goal attempts last week and is now 10-for-11 on the season. Gorniak's 90.9% success rate leads Canada West and ranks sixth in U SPORTS among kickers with more than three attempts. His career field goal percentage of 79.4% is also the best in U of R history, ahead of Daniel Scraper's 75.7%.
POINTS PILING UP: Despite playing in just 11 Canada West games, Gorniak already ranks 10th in U of R history with 116 career points. He's connected on 27 field goals and 32 converts while adding three singles, and needs 14 more points to tie former Rams receiver Chad Goldie for ninth. Former Rams kicker Perri Scarcelli holds the school record with 294 career points.
SIRLEAF CLOSING IN: WR
Nicholas Sirleaf enters Saturday with 1227 career receiving yards as the third-year player closes in on the U of R's all-time top 20. Immediately ahead of Sirleaf are Neal Hughes (1234), Chris Getzlaf (1286), and Kolten Solomon (1352). Sirleaf also needs just six receptions to become the 16th player in school history to reach 100 career catches.
AROUND THE BALL: DB
Carson Sombach has been one of Regina's most productive defenders through three games, ranking second on the team in tackles while adding four pass breakups, an interception, a fumble recovery, and a tackle for loss. His 39-yard interception return last week against UBC pushed his career total to 154 return yards, second in school history behind only Jamir Walker.
SETTING THE PACE: LB
Owen Zimmer leads the Rams with 18 total tackles through three games this season. The fourth-year linebacker has recorded 14 solo tackles and eight assisted tackles, putting him four tackles clear of DB
Carson Sombach for the team lead and in sixth place in all of Canada West.Â
JUST ONE: Saturday marks the only U-Prairie Challenge football game between Regina and Saskatchewan during the 2026 Canada West schedule. The Huskies are one of two opponents the Rams will face only once this season, along with Calgary, which hosts Regina next Saturday in Week 5.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: The Rams have earned two Canada West Player of the Week awards through the first three games of the season. K
Ty Gorniak was named the Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 1, while DB
Jacob Tkachuk earned Defensive Player of the Week honours following the Week 2 win.
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