CANADA WEST FOOTBALL COACHES POLL

There are no ties in Canada West football, but there’s officially a tie at the top of this year’s CW football coaches poll.

Last year’s Hardy Cup finalists, the Saskatchewan Huskies and UBC Thunderbirds, each received identical votes and will enter the season as favourites.

A new CW football season kicks off this week with three games on Friday night, including Alberta visiting Calgary, Saskatchewan travelling to Manitoba, and Regina hosting UBC.

After claiming two straight conference championships, many will still consider the Huskies as the team to beat. Saskatchewan is coming off a dominant 7-1 regular season campaign, powered by a blistering offensive attack that averaged 30.1 points per game. Having twice fallen just short in the Vanier Cup, it’s a group that will be motivated to get over the hump in pursuit of a national title.

Dethroning the Huskies won’t be easy, but UBC appears up to the task. The T-Birds, who went 4-4 last season, made waves with an impressive semifinal upset of Regina. That valuable playoff experience has left the group confident they can take the next step in pursuit of their first Hardy Cup trophy since 2015.

Not to be overlooked, the Manitoba Bisons look to build on their own 4-4 campaign. The group showed well in the pre-season, which included a 26-7 exhibition win over Regina last weekend. The Bisons finished third in this year’s coaches poll, narrowly ahead of fourth place Regina. ​

The Alberta based teams will enter as underdogs, with poll results placing the Alberta Golden Bears fifth and the Calgary Dinos sixth. That’s sure to give both sides plenty of motivation as they look to return to the CW playoffs this season.

The eight-game CW regular season runs through Oct. 28, with semifinal playoff games set for Nov. 4.

The 2023 Hardy Cup will take place Nov. 11, hosted at the highest finishing seed.

(Canada West Communications)