RAMS’ SEASON ON THE LINE VS ALBERTA

KICKOFF: Saturday, Nov. 1 (2:00 p.m.)
SITE: Mosaic Stadium (Regina, Sask.)
CAPACITY: 33,427
RANKINGS: Alberta NR, Regina NR
TELEVISION: Access7 (Mitchell Blair/PxP, Gary “Chop” Bresch/CC)
REGINA RADIO: 620 CKRM (Michael Ball/PxP, Marco Ricci/CC)
LIVE VIDEO: www.canadawest.tv

Game Keys
• The Rams can enter the playoffs with either one of two scenarios – they can beat Alberta by at least two points combined with Manitoba (vs. Calgary) and Saskatchewan (at UBC) wins to finish fourth, or they can beat Alberta by at least 19 points combined with Calgary and UBC wins to finish third
• As well as being the final Canada West home game for retiring head coach Frank McCrystal, this will also be the last one for seven Rams in their final season of CIS eligibility – Landon Buch, Dillon Dawson, Justin Edralin, Patrick MacDonald, Jared Janotta, Cayman Shutter, and Dean Viena

SCOREBOARD WATCHING: The two other Week 8 Canada West games will also be played on Saturday – and both will help decide whether or not the Rams will reach the postseason with a victory over Alberta:
• If Calgary and UBC both win on Saturday, the Rams will finish in third place in the Canada West standings if they defeat Alberta by at least 19 points – the Rams would then play at Saskatchewan in the Canada West semifinals (Nov. 7, 7 p.m.)
• If Manitoba and Saskatchewan both win on Saturday, the Rams will finish in fourth place in the Canada West standings if they defeat Alberta by at least two points – they would then travel to Calgary for a Canada West semifinal game (Nov. 8, 2 p.m.)
• The Calgary/Manitoba game kicks off at 1 p.m. Saskatchewan time, with the Saskatchewan/UBC game scheduled for a 3 p.m. start

JANOTTA WATCH: Jared Janotta became Canada West’s all-time leader in receptions last game, surpassing former teammate Mark McConkey’s old record of 180. He’s now got 183 with one conference game remaining in his career, which is the ninth-highest total in CIS history (see right). Janotta is also close to Chad Goldie’s University of Regina record of 2458 career receiving yards, as he needs just 28 more to pass that mark.

RICHARDS REPORT: Addison Richards now has 49 catches for 803 yards this season, leading Canada West in both categories and ranking second in the nation with an average of 114.7 receiving yards per game. Richards is within reach of a pair of school single-season receiving records, including Goldie’s receptions mark (54 in 2007) and Chris Bauman’s yards record (923 in 2006). He’s also only 10 catches away from the Canada West single-season record of 59 shared by Calgary’s Josh Borger (1983) and Alberta’s Tylor Henry (2013).

RAMS IN THE PROS: The Rams currently boast three former players in the NFL, including P Jon Ryan (Seattle), DL Akiem Hicks (New Orleans), and DL Stefan Charles (Buffalo). Four University of Regina products are currently on CFL active rosters, including OL Brett Jones with Calgary and SB Chris Getzlaf and OL Brendon LaBatte with Saskatchewan. FB Neal Hughes remains on Saskatchewan’s six-game injured list, while SB Chris Bauman was added to Calgary’s practice roster on Wednesday and DL Micheal Dadzie (Ottawa), OL Chris Mercer (Edmonton), and DL Ryan Wellman (Saskatchewan) are also on practice rosters.

CONFERENCE LEADERS: Richards leads Canada West in two major receiving categories including receptions (49) and receiving yards (774), while Noah Picton’s 104-yard pass to Mitch Thompson last game stands as the longest play from scrimmage in a conference game this season. Defensive end Tyler Perkins also leads the conference with three fumble recoveries.

QUARTERBACKS
• First-year QB Noah Picton is expected to get his third start of the season – he was 17-for-24 last game for 368 yards and three TDs after replacing Cayman Shutter in the second quarter
• Picton has a 63.2% completion rate this year and has 1562 passing yards and 10 TDs
• Shutter was injured in Saturday’s game while scrambling for a career-long 51-yard gain, the longest run by a quarterback in the Rams’ history at the CIS level
• Frankie Gray is third on the depth chart at QB, while fourth-year SB Landon Buch usually serves as the team’s quarterback in short-yardage situations

(Courtesy U of R Athletics)