Courtesy: Huskie Athletics

By Wray Morrison

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A pointless second half hurts the Huskies

Nov 9, 2024 | 7:29 PM

There was no late game magic for the Huskie football team on Saturday afternoon, as the Regina Rams defeated Saskatchewan 19-14 in the 87^th edition of the Hardy Cup at Griffiths Stadium. The Huskies, who a week earlier scored a game winning touchdown in the final minute in a conference semi-final for the win, did not score a point in the final 32 minutes of the conference final on home turf. When asked for his reaction, Huskie head coach, Scott Flory, said, “It’s shock to be honest with you.”

The U of S took a 14-1, first half, lead thanks to a pair of Daniel Wiebe touchdown catches. Quarterback Anton Amundrud connected with Wiebe on 13-yard pass in the opening quarter, then hit Wiebe again on a 7-yard toss later in the opening half. The Rams did manage to stay in the game with a handful of big plays late in the second quarter. With the score 14-4, Regina capitalized on a turnover as defensive back Jackson Sombach took an interception return to the Saskatchewan 16-yard line. Four plays later receiver Emmett Steadman hauled in a five-yard pass from Noah Pelletier and it was 14-11 at the half.

Saskatchewan struggled to move the ball in the third quarter. Then, the Rams made the Huskies pay for another miscue. Amundrud threw another interception, which Carson Sombach returned 45 yards for a touchdown with 6:45 left to go in in the third quarter. “We just got in quicksand with turnovers and couldn’t get out of our own way”, said Flory.

The challenges continued in the fourth quarter as Jacob Tkachuk registered Regina’s third interception of the day with 7:57 remaining, then a last-ditch Huskie drive ended when Collin McKellar had a fourth interception deep in Saskatchewan territory with 21 seconds to go.

Regina’s defense not only generated turnovers but held conference leader Ryker Frank in check, limiting him to 79 yards in total offense. When asked about the offensive struggled, Flory said, “We’ve got to find a way to be more consistent, maybe we didn’t adjust well enough.”

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Pelletier had 228 yards in passing with one touchdown for Regina, while Christian Katende had 98 yards on the ground. For the Huskies, Amundrud had 230 yards in passing with the two touchdowns and four interceptions.

There are six players who now graduate from the U of S program. Defensive backs Katley Joseph, offensive lineman John Kourtis and former Saskatoon Hilltop Jayson Kehler leave after transferring to the U of S, while receiver Jesse Kuntz and defensive backs Cam Skinner and Aidan Sommacal graduate after spending their entire post high school careers with the Huskies. “Our program was better by having those guys in it”, said Flory.

The Rams now host the Laval Rouge et Or in the Mitchell Bowl on November 16 at Mosaic Stadium.

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wray.morrison@pattisonmedia.com

X: @wraymorrison