It was a dismal performance by the University of Manitoba Bisons on Friday night at IG Field in their season opener.
The No. 6-ranked Herd lost 33-23 to the visiting Regina Rams by repeatedly shooting themselves in the foot.
“It’s tough, man. It’s one of those games where we left some stuff on the field, made some mental mistakes, but it’s good. It’s going to really help us lock in these next couple weeks,” said third-year Bisons receiver AK Gassama.
Daniel Crump / Winnipeg Free Press
Rams receiver Riley Boersma is tackled by Bisons defensive back Nick Conway as the University of Manitoba Bisons take on the University of Regina Rams at IG Field Friday night.
“You come in and have expectations, but I think this is going to be good for us so we can just lock it in and take it to the next level.”
The Bisons will need to find the next level as the one they were at on Friday was far from where they need to be. Things started out OK as they took a 17-13 into half-time, although they shouldn’t have as Regina receiver D’Sean Mimbs had a perfect pass from quarterback Noah Pelletier bounce off his hands in the end zone at the end of the second quarter. The U of M would see their good fortune turn in the third quarter when a bouncing snap by long snapper Dolan Hills led to Niko Di Fonte having his punt blocked and taken back for a Regina touchdown by defensive back Jaxon Ford. Hills also had a poor snap in the first half, leading to Di Fonte getting sacked on a punt attempt to put the Rams in position for an easy field goal a few plays later.
The special teams unit don’t deserve all of the blame, though. Senior quarterback Des Catellier, who was making his first start since Week 1 last season when he tore his ACL and meniscus at home against Regina, wasn’t at his best. He had flashes, such as hitting Gassama for a 61-yard score in the first quarter, but he had several misfires that hurt the Bisons deeply. Late in the third quarter, Gassama beat his defender for what should’ve been his second touchdown of the game, but Catellier’s pass was underthrown and intercepted. Catellier had another shot at a long touchdown minutes into the fourth with Brent Adams wide open down the sidelines, but this time, the veteran passer overthrew him.
Catellier rebounded with less than nine minutes remaining in the game by connecting with running back Breydon Stubbs for a 25-yard touchdown to cut Regina’s lead to 32-23. But the Herd couldn’t get anything going after that, and Catellier closed out the game with Rams linebacker Ryder Varga picking off a pass that was nowhere near a Bisons receiver.
Catellier was outduelled by an opposing quarterback who had zero career starts before Friday. Pelletier is a freshman coming off a redshirt year.
The Bisons had more than 100 penalty yards on the night. Their most back-breaking penalty came in the third quarter when linebacker Nick Thomas scampered to the end zone after scooping a fumble near midfield. It was a play the Bisons desperately needed, but it didn’t count as the Herd were flagged for being offside.
“We talk about it all the time. In the Canada West, it’s about limiting mistakes and making the most of opportunities,” Gassama said. “Unfortunately, we had a lot of mistakes, a lot of penalty yards, and I think we just got to capitalize on our opportunities, but they’re there. So, we have to look forward as there’s a lot of work to be put in.”
Game stats were not available by press deadline.
In other Canada West action, the Saskatchewan Huskies — who beat the Bisons in the Hardy Cup last season — demolished the Calgary Dinos 44-5 on the road.
The Bisons will hope for a better result next Friday when they’re in Edmonton to take on the Alberta Golden Bears.
Twitter: @TaylorAllen31
Taylor Allen
Reporter
Eighteen years old and still in high school, Taylor got his start with the Free Press on June 1, 2011. Well, sort of…
Read full biography
