Following their worst performance of the season last week against Calgary, the T-Birds were facing immense pressure going into the matchup against the University of Regina Rams. While the ‘Birds accumulated an early 14-point deficit, the team was able to return to form with a strong second half, ultimately coming out on top 31–20.
In the opening quarter, the Thunderbirds looked like the same team that had fallen short a week ago. A stagnant offence paired with a porous rush defence led to Regina scoring on back-to-back drives. One play into the second quarter, UBC was already down 14–0.
When asked about his struggling offence, head coach Blake Nill pointed out their missed conversions on easy downs. “We’re shooting ourselves in the foot on offence a bit, and we just can’t do that. We probably left points on the board a couple times because we took big losses on second and short,” he said.
After the teams traded field goals to put the score at 17–3, Regina looked determined to establish a dominant three-score lead, with precise passes slicing through UBC’s zone coverage all the way to the UBC 13-yard line. However, after a great play by linebacker Ryan Baker forced a third and one, UBC’s defence came up big, stopping a Regina QB sneak to turn the ball over on downs.
That key defensive play seemed to be the spark the UBC offence needed. After the turnover, quarterback Garrett Rooker led an efficient drive that was capped off with a 27-yard Jason Soriano touchdown.
While the Thunderbirds went into the half down 17–10, the momentum had clearly swung their way. UBC took their first drive of the half for a touchdown to tie the game, before a go-ahead touchdown pass to Edgerrin Williams-Hernandez put the T-Birds up 24–17.
From there, the defence took over. A run defence that had gotten gashed in the first quarter suddenly looked solid, holding Regina to only a field goal in the second half. Nill was quick to praise his defensive coordinator, Pat Tracey, for this turnaround.
“[He] made some big adjustments at halftime, got his linemen stemming correctly. Coach Tracey made a big impact on this game.”
While that Regina field goal narrowed the score to 24–20, UBC unleashed a fake punt on their own side of the field to extend their next drive, leading to a 63-yard touchdown pass to Cesare Rednour-Bruckman on the very next play. That risky fake sealed the game for the T-Birds, who would maintain their 31–20 lead.
With a playoff berth now secured, the question is whether the T-Birds will get to play at home. If they win their last game of the season against the conference-leading University of Alberta Golden Bears, the 'Birds clinch the number one seed in the conference — and with it, home advantage. If they lose, they may not get a home playoff game at all.
That will all be decided on Saturday in Edmonton, when the T-Birds take on the Golden Bears at 12 p.m.