VANCOUVER – It went right down to the wire, but in the end it was the UBC Thunderbirds who prevailed, handing the No. 2 Saskatchewan Huskies their first loss of the season — a 35-29 defeat on Saturday afternoon at Thunderbird Stadium.
With just 44 seconds remaining, the Huskies drove 71 yards in search of a go-ahead score. With the ball spotted at the Thunderbirds 17-yard-line and the clock reading 0:02 — a Mason Nyhus heave to the end zone on the final play of the game fell incomplete and UBC moved to 4-3.
"We ended up making one more than they did," said Thunderbirds head coach Blake Nill.
Despite already having first-place in the Canada West clinched, the Huskies saw their hopes of an undefeated season fall short. On the other side of the sidelines, a three touchdown performance from running back Isaiah Knight punched UBC's ticket to the playoffs for the second-straight season.
In a losing effort, Nyhus continued his sensational fifth-year campaign. The Regina, Sask. product threw for 441 yards and three touchdowns on 33-49 passing in what was the final away game of his Canada West career.
Daniel Wiebe had 133 of those yards from Nyhus, as he caught six passes — including a 73-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Rhett Vavra and Caleb Morin also found the end zone, with Morin's 25-yard major coming as the first of his Huskies career.
In a game where the first half saw 41 points on the board, the second half was a bit of a different story. Saskatchewan entered the third quarter trailing by three, before taking a 29-22 lead with the Vavra seven-yard major.
UBC quarterback Derek Engel, who stepped up following the injury of starter Garrett Rooker, threw for 160 yards and two touchdowns — including a game-tying major to Shemar McBean with just 2:15 left on the clock.
The Thunderbirds went on to add a pair of field goals off the foot of Kieran Flannery-Fleck in the final two minutes of the game to take a six-point lead — a lead that would eventually stand as the difference.
UBC will take on the Regina Rams, who clinched second place in the conference earlier in the day with a win over the Dinos, in the Hardy Cup semifinal at Mosaic Stadium
Saskatchewan will meet Calgary in the final week of the regular-season next Saturday at Griffiths, before starting their own postseason journey.
The Huskies will either play host to the Manitoba Bisons or Alberta Golden Bears. If the Bisons win, they clinch the fourth-and-final playoff spot. The Golden Bears need a win, paired with a Bisons loss, in order to make the November trip to Saskatoon.
Tickets are available for the regular-season finale, as well as Hardy Cup playoffs at HuskieTickets.com
