REGINA, Sask. — This Saturday afternoon (Sept. 26), University of Saskatchewan Huskies and the University of Regina Rams will meet on the gridiron for the 50th time in the history of their provincial rivalry. As always, the matchup is rich with storylines and heavy with the weight the result carries throughout the remainder of both team's seasons and the conference as a whole. Saskatchewan, ranked fifth in the nation, enters the contest coming off a rout of the Alberta Golden Bears while Regina, ranked seventh in U SPORTS, suffered their first loss last week on the road to UBC. With four teams teams sitting at 2-1 through three weeks, Saturday offers the opportunity for either team to gain a critical game up on an opponent with similar title aspirations.
Kick off at Mosaic stadium is set for 2:00 PM in Regina. The game will be broadcast live on CanadaWest.tv and SaskTel max TV (channels 49/349) with fans also having the options to listen online at HuskieFAN.ca or the HuskieFAN app.
Heading into Week 4 of the 2026 season Canada West Football has begun to take shape, with the Hardy Cup contenders beginning to separate themselves from the pack. Saskatchewan and Regina, the previous two conference champions, both came into the season with expectations of hanging another banner, making this week crucial for the two programs who are looking to ease their path and come out of the regular season as the top-seeded team.
The strengths of each squad seem obvious on paper. The Huskies offence has clearly found their footing after a slow start to the season, now averaging 43.7 points and over 500 yards per game. Just last week the team scored the third-most points in a single game in program history, putting up 65 in a rout of the Golden Bears in Edmonton. However, the Saskatchewan defence and special teams units have showed that they can compete as well, forcing five turnovers a week ago while the return game continues to be strength early in this season.
Regina meanwhile looks to once again be sporting one of the best defences in the country, giving up just 13.7 points this season. However they return home after allowing a come-from behind win to the UBC Thunderbirds in which the T-Birds gained 228 yards and 8.8 yards per carry on the ground.
Fans of both programs know however, that the way each team looks on paper matters little when they take the field together. In each of the previous five meetings, the margin of victory has not surpassed five points, and in the past three, the game has been decided by fewer than three. The only thing for certain is that the outcome of the game is sure to affect conference standings down the line and seeding for the two playoff hopefuls.
GAME NOTES
LEFT NO DOUBT: Saskatchewan picked up a dominant victory last weekend in Edmonton, recording the third-most points in a single game in program history with a 65-12 rout of the Golden Bears. The Huskies totaled 512 yards of offence, scored eight touchdowns, forced five turnovers, and earned two sacks.
REGROUPING RAMS: Regina returns home following their first loss of the 2026 season, a 20-25 defeat on the road to UBC. The Rams were held to their lowest rushing output of the season, generating just 103 net yards, while allowing 228 and 8.8 yards per carry to the T-Birds. UBC totaled 431 yards of offence in a contest which saw the home team outscore Regina 15-0 in the second half to comeback from down 20-10 at the break.
SASK O VS RAMS D: The feature matchup this Saturday will undoubtedly be the most Huskie offence going head-to-head with the Regina defence. Both units lead the conference in their respective categories, with the Dogs averaging 43.7 points and 508 yards per game and the Rams giving up just 13.7 and 327.3 on average. The two units each feature All-Canadian calibre talent as well. Saskatchewan is led by quarterback
Anton Amundrud with a wealth of depth at the skill positions while Regina features a veteran defence led by Carson Sombach, Brandon Wong, Jacob Tkachuk and Owen Zimmer.
REGINA GROUND GAME: While the two feature units are on the sidelines, another key matchup will be the Rams running game going up against the Huskie defensive front. Regina is producing 186.3 yards per game on the ground and 6.2 yards per carry, both ranking second in Canada West. The Sask front however, has allowed just 94.3 rushing yards through three games this season.
RECENT HEAVY WEIGHTS COLLIDE: In recent memory, Canada West has been decided between these two programs. They have met in the Hardy Cup twice in a row now, with each team having earned one conference championship. Additionally, over the course of the last two seasons, the five head-to-head matchsup have featured hard-hitting, tightly contested matchups with none being decided by more than five points.
A MILESTONE MEETING: This Saturday marks the 50th head-to-head meeting between the two programs. The Huskies and Rams first faced off in 1999 when Regina officially made their entry into Canada West. Since then the Huskies are 39-13 all-time against their provincial rivals but have fallen in four of the seven postseason meetings.
The Week 4 meeting also marks the first of the 2026-27 edition of the U-Prairie Challenge, which sees the University of Saskatchewan and University of Regina face off in a head-to-head competition across Football, Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball, Hockey, Cross Country, and Track & Field.
TOP 5: Fifth-year quarterback
Anton Amundrud continues to climb the program record books, seemingly moving up in one category or another with each passing week. This past week was not different as the field general went 13-for-19 for 285 yards and six touchdowns—the second most in a single game by a Huskie.
With the impressive outting in Edmonton, Amundrud moved into fourth in career passing yards, passing current Huskie offensive coordinator
Mason Nyhus. He now sits just 73 shy of 7,000 in his career and needs 227 to surpass Doug Siemens for fourth in Huskie history.
Now with 49 career passing touchdowns he also sits one shy of Drew Burko for fourth all-time and two shy of Nyhus in third.
ALONE AT NO. 5: Fifth-year receiver
Rhett Vavra also used the offensive rout to climb the record books. The pass catcher took sole possession of fifth in program history after hauling in his 15th and 161th caeer majors.
BELSHER MAKING A BID FOR R.O.Y.: Freshman receiver
Keaton Belsher has begun putting his bid for Rookie of the Year together. Through the first three games of his career, the Moose Jaw product leads Canada West with four receiving touchdowns and 23.1 yards per reception. His four majors are also tied for the most in the nation. Additionally, he ranks second in receiving yards (346) and fifth in receptions (15).
The last Huskie receiver to take home Rookie of the Year honours was slot back Scott McHenry in 2005.
A FAMILY AFFAIR: The 2026 Huskie Football roster features a remarkable 8 sets of brothers including Tyler and
Ethan Clazie, Tyrus and
Elias Flory, Porter and
Ryker Hanson, Nathan and
Thomas Jule, Sam and
Max Pratt, Mark and
Matthew Schroeder, Taz and
Sullivan Smith-Windsor, and David and
Daniel Tabien.
