Saturday, Oct. 23 the Dinos football team met the Simon Fraser University Clansmen on a very snowy McMahon Field. In front of over 900 cold and shivering, but brave fans, the Dinos let a victory slide through their slippery fingers.

The game began promisingly--once the game actually began that is, it was delayed over an hour due to heavy snow fall. Most people would dread having to go out into the cold to blow snow, but not our Dinos. They were ready for snow, whereas the closest thing to snow SFU had even seen was the snotty rain that is Vancouver's pitiful attempt at winter.

The battle seemed at first like there was no contest. The Dinos were making passes, running up yards and putting points on the board left, right and center. It didn't seem to matter that no one could see the lines on the field, let alone the other side of the stadium. Our Dinos were stomping up and down that field with no problem. Just seven minutes into the first quarter defensive back and kicker Ryan Saurette put Calgary on the scoreboard with a 17-yard field goal, bringing the score to 3-0. It was also in the first quarter that Saurette snatched an interception and ran for 26 yards. Unfortunately, the Dinos lost possession of the ball due to an illegal block penalty.

"The snow helped us a lot. We had practiced all week in similar conditions and it really didn't affect our playing ability at all, whereas Simon Fraser was falling apart," said Saurette. "It's too bad the snow stopped!"

It really was too bad the snow stopped, because it seemed that once SFU was blessed with sun they were able to pull their panties off and play like men.

Calgary's only touchdown came late in the first half. Quarterback Charles Guedo blasted a 49-yard pass to receiver Joel Ford, who caught the ball on the one-yard line. Ford went on to finish the game, catching six passes for 119 yards. Running back and offensive player of the game Jeff Williams then topped off the six-play, 80-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run. Williams finished the game with 31 carries for 166 yards.

Regrettably, that was the end of the Dinos good luck. After the Clansmen caught up, the Dinos managed just two very frustrating (and questionable) missed touchdown runs. Thus, the Dinos were forced to finish the game with a two point deficit and SFU took the win 14-12.

"It's frustrating to play so well as a team and have such a poor outcome. We played well between the goal lines but we had problems scoring," said wide receiver Dave Holowaychuk. "To win you need to put points on the board. We couldn't. All I can say is the evidence is in the snow."

And frustrated they should be. The goal line seemed to represent an impenetrable wall. Calgary drove to the SFU seven-yard line where Guedo tossed a beautiful pass to Holowaychuk in the end zone. However, the refs must have been too busy sipping their hot cocoa to bother paying attention to the clear butt print found in the snow well within the end zone. Needless to say, the touchdown didn't count.

I'm not one to lay blame on referees, but I'm pretty sure we were sent the basketball refs by mistake on Saturday afternoon because these boys knew nothing about football. I'm even convinced they weren't sure which part of the field was end zone and which part was regular playing ground. I understand that these things happen, but when you have five inches of snow to show you where players land, how hard can it be to call a play in or out? Granted I've been told I'm just a silly girl that knows nothing about football! So what would I know?

Anyway, while the score may not have shown it, Calgary dominated the contest statistically. Despite the fact that they were snowed under by turnovers and a few fumbles, overall our men in red did remarkably well. The Dinos had 464 yards in net offense while SFU only was able to muster a mere 365 yards.

Linebacker and defensive player of the game D.J. Wickham had an astounding nine solo tackles, bringing his two-game total to 17.

When asked about his amazing progress, he humbly replied; "I really have nothing to do with it. If I didn't have such a great defensive line in front of me I wouldn't be able to get to the offense. We only block one play at a time and hope we do it right. We worked hard this game and next game we'll just have to work harder."

"The snow helped the defense considerably because SFU couldn't keep their hands on the ball," commented linebacker Jeff Montgomery. "The ball was slippery and it made it easier to block passes and knock out runs. It's disappointing but to give them some credit they are a good team. They just happened to be the better one on Saturday."

The Dinos are now tied with SFU in Canada West standings. Both teams are now sitting with a 3-3 record and looking to win this weekend. If the Dinos want to make playoffs, SFU must lose their game against the University of Manitoba Bisons while our boys must win their game against the University of British Columbia. The Dinos face UBC Sat., Oct. 30 with hopes of snatching the fourth and final playoff spot.