Class still in for Bisons coach Dobie
Article content
Brian Dobie is living many new experiences this year despite being a football coach for several decades.
They're not much fun, either.
Earlier this season Dobie's University of Manitoba Bisons blew an 11 point lead against the Regina Rams with less than two minutes to go. He couldn't recall that happening before.
On Friday night in Vancouver, the Bisons went to quadruple overtime for the first time and lost to the UBC Thunderbirds 53-50 to fall to 2-3 in Canada West play.
“It's been a crazy year. It's been interesting,” Dobie said Saturday from Vancouver, where he remained to do some recruiting. “Quadruple overtime. That's a first. I hadn't gone through that one yet. It was really, really exciting and a great game to be involved in, but not at the end of the fourth overtime it wasn't. To push it all that way and not get it done ...”
The Bisons led 19-13 at the half and 30-23 in the fourth quarter, but the defending Vanier Cup champs fought back to force extra time at 30-30. Both teams scored touchdowns in the first session, and they followed that up with field goals in the second. They exchanged TDs once again in the third OT, and it was at this point that Dobie would have done things differently.
“We briefly discussed at the end of the third overtime when we had the second possession – and I regret not doing it – going for two,” Dobie said. “When you break it down, we need a score from the five yard line. If we kick the convert it ties us and puts us into the fourth overtime.”
Dobie elected to indeed kick the convert to send it to a fourth OT session. The Bisons went first and Brad Mikoluff kicked a 38-yard field goal, but the Thunderbirds responded with Michael O'Connor's 35 yard touchdown pass to Trivel Pinto to win the game.
“With the ball at the five yard line and a chance to finish the game, if you break it down to that moment you probably have a better opportunity (to win) than going into the next overtime frame and giving their offence a chance to continue to roll,” Dobie said. “And they were really rolling on us at that point. In hindsight it would've been the smarter play, win or lose.”
Bisons quarterback Theo Deezar completed 33 of 48 attempts for 368 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions. Shai Ross, Riley Harrison and Ethan Diakow caught TD passes in regulation time, while Trysten Dyce and Marquise Thompson hauled in majors in OT. Mikoluff booted four field goals, his longest from 42 yards.
The injury bug continued to bite the Herd, as Ross went down early in the second half. That came one week after receiver Jesse Walker got hurt in a win over the Saskatchewan Huskies.
“Those were our two vertical guys, and we're a very vertical offence,” Dobie said. “And suddenly you could just see everything change.”
The Bisons were missing 11 starters due to injury by the time Friday night's game ended. They could get back as many as five for their next game, which is in two weeks in Calgary against the Dinos (5-1).
“I know I sound like I'm making excuses, but I've never experienced this,” Dobie said. “And yet we just came off two big wins and a quadruple overtime 53-50 loss being down 11 starters. At this level of football, that's a huge statement about how hard we're playing.”
kpenton@postmedia.com
twitter.com/PentonKirk
tap here to see other videos from our team.
