The Huskies are back at the top of Canada West.
Saskatchewan defeated the Manitoba Bisons 31-12 on Saturday afternoon at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon in the regular season finale to officially close out the year as the number one seed.
It's the first time the program has finished the regular season as the first seed since 2022 and will guarantee the Huskies home-field advantage through the Canada West playoffs.
Saskatchewan's rookie quarterback, Jake Farrell, got the start again for the third consecutive game and lit up the Bisons' defence, tossing for 200 yards and three touchdowns in the win.
Two of those touchdowns went to fifth-year receiver Daniel Wiebe, who officially set a new school record for career receiving touchdowns and career receptions by a Huskie.
The Bisons sat quarterback Jackson Tachinski in lieu of rookie Cole Anseeuw, who had the best stat line of his career so far with 262 passing yards and one passing touchdown on 15 of 29 completed passes.
Huskies claim top spot in Canada West
Saskatchewan began the week with the possibility of first place in the conference on the line, but by kickoff, that was no longer the case.
The Huskies officially locked up the number one seed in the conference after UBC defeated Regina the night before, rendering their Saturday matinee tilt with Manitoba meaningless in regards to the standings.
That did not stop Saskatchewan from going for the win, though.
The Huskies struck early with a five-yard dump pass to Ryker Frank from Jake Farrell, scrambling to his left, that Frank took into the end zone and followed that up with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Wiebe to take a 14-0 lead into the second quarter.
Wiebe stayed hot and caught another touchdown before the half ended to set a new school record for career receiving touchdowns. Manitoba responded by marching down the field for a 73-yard drive in what was easily their most memorable moment in the half, and kicked a 13-yard field goal to get on the board before the half ended.
Down 21-3 entering the third quarter, the game was starting to slip out of the Bisons' reach. There was little going Manitoba's way, and without some crucial starters in the lineup, the Bisons needed to act fast.
The two traded field goals in the third quarter before Manitoba connected on their first touchdown of the game on a 23-yard lob pass from Anseeuw to De Shawn Le Jour to close out the frame down 24-12.
Both teams had chances in the fourth quarter, but there was little momentum going in either team's direction. It wasn't until under three minutes left that it looked as if the Bisons were going to score another touchdown and close the gap even more, before a forced fumble from Saskatchewan defensive back Lucas Scheck resulted in a 72-yard fumble recovery touchdown and sealed the game.
The Huskies cruised to a 31-12 victory and officially closed out their regular season undefeated at home for the second consecutive year — the last regular-season loss at Griffiths Stadium happened back on Oct. 21, 2023, against the Calgary Dinos.
Up next
Saskatchewan Huskies (7-1): Nov. 1 vs UBC Thunderbirds
Manitoba Bisons (4-4): Nov. 1 @ Regina Rams