Canada West Football Players of the week: Williams (UBC), Onyemata (Manitoba), Mark (Calgary) star in Week 7
Calgary’s Johnny Mark sets new all-time conference scoring record at 367 points.
Submitted. Canada West football was back in action over the weekend and battles for playoff positioning are becoming more important with each passing week. The Manitoba Bisons put the clamps on the favoured Saskatchewan Huskies at home, 41-8, while the Calgary Dinos looked primed for postseason in their 52-37 win over the Alberta Golden Bears. The weekend wrapped up with the UBC Thunderbirds coming out with a thrilling and crucial win over the Regina Rams, 33-32, on Shaw TV.
Pictured at right: Carson Williams. Photo by Bob Frid/UBC Athletics
UBC quarterback Carson Williams, Manitoba defensive tackle David Onyemata and Calgary kicker/punter Johnny Mark led the way for their squads and have been selected as the Canada West Players of the Week.
OFFENCE: #13 Carson Williams, Quarterback (UBC Thunderbirds)
Carson Williams led the UBC Thunderbirds to their second victory of the season throwing for 256 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-32 victory over Regina Saturday afternoon in Vancouver. He did not throw a single interception.
A fifth-year captain from Abbotsford, BC, Williams was 20-for-32 on the day throwing touchdown strikes of 20 yards, 37 yards, and nine yards in the Thunderbirds win. He also rushed for another 68 yards on just six carries.
This season Williams has thrown for 1,401 yards and seven touchdowns. He has also rushed for 189 yards on the year, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
Next up, UBC will be in Calgary on Saturday, October 25 to take on the Dinos.
DEFENCE: #97 David Onyemata, Defensive Tackle (Manitoba Bisons)
Manitoba Bisons defensive tackle David Onyemata was a force in the middle of the front four as the defence neutralized the #8 Saskatchewan Huskies by a 41-8 score in football action on Friday, October 17 at Investors Group Field (University of Manitoba campus).
The third year player had arguably his best game of his Bison career as he created havoc throughout the contest by disrupting runs and pass plays by one of the top teams in the country.
Onyemata finished with 5.5 tackles (four solo) with one tackle for a one-yard loss. The 6’5”, 310 lbs. veteran was a key component on a Bison defence that only allowed 200 total offence yards by the Huskies in the crucial home match.
The Lagos, Nigeria native set the tone early with 2.5 tackles in the first quarter when the game was still close. He added three more tackles in the third quarter.
Onyemata is tied for 22nd in total conference tackles at 24 and tied for sixth in Canada West with 3.5 tackles for losses in playing all six conference regular season games.
With the victory, Manitoba moves to 3-3 in the 2014 campaign and now faces the Regina Rams (1-5) on Saturday, October 25 at 3 p.m. CT.
SPECIAL TEAMS: #33 Johnny Mark, Kicker/Punter (Calgary Dinos)
Johnny Mark’s name keeps creeping up the scoring leaderboard at the CIS, Canada West and school levels – and he reached an important milestone Saturday.
At the 9:34 mark of the first quarter, Mark’s 24-yard field goal against Alberta vaulted him past Jamie Boreham to become Canada West’s all-time leading scorer, eclipsing the previous mark of 355 points. Mark went on to add another field goal as well as six converts, setting the new record at 367 points with two games remaining in the 2014 season.
The two field goals, from 24 and 26 yards, also move him to 63 on his career, eight back of former Dino Aaron Ifield’s conference record of 71.
A two-time first team All-Canadian at kicker, Mark was drafted by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in last spring’s CFL draft.
He and the Dinos will look to wrap up first place when they host UBC Saturday afternoon at McMahon Stadium in their final home game of the regular season.
About Canada West Universities Athletic Association
Canada West is the premier athletic conference in the country and is home to champion student-athletes that excel on the field, in the classroom and in their communities. As the winningest conference in the CIS with over 100 national championships in the past decade, Canada West and its 17 member institutions commit to a student-athlete experience where competitive excellence, scholarship and sportsmanship equally contribute into molding our future professional athletes and leaders. Find out more by logging on CanadaWest.org and following @CWUAA on Twitter.
Contact: Pic Ocampo