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Possibly the unlikeliest Canada West rivalry is shaping up in Edmonton.
The University of Regina Rams charge into the Alberta Golden Bears home territory Friday night to face a squad one of the Rams' biggest stars doesn’t much care for. Defensive back Jackson Sombach is in his final year after being selected by the Calgary Stampeders in the 2024 CFL Draft but it isn’t that Calgary connection that has his fire burning to playing the Edmonton Elks look-alikes.
“I really dislike U of A. They're one of the teams that I despise playing the most,” Sombach said. “I think they're just a very dirty team. I always get fired up playing them, I know the boys do too. They're a very physical football team and they like to use the physicality during and after the whistle. So, the boys have got to be prepared.”
It’s a crucial mid-season match up with far-reaching implications for this topsy-turvy Canadian university season. At 2-1 the Rams trail Manitoba in the Canada West standings and lead everybody else who are at 1-2. The Rams are off to one of their best starts in recent memory but were humbled in their last day at the park, a 14-12 home loss to UBC. Sombach doesn’t think he or his teammates needed any humbling but admits the sting of that defeat adds another log to their fire.
“Losing obviously sucks but something to learn from. I think it's a loss that we didn't necessarily need, but I think it gives us a little bit of a wake-up call. We're not invincible, we're not untouchable. There's still lots of people that can beat us. I think it gives you the extra motivation to come back, like, hey, 7-and-1 is our new goal now, so got to come back and try to win this week.”
It’s entirely possible the Rams could finish the weekend in first place if Regina can beat Alberta and Manitoba were to lose in Calgary on Saturday. Although, as far as needing motivation to beat the Golden Bears, it’s never a problem for Sombach.
“It's an easy game to get psyched up for because they like chirping so it kind of brings you up to that extra level.”
