Morning rounds ... Izzy hurt, Franklin fitting, seeing off SFU and splendid sobriquets

Simon Fraser goes south

• Canadian Interuniversity Sport CEO Marg McGregor's reaction:
  

  "CIS has viewed the NCAA's decision to open their membership to Canadian schools as a catalyst for positive change within CIS. We have approved an aggressive plan to make CIS better and ensure we deliver value to CIS member universities."

  To quote Marshall Eriksen, "Come on guys, don't let it be awkward. It's only awkward if we make it awkward." The rub is this should be a catalyst for change. (The Canadian Press)

Football

• All the attention on Western's Da'Shawn Thomas might have meant people have missed the backstory with Saint Mary's defensive end DeVon Hicks, who had a free-agent tryout with the Green Bay Packers two seasons ago. (Halifax Herald)


• In the NFL, Chicago Bears d-lineman Israel Idonije (Manitoba) is on the limp with a knee injury. (Chicago Tribune)
  
  
• Wideout Arjei Franklin (Windsor) is taking a lot of first-team reps during his first week with the Calgary Stampeders. (Calgary Herald)
  
  
• Sandy Beveridge (UBC) is starting at safety for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats due to experience, but it might just a matter of when until Dylan Barker (U of S Huskies) moves into that spot. Barker is leading the CFL in special teams tackles. (Hamilton Spectator)
  
  
• No. 3 Saskatchewan and a healthy Tyler O'Gorman will look to test that undersized Alberta defensive line and linebacker corps on Friday night. (Huskie Football Outsider)
  
  
• Saturday's University Rush game with No. 2 Western and No. 10 Guelph "promises to be a shootout," writes Morris Dalla Costa, although some spidey-senses are saying the Mustangs will try to play a ball-control game on the slow grass surface at the U of G's Alumni Stadium.
  
  Choice quote from Paul Gleason, the Western defensive coordinator:

  "You hear all about the wildcat and these things but we get (Guelph QB Justin) Dunk every play ... He's better out of the pocket than in the pocket."

  There will be a Western-Guelph liveblog on Saturday. Come one, come all, please.
  
  
• Rob Maver quitely became Guelph's career scoring leader two weeks ago. (Guelph Mercury)
  
  
• Allez Les Bleus! is calling U de M Carabins running backs Olivier Renière and Rotrand Séné "Rock 'n' Roll."
  
  (This is of course calls to mind The Simpsons when Bart slipped the church organist sheet music for a hymn called "In The Garden of Eden ... by I. Ron Butterfly." About 17 minutes later, Reverend Lovejoy clues in: "Wait a minute, this sounds like rock and/or roll!")
  

Basketball

• Can Jamal Williams, Jeff Lukomski and a veteran core take the Regina Cougars on a post-season run? The two-division format in Canada West could help the Cougs' cause. (cishoops.ca)
  
  
• Former UBC T-Birds basketball player Avtar Bains, now a Vancouver realtor, is helping lead Canada's fundraising efforts for the 2010 Commonweath Games. If memory serves, there is another major international sporting event in 2010 that is weighing on the minds of people on the West Coast. (Vancouver Sun)
  
  
• Georgia Tech has cancelled its October trip to Windsor. (cishoops.ca)

Hockey

• Coach Kevin Hamlin's Windsor Lancers missed the OUA playoffs by a point last winter under the old six-team, unbalanced-schedule format, so it bears watching how its record might change.
  
  Of note: The Lancers have added all-name team candidate Christian Steingraber from Plymouth of the OHL and have nine forwards back, including Jonathan Sciacca, an ex-Kingston Frontenac. (Windsor Star)
  
  
• Nipissing coach Mike McParland has filled 14 slots on his depth chart (top eight forwards, top four defencemen and the two goalies). The yearlings from North Bay have their first exhibition road trip this weekend. (Sun Media)
  

Media coverage

• Defending University Cup champion UNB will have 20 games on radio and another nine broadcast province-wide by Rogers. This site's own David Kilfoil is the colour man for the radio broadcasts. (UNB Hockey Fans)
  
  
• Carleton men's basketball coach Dave Smart (Tuesday, 11:25 a.m.) and men's hockey coach Fred Parker (10:50 a.m.) will each be regular guests on TEAM 1200 in Ottawa throughout the season.