Rams looking for win as Picton rewrites record books

Noah Picton is focusing on writing another ‘W’ in the win column for the University of Regina Rams, but on Saturday he could also write his name at the top of the U Sports record book.

Picton is only 278 yards away from claiming the top spot in the U Sports record book, a feat he could accomplish on Saturday as the team is in Winnipeg to take on the University of Manitoba Bisons. This year, Picton is averaging about 340 yards per contest.

While reaching the ranks as one of U Sports’ all-time bests, one of Picton’s earliest teammates isn’t surprised by the success the Regina-born quarterback has seen.

“I never doubted it, from that first play when we were in atom football, no one could throw the ball except Noah — even through high school, I knew every time he had the ball in his hands we had a shot to win the game,” said fellow fifth-year Ram Danny Nesbitt, who has been Picton’s teammate for over a decade.

Nesbitt said Picton has never seemed focused on the individual records.

“He lets the game speak for itself. I’d say other guys on the team are talking about it more and we’re all just excited for him. We know it’s going to happen here pretty soon, we all have full confidence that he’s going to get it and it’s going to be a fun day when that happens,” Nesbitt said.

Another person who knew Picton could be a special player is his current head coach, Stephen Bryce.

Bryce said he first got to get a look at the quarterback’s skill-set a year before he took over as the head coach when Picton was competing with Cayman Shutter for snaps.

“I remember watching when Noah got his reps on the field; I actually liked Noah’s mechanics a little better, I liked his vision down the field a little better and there’s just a whole bunch of intangibles. I thought he was a tiny bit edgier and more competitive — and he’s been all that and more,” Bryce said.

Both the Rams and the Bisons are sitting at 2-2 records in Canada-West, heading into Saturday’s game. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.