The Dawn of a New Era

A new king has been crowned. The long and exhaustive (and drama-filled) search for a head coach is finally complete as the Roughriders introduced Corey Chamblin as head coach.

I'll admit it. Chamblin wasn't really on my list of contenders. Not sure why.

Okay. I know why. It's just... he's a defensive coordinator. And there is a prevailing theory in CFL circles that defensive-minded coaches don't fair as well. (The notable exceptions are Don Matthews and Wally Buono.)

That doesn't mean Chamblin (pronounced CHAYM-blin, thank you Jamie Nye!) can't be successful. It just means there are a lot of winning coaches out there who come from a background of offensive coordination.

Okay. So I said it. I got out that beef right out there in the open.

BUT... after reading his bio and listening to the press conference I am a little more enthused. 

Several things impressed me from the presser... First, he talked to Darian beforehand to make sure they could work together. Like wow. I don't think Marshall talked to the players for several months after being hired - til they showed up at training camp. If then.

Chamblin added he was excited to come to Saskatchewan to work with Darian because he's an elite QB. Good, good. Nice to see a coach paying his respects. You can't get respect if you don't first give it.

The second thing that got me excited was the power that has been given to him to hire his own personnel. Yippee! I was totally doing the Snoopy happy dance over that one!

Give GM Brendan Taman a gold star! There is no way on earth any head coach should be forced to choose someone already in a position just because "That's the way it's always been... blah blah blah." If the new coach wants to keep a guy around and they are effective at what they're doing, then by all means... But let him have a clean slate and start assembling the pieces to create a winning team on the sidelines.

(If nothing else, the new coach can never use the excuse they had less than a fair shot. Right, Marshall?)

I can hardly wait to see who he unveils as his staff. He wouldn't tip his hand even a little as to which shoulders he'll be tapping in the football world, but he definitely mentioned hiring an offensive coordinator and a QB coach. Right on! Have I not been saying this is what Darian needs and was sorely missing last year?! Please make it so, Number One!

As well, he will NOT be filling the role of defensive coordinator. Whew! That was something I was worried about right off the top. I hate it when coaches try to do too many things. So kudos for Chamblin for knowing enough to give the reins to someone else. Let's just pray he finds the right someone else. 

And last but not least, there was more enthusiasm in the press conference to announce the new head coach than I've seen at a Rider presser in a long, long time. You could feel it. Excitement crackled in the room. The passion and energy from Coach Chamblin was contagious and it rippled through the organization. He genuinely wants to be here in Saskatchewan.

He compared Saskatchewan to his home state of Alabama. And in the middle of December he wasn't being ironic either! He said it felt like "home".

Isn't that sweet?

So the whole business about coming from the defensive side of the ball, may not be such a detriment when there so many positives.

I've always said nothing is impossible. Impossible just means it's never been done before. Just because something has never been done before, doesn't mean it can't be done. And clearly it can as we have two stellar examples of championship teams being coached by former defensive coordinators turned head coaches.

Judging from Chamblin's resume, the glowing endorsements (from Mike Tomlin no less, holy crap!), and his charismatic presence I believe if any defensive coordinator can make the leap from defense to head coach successfully it's Chamblin.


Heck, after watching the press conference, I was ready to jump on the field and make stuff happen for this guy!

There will be the inevitable comparisons to Marshall, of course, but I think judging from the press conference and the few quotes I've caught from Chamblin's radio interview, I think he blew Marshall out of the water. I think Marshall was still standing on shore with his rubber dingy whining about the water being too cold. In that way, Chamblin might be at a distinct advantage. After all Marshall didn't exactly set the bar very high.

Yeah, it's on folks. Countdown to training camp starts now.

Cheer long. Cheer loud! Go GREEN!

Ka-boom!

There goes another bombshell in the off-season! Something no one could have predicted even 24 hours before it happened.

In today's CFL As-the-spiral-turns Ricky Ray was dealt to Argos today in a blockbuster trade. Twitter exploded, along with a few heads.

I'm certain I'm not the only one who wondered what in the world got into Eric Tillman's head to trade away their franchise quarterback for QB Steven Jyles, a kicker and first round draft pick. Like whuzzah? Steven Jyles (no disrespect) is no Ricky Ray.

But then again, he did trade away Grey Cup MVP Kerry Joseph in '07 to... oddly enough... Toronto as well.

We all questioned his intelligence then. Or at the very least sniffed the coffee he was drinking. I'm still not sure the value of trading away our all-star QB leaving us with two untested back ups (Darian Durant and Steven Jyles, FYI) at the same time as he was preaching "Dynasty!" in Regina.

And I'm still not convinced of the value of this trade for Edmonton.

Now you may be wondering why this matters at all to a blogger who remains a steadfast Roughrider fan. Why should I care about a trade involving two teams I hate?

(Although to be honest "hate" may be a strong term, because really I can barely summon up enough energy to mildly dislike TO most days... they just don't matter much at all.)

There's a very good reason to care about the Evil Empire, though. Eric Tillman is a very wily general manager. If he's making salary cap room (Ricky Ray's salary is rumored to be between $300,000-$400,000) you gotta wonder what else he's got cooking.

Especially given the rumor (and it's just a rumor) that ET was planning on taking a run at one of Saskatchewan's most prized receivers - a rumor he hotly denied just last week. Still it does make a person wonder whether there's another piece of footwear ready to fall somewhere in the league.

The good part of this news... the Schmoes just got a lot easier to beat in 2012. At least for the moment.

In other CFL news... the B.C. Lions will announce Mike Benevides as head coach tomorrow and the Stumps have some sort of player announcement planned for tomorrow as well. What it is is anybody's guess!

This off-season continues to surprise and confound. And meanwhile the search for head coach for the Green and White continues. I hope there is at least some news on this front by week's end.

Grab, your popcorn folks, this ride ain't over yet! Another six and a half months to go til training camp.

Cheer long. Cheer loud! Go GREEN!

Restarting in the off-season

I’ve been waiting to re-start posting on this blog until the Riders announced their new head coach. I figured the dawn of a new era on the sidelines would be a great opportunity to re-boot the Sask Riders Chick Blog and apologize for being so incredibly absent from the blog world.

I waited and I waited. And I figure we’re nine days past Grey Cup… good enough!

So I apologize. Let’s talk football! There’s been so much happening in the CFL off-season in the last 10 days.

We’ve had Toronto hire Scott Milanovich, Chris Jones (paying a $5000 fine in the process), and that other guy.

We’ve had Marcel Bellefeuille fired from the Ti-Cats, Kent Austin interviewing for his job and Mr. Wally retiring from coaching.

Is your head spinning? Every day it’s a new story. It’s like a soap opera.

So about Kent Austin interviewing with the Tiggers… meh. It was bound to happen. Kent likes to bounce around a lot and I didn’t ever think he would return here to Saskatchewan. I mean the man has achieved god-like status here, what more has he got to prove?

He’s responsible for two out of our three franchise Grey Cups. If he did return, mayor Fiacco would probably give him the key to the city, name a street after him and throw a parade. And then what?

Exactly.

He’s got to find a way to win and anything less than Grey Cup glory would be a major bitter pill for Rider fans. He’d be vilified no matter what he did or accomplished and he’d live in a fishbowl with the most rabid fans in the world watching and dissecting his every move.

Don’t get me wrong… I’ve love for him to plant his butt back in Regina. I just don’t think it will happen and if you look at it from his perspective, you can see why Hamilton is such a big juicy prospect.

Let’s see… choose a team bitter with three years of frustrated championship hopes, coming off the worst year in franchise history and the firing of a coach just a few months into a three year contract, where anything less than absolute perfection is unacceptable.

Or… sign on with a team who’s fans are hungry for victory, coming off a good (albeit not great) season where they knocked off the incumbent champs and had a serious shot at the Big Dance for the first time in several years – a team that is thisstinkingclose to being a serious threat in the league – where a homeplayoff game would see grateful fans swooning and a Grey Cup parade nothing short of miraculous.

Which would you choose?

Trust me. If Kent does return to the CFL he won’t be wearing green. (Sorry. I speak the truth!)

And about Mr. Wally. Classy guy. Great coach. Sooo glad he’s gone. Though I must admit the chanting and heckling when he visits Mosaic will be missed.

However, he’s faced with the toughest job around – just ask Ken Miller. He has to hire his replacement. And work with his replacement. Hmm… a much beloved coach sitting in the office upstairs while his players get used to a new guy. Seems fraught with pitfalls, doesn’t it? I do not envy him the task. As Rider fans can attest, it’s not as easy as one would think. And to them I say good-stinkin’-luck.

And as far is our head coach search. I’m not a Taman-hater. I don’t think we’ve seen what he can do yet. I think, in a way, his hands have been tied for the last few years and I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Seriously, how badly could he screw things up?

We start the season 0-7? Been there.

We fire our head coach mid-season? Done that.

We finish the season with our worst record in history? Been there. Done that. Survived.

I think most Rider fans are pragmatic enough to understand that a Grey Cup appearance next season (while nice) isn’t likely. We’ve got some rebuilding to do and if it takes a couple of seasons, so be it. So I’m willing to cut Taman a bit of slack. As much as I am anxious for announcement of a new head coach, I’d rather he took his time and found the right guy. Rather than an emotionally-stunted, immature, ego-maniac with the eloquence of a wet newspaper. Not that I'm referring to anyone specific.

That said. I have no idea who the new head coach will be. I know who it won’t be… Milanovich, Benevides (the heir-apparent in B.C.) and Kent Grey Cup Austin.

That leaves Corey Chamblin (Hamilton), Dave Dickenson (Calgary), Craig Dickenson (Saskatchewan) and Marcel Bellefeuille (free agent). And probably a few others that no one would recognize the name of anyway.

My personal favourite would be Craig Dickenson. He’s young. He’s fresh. He’s creative. Super nice guy and so humble too. Plus, how he turned around our special teams last year… I mean let’s face it, special teams was the ONLY exciting thing to watch when the Riders were playing last season! It was darn near miraculous considering how laughably ‘special’ they were in 2010. I would love to see what he could do given then reins of the whole team.

BUT… I’d like to see him choose his coordinators (gasp!). Which could mean a few stalwarts of the Green and White might just find themselves on the unemployment line. (But is that so terrible really?)

Ultimatley, I’d to see whoever is named head coach get a few years to grow into the job and grow a winning team here in Saskatchewan. Which means we as fans will have to lay off!

We’ll have to promise to put our butts in the seats, buy tickets and merchandise and watch a few stinker home games and a few more stinker away games. It means we have to prove we still deserve the title of the best sports fans around even if the winning ways are little tardy in coming our way again. They will come though. Trust me. They will.

Cheer long. Cheer loud. Go GREEN!

UPDATE: Ok, so it was brought to my attention by a sharp-eyed reader that this last season wasn't the worst in history. I mean to Google it before I posted and ran out of time. My apologies. Good to know 5-13 isn't the worst we ever did... I think.

Labour Day Classic vs Life

I'll write a more elaborate pre-game blog post later, but thought I would give my little green friends a heads up: I won't be watching the Labour Day Classic this year.

<gasp!>

As it would happen, life gets in the way of some of our favourite things - even football.

This year I have planned a quick romantic getaway with Mr. SaskRidersChick this long weekend. Now I was fully aware when I made the plans that it would most likely mean having to miss watching the game. Sadly, at the time I did not anticipate just how important this game would be.

I'd wager this game has more importance than the home opener, or even a play off game should we make it that far.

This is a statement game. Statement games are huge. Statement games are bigger than the two teams involved. Statement games sometimes don't come with trophies or division titles on the line, but they do have big consequences. Statement games send a message.

Well, this is our statement game. The whole team has to step up. The entire league is watching. Football fans from coast to coast are wanting to see this re-jiggered team with it's old/new coach. And all of Rider Nation will be sitting on pins and needles. (Except yours truly who will be climbing up a mountain somewhere in the Rockies...) Everyone will be holding their breath, as the players exit the tunnel... and are reborn as Roughriders 2011 version 2.0!

As crazy and cliche as it sounds I don't think anyone could overstate the importance of this game. And it wouldn't matter if we were playing Hamilton or Calgary or even the pathetic Lions this year... but as it happens this is the yearly contest with our prairie rivals - The Blue Bombers or as I like to call them the Boo Bombers.

But as it happens the Boo Bombers are having an amazing season with a record of 7-1. The best in the league facing the worst.

So this LDC has extra significance. Extra pressure. You'll feel it in the stadium. You'll taste it in the air at home. You'll see it in the faces of every Rider player, coach and fan. It'll feel like the air is going to pop around you. Like snapping your fingers will spark fire.

I've said since the moment Greg Marshall was fired that our season just started. And I mean it.

No matter what happens from here on out, it's a new season, a new measuring stick, a new beginning. What happened in the last seven games is ancient history. What happens in the next 13 games is what will make 2011 memorable. Papa Miller said it. And I believe it.

So... as I will leave one half of my heart in Saskatchewan as I head to the mountains for some much needed R and R, please yell extra loud. Make the stands rumble. Make Winnipeg quake, k? And make sure the whole league knows what truly awesome and amazing fans the Roughriders have.

And above all...

Cheer long. Cheer loud. GO GREEN! (all the way, baby, all the way...!)

Wowsa!

I predicted to a friend that if we lost the game in TO things would "ka-blewy!". And they did.

I honestly didn't expect a move til maybe Monday. But this does prove a theory that changes were in the works regardless of what happened in the game last night.

And are there any words of disappointment left to use on that hot mess from last night. At one point I wondered if the team had some sort of competition going on who to screw up the worst! It was borderline comical at one point. I mean you have to laugh - otherwise the pain of banging your head on the floor gets to you.

I mean... Durant bobbling the first play of the game? Every major return or catch was called back for some type of holding call or some other penalty. I couldn't keep up with the new ways they found to fail.

Third and one and they call a shotgun formation so they can hand their rookie tailback the ball seven yards behind the line of scrimmage. Who does that?! And again... why throw a four yard out when you need six freakin' yards? Would it kill them to design a play that actually had first down as it's goal.

Ok. Ok. I promised I wouldn't get worked up about this anymore. And truly it is water under the bridge. A new page has been turned. Our season starts today!

Bright spots (I know, I know, they were few and far between):

Dressler. This guy is a class act, top shelf, first rate professional. There isn't enough space in this blog to say what a relief it is to have Dressler on our team. And he plays with heart all the time. All. The. Time. I have never once seen him step out on the turf without intensity in his step. Without a doubt the best Rider on the field right now! Can't say enough about the little guy.

Hill. This guys is getting better. I like what I see. Not totally there yet, but on his way for sure.

Getlaf. Finally! Has been stinkin' things up for a while with a severe case of the drops. But he finally found his hands.

West. Not bad. Good showing kid.

Stuuuuuuuuuu Foord. Wow. Give this guy the football more often. Why don't we play him more?

I'm praying the days of horrible, ridiculous, face palm football are done.

No more whining. No more excuses. No more throwing the bloody kicker under the bus. Real football started today in Saskatchewan. I can't wait for Labor Day now! Swaggerville might just find their hands full.

Especially if a certain defector finds his way back to the Queen City by then.

Cheer long. Cheer extra loud today! Go GREEN!

Well, it’s pretty much all doom and gloom in Riderville these days.

I haven’t posted anything on this blog, in part due to life throwing some curve balls at me and also because I just didn’t know what to say. And I didn’t want to add to the chorus of “I don’t knows” from fans, bloggers, and sportswriters.

No one seems to know what the problem is. Not even our rookie head coach, veteran offensive coordinator, esteemed defensive coordinator, or our VP of operations/whatever-the-heck Papa Miller has as a title these days.

No one knows what the problem is.

I’m all for admitting when you are stuck and don’t have the answers. The problem is when you’re paid to have answers not having them isn’t just bad, it’s completely unacceptable.

Let me say that again… When you’re getting paid big bucks to have answers, you better work 24-7 til you do find the answers or find someone that has the answers.

Surely to goodness there has to be someone out there somewhere that knows what could help. Then after I thought about it, I thought heck I could do a better job of motivating the guys. Why don’t they hire me?

Since that probably won’t ever happen - certainly not by kick off tonight, I figured, I'd post my pre-game motivation speech for tonights game. We'll just pretend we're in a smelly lockerroom.

First, I’d start by greeting every player by name and looking them in the eye, shaking their hand and saying, "I’m glad you’re here." Straight up serious – all cheesy and stuff. Then I’d start my speech...

I grew up in Saskatchewan. I bled green before I even knew what football was. It was something to cheer for. Something to stand behind. And we had a saying when I was growing about our team... “There’s always next year.”

"Oh well. We didn’t make the play offs. There’s always next year..."

Somewhere along the way in the last few years this province learned something – “next year” is for sissy’s. “Next year” is for the wimps who are looking for an excuse. Next year makes the weak among us comfortable with their own mediocrity.

Next year is not acceptable anymore.

And we don’t have next year anymore. We don’t even have next week. We don’t even have tomorrow. If you want to get right down to it, all we got is today. Right now.

If you want to make a difference in this season in your life all you got is right now. Today. This is it. This is THE game! If you’re looking for a moment to lay it all on the line this is it. Don’t look for another. Don’t wait for somebody else. Don’t wait for another time. Because you’ll regret this moment. Right here. Right now. With these people. It'll never come again.

Everyone’s written us off. Everyone says it can’t be done. No home playoff game for the Green and White. No Grey Cup this year.

But they don’t know you guys. They haven’t looked you guys in the eye. They haven’t seen what’s in your heart. They haven’t seen what you can do yet. And when they do, they’re gonna start shaking in their cleats.

I don’t have any special powers that I can give you. No one here does. But collectively... together... you guys have can create something amazing. Call mojo or 'green magic' or whever. But together you have the power to make history. You have the power to change everything. Together is something you can’t even imagine yet.

You have an opportunity right now. Go out there and prove that the Saskatchewan Roughriders never say die. They never say... “there’s always next year.” You go out there and prove to them it’s all about today!
Because We. Are. Saskatchewan. Roughriders!

Let’s get ‘er done, boys.

Cheer long. Cheer loud. Go GREEN!

P.S. And for crying out loud... could we kill Richie’s soft defense for one game? Just sayin’.

Week 1: Pre-game

So the 'Mos are in town to kick things off in just a few hours.

I kinda felt like we'd drawn the short straw on scheduling after last year's shoot-out at Mosaic Stadium against Montreal. It was July 1st fireworks and I had hoped they could keep the rivalry going with another season opener against the defending Grey Cup Champs. They could make that a Canada Day institution as far as I'm concerned - they'd draw viewers from across the country.

But alas the league had other plans.

Instead, we'll be taking on rookie head coach Kavis Reed and his re-configered Esks.

I'm sure Rider defensive coordinator Richie Hall will have more than a few things to say about facing off against his old team. Let's hope he puts those things into action - like a few interceptions, knock downs and sacks.

I'm interested to see how long Ricky Ray lasts. When Hall was last with the Riders it seemed we had Ray's number. And we all know how rattled he gets if you lay a couple of sacks on him. Will we see former Rider Grey Cup MVP Kerry Joseph taking snaps by game's end?

Hard to say.

Seven starters are out of the line-up for the Riders. Which is weird for a first game of the season. Talk about a rough off-season!


Things to look for:

We need our QB to get into a rhythm with his receivers - particularly Nunn (88), Wheelright (85), and Hill (80) - within the first quarter. The newbies will need to keep their wits about them and get their head in the game. They've got big shoes to fill.

As well, Dressy will need to be on the same page as the Double D and give him lots of options to get down the field.

Also, Eddie Johnson has got to prove he's more than a pretty face and give us good field position each kick off and, when called upon, punch it through the uprights! Field goals can win football games, so he's got to dig deep and get 'er done.

The most fun I will have will be watching the sidelines to see how the new coaching staff fit in. Especially Coach Marshall. He's a passionate guy and he'll make sure his "No excuses" message gets across loud and clear on the field.

All in all I wanna see how everything fits together. I want to see a convincing win.

I wanna see some Rider football!

Cheer long. Cheer loud! GO GREEN!

New year, new season!

So my little green friends. This is my blog. Welcome! Hope you like the new digs. Grab your favourite beverage, bring your friends and let's talk FOOTBALL!

At long last our six football-free months are about to end. Oh I know, the pre-season started a couple of weeks ago, but all that did was kick the rust off the wheels and whet the appetite of every red-blooded football fan from coast-to-coast.

It's time for some real football!

I. Can't. Wait.

We're down to less than 24 hours and I'm giddy and nervous like on the first day at a brand new school. Can we find our way to the lunch room? Are the cool kids gonna like us? Are the bullies gonna be meaner and tougher? And just what obstacles are we gonna encounter on our way to Grey Cup 2011?

We've got a few people missing in the line up to start things off. Of course, Andy is gone... off to become a Bear. Rob Bagg re-injured his knee just as he was getting back into things after his knee surgery in the off season. And Congi... it hurts to even type it... is gone for at least the first part of the season.

Brent Hawkins, a rising star from last year, is also on the 9-game injured list. His loss on defense could be huge.

But there are few new faces in the crowd. Greg Marshall has been handed the reins. While I will always have a soft spot in my little green heart for Papa Ken Miller, I like the spunk and confidence I see in Coach Marshall. And I'm eager to see what him in action on the sidelines. So far he seems to have taken a "No Excuses" mentality and I love that. Excuses don't win championships.

As well, a old familiar face in Richie Hall is back coordinating things on defense. Say what you will about what happened in E-town... I say he didn't get a fair shake... and I couldn't be happier. Because he's back with us, ready to make the Green and White the feared defensive machine they once were. No more of this stinkin'"We don't need a defense playbook" crap we've had the last couple of years.

New names to watch:
Ernie Wheelright. Wide receiver, originally signed by the Baltimore Ravens. Got excited watching him in the pre-season. Lots of buzz coming out of training camp for this guy. I'm keeping my eye out for #85.

Terrence Nunn. Didn't do much in the first pre-season game, but got a little more of the highlight reel on the second. I liked what I saw. Furthermore, I like what I heard. This guy has got his head screwed on straight. Humbled, dedicated and talented. I hope we keep him. I only hope he can live up to the big number he's wearing - #88. Still miss ya, Matt D!

Alexander Krausnick-Groh. Heavens. I hope I never have to say his name when I'm in a hurry. Anyway, this 6'3" 290 pound offensive lineman might just be what we need out there protecting our quarterback. Me likey.

Returning class:
The Double D. Dariant Durant. Had a tough pre-season game against B.C., but I think he knocked out some of the cobwebs and he'll be ready to rock and roll! As an unrelated aside: Dinwiddie was downright impressive in his pre-season showing and I'm loath to admit I may have been wrong about him. I'm less worried about Darian getting hurt this season than I was last season. So there ya go. I was wrong.

Weston Dressler. I can not stand it. I can't wait to see him scooting down the field. I can't wait to see that long bomb from the Double D fall into the waiting arms of Dressy as he gets in behind coverage and finds the end zone. These guys have great chemistry and I've waited all winter to see it in action again. Dressy just signed an extension with us for three years and it's not near enough!

Hugh Charles. Oh. My. Word. During the first pre-season game, Hugh Charles returned a punt 60 yards for a TD. You could be forgiven for thinking it was against the rules. Saskatchewan has so carefully avoided doing such a thing for very long time. In fact, last season saw almost every team in the league return multiple punts for a touchdown, but not the Roughriders. Nope. Then again, considering the "very special" status of our special teams unit last year, returning the ball 10 yards was enough to make a highlight reel. Never mind a return for a touchdown.

Barin Simpson. The minister of defense returns. Love this guy so much. Love the passion he with which plays the game. With Brent Hawkins out, Simpson will again be mentoring some new guys. But like always, I know he'll be a leader both on and off the field.

Eddie Johnson. We all got to know Eddie and his famous mustache last season, after the horrid injury to our beloved kicker Congi. Eddie is awesome. The off-the-cuff former bartender gives the most hilarious interviews! He might not completely fill Congi's cleats, but he'll put on a good show trying. And I have to say it's been a while since a football personality has been so bloody entertaining!

Getzlaf and Clermont. I love both of these guys and I'm psyched to see them get more touches to the ball with Fantuz and Bagg gone. It's their time to shine and I expect they will step up.

So that sets the scene for tomorrow afternoon's season premier of Roughrider football. I'll put up a pre-game post closer to kick off!

For now... cheer long. Cheer loud! GO GREEN!