Whew!
Montreal pulled out a last minute win against Calgary and that means I’m still
in the Rider Pep Band loser pool! Woot woot! That was some seriously good
football. With 2:48 remaining and Montreal down 12 points, they power back with
a quick touchdown drive and then an interception and another touchdown and
finally win by a single point. Proves you can never count out Anthony Calvillo.
On the other it show Montreal is no longer the guaranteed winner we used to regard
them as.
Onto the
big ticket this week. That’s what Chamblin has been calling tomorrow’s tilt
between B.C. and Saskatchewan. The ONLY undefeated teams left in the CFL. And
they go head to head in what is sure to be an epic battle. And I mean epic.
The Puddy
Tats are reigning Grey Cup Champs. And as such this will be the most accurate
measuring stick as to just how far the Riders have come this season. That’s not
to say Hamilton and Edmonton didn’t presents challenges of their own. But B.C.
is the whole package and to be honest they are the only team that looks um… a
wee bit scary.
Cue the
epic movie music in your head, cuz this match up could be a sneak preview of
the Western semi at the end of this season. Beat these guys and not only do the
Green and White earn some serious bragging rights doing what no one else in the
league has done since the regular season of 2011, BUT we firmly plant ourselves
atop the football hill. Which in playground etiquette requires us to yell
nanna-nanna-boo-boo at the top of our lungs.
Can we do
it? Do the re-jiggered Riders have any stones to throw at the goliath kitties?
What do we
have?
We’ve got
Sheets (1). Probably the most exciting find for the Riders in the off season. This
guy is a serious terror to the defensive line. I have no doubt he will see the
ball often and early. Keep the defense on their guard and off balance.
We’ve got
Dressler (7). I have seriously begun to wonder if the CFL realizes just what a
great player this little guy is. This guy deserves every accolade that could
come to him. I know I give him high and constant praise, but seriously I can’t
think of any other player that gives it their all on every single snap and is
so freakin’ reliable at the same time. Give him the ball and he’ll make the
play. Period. He’ll be a receiver as well as a backup kick returner Saturday.
We’ve got
Odell Willis (11). When I was in high school a new sports coach came one year
and began coaching volleyball, basketball and football. As the boys basketball
season got underway, we assembled in the gym for our team’s first matchup.
Imagine our jaws dropping when the team came out in unison with their hands up
in the air and did some sort of choreographed drill complete with chanting. The
other team just about crapped themselves.
When the
coach was asked later what the new pre-game routine had to with playing
basketball, he said, “Not much.” Although, the art learning of footwork in
unison probably did help morale and team cohesiveness, but the main reason he
did it was for the psychological effect it had on the other teams. He wanted
our school to make a big entrance no matter who we were playing. After all, if
our team was that organized to make such a big entrance, imagine what we could
do on the court? He wanted the opposition to be quaking in their tube socks by
the time the first whistle blew. The added bonus was taking them out of their
pre-game warm up and routine, because for five minutes they had to stop and watch
the spectacle at the other end of the gym.
I learned a
lesson that season: never underestimate the power of psychological
intimidation.
I think
that’s the edge Willis gives our defense. He’s mouthy and cocky. He gets the
crowd into it. His enthusiasm and energy rubs off on his teammates. And he has
a way of getting underneath the skin of the opposition O-line. As long as he
can keep his frustrations in check and his ego at the door, he’ll be a huge
weapon against all kinds of defensive schemes.
And that’s
not counting his rather laudable football skills. His ability to get to Travis
Lulay early and often will also be a great predictor how the game will proceed.
Lulay has come a long way from the hot head he was when he first entered the
league, but who’s to say if he’s rattled a couple or 10 times he might not wig
out, toss a couple of bad balls and bam! We’ve got the opportunity to
capitalize.
I expect Brent
Hawkins (90) to be right there with Willis wreaking havoc on the B.C. front.
Watching the two of them is just plain fun, partly because they’re having a
good time out there.
The biggest
question mark after last week’s defensive tussle with Edmonton hovered over our
offense. Did they really suck that bad? Or were they just rendered ineffective
by the absolutely gold star performance by the Eskimo D?
A little of
both, maybe. I said after the game, I had no qualms with Durant staying in. It
wasn’t his fault things were going nowhere offensively. Further to the point:
the Riders were WINNING. Why pull the quarterback when he’s putting up enough
points to give you the W?
Hopefully,
this game against the Puddy Tats will help us see just what our offense can do.
Will we see a lot of short plays like we have in the first two games? Or will
we see some deep tosses with Dressler or Getz (Getzlaf 89) on the run? I hope
it’s the latter. Makes for a more exciting game and I have a feeling we’re
going to need more than 17 points to get the W against B.C.
One of the
biggest stories to come out of the roster for the game is the addition of former
Regina Ram Jordan Sisco (12) at wide receiver. This is to satisfy the ratio requirements
with LaBatte (57) possibly out, we needed another Canadian starter. This is
your chance Sisco – make it happen, dude!
Chamblin
and his all-star coaching crew have proven so far they can prepare the Riders
for whatever they are about to face. He went so far as to yell and insult the
players this week to get them ready for the “mouthy” B.C. crew. Whatever
schemes they have cooked up for the game tomorrow, it’ll be a cool treat for
fans at Taylor Field.
I’m
sniffling a little. For the first time this year, the Riders will play at home
and I won’t be there. I know… wah wah! But if you’re going to the game do me a
favour please…
Cheer long.
Cheer loud. Go GREEN!
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