CFL 2011

The end of June brings another new season of Canadian football and the return of “our team” the Saskatchewan Roughriders. As we’ve done for the past few years, we’ll chronicle the Riders’ games every week from now until (hopefully) another trip to the Grey Cup in late November. This year, the Riders are in a period of transition as Coach Ken Miller retired and former Hamilton defensive coordinator Greg Marshall was hired as head coach and installed former Edmonton head coach Richie Hall as the new DC.

On offense, Darian Durant returns at quarterback and Wes Cates remains his primary threat out of the backfield. Andy Fantuz signed with the Bears but the Dressler, Getzlaf and Koch return at the wideouts. On the O-Line, veteran Alex Gauthier came over from Hamilton to bolster one of the best front fives in the League.

On defense, Barrin Simpson returns as the anchor of the unit. In the backfield, Lance Frazier and Tad Kornegay return to hold down the fort. On the D-Line, Dario Romero came over from Edmonton and the team hopes for the continued progression of former first-round pick Shomari Williams.

Game 1 v. Edmonton Eskimos (7/3/11):

Opening Day at Mosaic and it was another packed house of rabid Riders’ fans. The Riders won the toss but the offense sputtered on the opening drive and Eddie Johnson punted away. Ricky Ray brought out the Edmonton offense at the 40 and picked up a quick first down. On the next play Ray went deep for Fred Stamps but the secondary broke up the pass. The Riders started out their next drive at the 6 and Darian Durant was sacked by Legare back at the 3. Johnson punted away from the goal line and the Esks returned the ball back inside the 50. Ray connected with Adarius Bowman for a first down at the 35. Ray then connected with Jason Barnes, who was wide open on the left sideline for the touchdown and Edmonton took an early 7-0 lead. The Riders started out their next drive at the 27. On first down, Durant hit Weston Dressler over the middle at Edmonton’s 52. On second down Durant hit former Patriot Terrence Nunn on the left side down at the 14. On the next play, Hill made a leaping catch at the flag stick for the game tying touchdown. Edmonton started their next drive at the 35. On second down, Ray scrambled around and hit Andrew Nowacki on the right sideline for a first down. A pass interference call against Stewart moved the ball across midfield. McCarty then carried down to the 39. Messam and McCarty then carried down to the 29. From there, Ray hit Bowman over the middle for another first down at the 18. On second down, Barnes made a leaping catch in the back of the end zone and the Esks were up 14-7. Barnes beat both Patrick and Eubanks on the play. The Riders’ next drive went nowhere and Johnson punted away with Edmonton taking over at midfield. A “no-yards” penalty put the ball at the Riders’ 45. On the final play of the quarter, Ray connected with Barnes at the 35 for a first down. The Riders’ defense definitely needed to improve as the secondary was a sieve.

Damon Duval kicked a 48-yard field goal early in the second quarter to put Edmonton ahead 17-7. The Riders fumbled away the ball on the next drive and Roderick Williams recovered at midfield. Calvin McCarty went off left tackle for 8. Ray then hit Nowacki on the right sideline for a first down at the 25. Ray then connected with Stamps over the middle at the 10 and then Montez Murphy was hit with a roughing the passer call that put the ball at the 7. On second down, Ray was sacked by Barrin Simpson and Edmonton had to settle for a chip shot field goal by Duval to make it 20-7. Unless the Riders get their act in gear this game has a serious danger of getting away from them. On first down, Nunn made a nice leaping catch of an overthrown ball for a first down. Durant then found Dressler on a crossing route at the 39. JC Sherritt then made a nice tackle of Wes Cates and Johnson kicked a 43-yard field goal. Ray hit Bowman on the right flat out to midfield. Daniel Porter then went off right tackle for another first down but a holding call nullified the run. On 1st and 20, Bowman took a pass out to midfield. On the next play, Ray connected with Barnes on the left side for a big gain down to the 17. Ray then avoided a sack and ran left for 15. From the 5, Porter barreled his way into the end zone to make it 27-10. After a great return by Hugh Charles, the Riders started out inside Edmonton territory, From the 45, Durant connected with Dressler for a first down. The Riders were able to move the down to 30 where Johnson kicked a field goal to make it 27-13. The Riders got the ball back with less than a minute in the half in decent field position thanks to a shanked punt by Duval. From midfield, Durant hit Chris Getzlaf on the right sideline for 29 yards. Cates then ripped off right tackle for 25 yards and dove into the end zone. With the point after, the Riders closed things to 27-20.

On the Eskimos’ opening drive of the second half, Ray hit Nowacki over the middle for 7 and then Barnes picked up a first down at the 50. The drive stalled there and Duval punted away with the Riders taking over at the 24. Durant hit Dressler on a slant at the 31 and then Cates carried up the middle for a first down. Getzlaf then grabbed a pass at the 49 after Durant escaped a heavy rush. On the next play, Williams intercepted Durant’s pass. Edmonton went two n’ out on the drive and punted away. Durant connected with Getzlaf on a first down out to the 36. An offensive pass interference call set the ball back 10 yards and Johnson ended up punting the ball away. Eskimos picked up a single after the punt hit the coffin corner of the end zone and rolled out of bounds. Durant was intercepted again by Weldon Brown at midfield on a bad pass. Bowman then picked up a first down on a quick hitter. From the 35, McCarty picked up a first down at the 22. Ray then hit Stamps over the middle inside the 10. From the 5, Bowman caught a touchdown pass over the middle and Edmonton was up 35-20. This was the third time that John Eubanks was burned by Ray. On first down, Durant hit Jason Clermont for 3 and Getzlaf for 6 and the Riders ended up punting away. From the 51, Ray hit Fisher for 9 on the final play of the quarter.

Ray rushed up the middle for a first down to open the fourth quarter. Porter then carried twice for another first down. Ray then connected with Bowman on the right sideline for a touchdown. Bowman juggled the ball as he crossed the goal line and Coach Marshall challenged the ruling on the field. After review, the referees ruled a completion but placed the ball at the 1. From there, a rush into the line was swallowed by the Riders’ D-Line. On second down, Kerry Joseph’s quarterback sneak was denied but he came back on third down and pushed the ball across to make it 42-20. The Riders started out their next drive at the 40 and Durant connected with Hill for 6. Durant then carried up the middle for a first down. They were able to move the ball to Edmonton’s 45 before Johnson punted away into the end zone for a single. The Eskimos were content to stick to the ground on their next series and went two n’ out (and chewed the clock). Durant hit Dressler at the 31 for a first down and then connected with Clermont for 6. Dressler then picked up a first down on a slant and then Durant connected with Nunn on a 16-yard gain. From the Eskimos’ 35, Durant hit Dressler over the middle for a first down and then found Clermont in the middle of the end zone for the touchdown. The Riders then attempted an on sides kick but Stamps recovered the ball at midfield. The Eskimos continued to stick to the ground and kill the clock. On the Riders’ final drive, Durant was intercepted by Hill at the 9. Ray took a knee and the Riders lost 42-21. It was a highly disappointing way to start the new year. After the game, the local media were all over the Riders’ sorry performance.