Roughriders Game 3 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats (7/16/11):

The winless Riders traveled to Ivor Wynne Stadium to face the 0-2 Ti-Cats, as both squads looked to move into the positive. Despite calls in the media for calm, above all else, the Riders need to fix their secondary issues as Anthony Calvillo ripped the backfield to shreds last week. With Darian Durant at quarterback, the offense will eventually come around but the team needs to get some of their regular wideouts back from injury.

There was a big crowd at Ivor Wynne, as befits the tough steel town of Hamilton (about an hour or so down the QEW from Toronto). It was a hot and humid day in Hamilton at kickoff time (34°C/93°F) and that type of heat on artificial turf will definitely take its toll on the players. It was literally hot enough to fry an egg on the sidelines. The Ti-Cats’ Arland Bruce and Maurice Mann were both out with injuries so Kevin Glenn needed to look for other options at wide receiver.

Hamilton won the toss and started out at their 35. The Ti-Cats picked up a first down on two quick rushes. A pass interference call against Hamilton was declined and Medlock punted out. The Riders started their opening drive at the 27. Durant’s first pass was picked off by Ray Williams, and he returned the ball to the 4. Avon Cobourne carried off right tackle for 2. Glenn’s pass on second down was incomplete so Medlock kicked a chip shot to give Hamilton an early 3-0 lead. The Riders started out their next drive at the 35. Wes Cates carried up the middle for 5 but Durant’s next pass was incomplete and Eddie Johnson punted out. Marcus Thigpen had a great return, carrying the ball back into Riders’ territory. On second down, Glenn escaped a rush and scrambled down to the 40. The drive stalled at the 35 and Medlock hit a 42-yard field goal to make it 6-0. Durant threw two lousy passes on the Riders’ next drive and Johnson punted away again with Thigpen returning the ball to the 49. On first down, Glenn connected with McDonald for a first down at the Riders’ 46 and then Cobourne carried off right tackle for 9. Instead of sneaking for the first down, Quentin Porter went for the downs but McDaniel dropped his pass inside the 5. On third down, Porter sneaked up the middle for 3. Once more, the Ti-Cats’ drive stalled at the 35 and Medlock banged in his second 42-yarder. The Riders started out again at the 27. A face mask penalty on the return moved the ball out to the 42. Cates went off left tackle for 3 but Durant was sacked on a safety blitz and Johnson punted away. This time, Thigpen found a seam and returned the ball to the Riders’ 45. Cobourne carried for 8 and Freeman was hit with an unnecessary roughing penalty. McDaniel then caught two passes from Glenn that put the ball inside the Riders’ 10 as the first quarter came to a close. The Riders had 4 net yards in the quarter.

On the first play of the second quarter, Glenn connected with Carter at the 5 for a first down. After a shovel pass to Cobourne went nowhere, Glenn found Williams on a quick hitter over the middle for the touchdown and the Ti-Cats were up 16-0. The Riders started out again at the 32. Cates carried up the middle for 5 but Durant’s pass intended for Cates was incomplete and Johnson punted away again with the Ti-Cats taking over at their 40. A face mask call against the Riders’ Willis moved the ball to midfield. On second down, Glenn found Stala on the left flat at the 35. On second and 7, Glenn found Grant on a slant in down to the 12. Two plays later, Glenn looked right and found Williams going over the middle for another touchdown. The Riders’ secondary is simply atrocious, there’s no other word to describe it. From the 35, Cates carried off left end for two and yet another drive went nowhere. Starting from deep in their territory, the Ti-Cats went to the ground and Cobourne pushed his way for a first down. But Hamilton fumbled and the Riders recovered. After the three-minute warning, the Riders got the ball back and Durant hit Nunn for 9. They moved the ball to the Ti-Cats’ 15 but Durant’s rush on second down fell short. Durant fumbled on the play and it appeared as if he was downed by contact. Hamilton’s coach challenged the ruling on the field and after review, it was determined that Durant fumbled the ball before his knee hit the turf. Hamilton took over at their 12 and ran a couple of plays before punting out with about a minute remaining. Another series, another two n’ out as Durant was way off target with two passes.

The Riders went into the locker room in a serious hole, down by more than three touchdowns. This was awful as the Riders totaled a net of 38 yards on offense in the first half. Tristan Jackson returned the opening kick of the second half to the 37. After an incompletion intended for Cates, a delay of game penalty set the ball back to the 32. Durant’s pass to Hill fell five yards short and Johnson had to punt away. The Ti-Cats ended up with good field position at the 40. From there, Glenn connected with McDaniel for a first down. The drive stalled there and Medlock’s punt went out of bounds at the 4. A penalty moved the ball to the 19 and then Durant hit Dressler on the right flat for a first down at the 32. Durant’s next pass was intercepted by Smith with the Ti-Cats taking over at their 38. A holding call set the ball back 10 yards where Glenn connected with Stala for 6. Glenn then hit Thigpen on the left sideline for a first down at the 42. Glenn then found McDaniel in the left slot down to the Riders’ 39. From the 33, Glenn then scrambled around left end for a first down at the 26. A pass interference call against Tad Kornegay put the ball at the Riders’ 5. On first down, Thigpen carried off right tackle and into the end zone. With the point after, it was 30-0 Hamilton. The Riders finally got on the board late in the quarter with a field goal.

The Ti-Cats opened the fourth quarter with the ball but went two n’ out. The Riders set up shop at their 14. On first down, Durant’s pass intended for Dressler was fumbled and the Ti-Cats recovered. A scrum among several players ensued afterward. Coach Marshall challenged the ruling on the field and it was ruled an incomplete pass on review. Durant found Cates at the left sideline for a first down. But the Riders ended up turning over the ball on downs inside the 30. From there, Medlock kicked a field goal to make it 33-3. Durant’s day was finished (9-23-95-3INT) as the Riders turned to Ryan Dinwiddie to run the show. A pass interference call on Bo Smith moved the ball into Hamilton territory. Dinwiddie then connected with Getzlaf on the right sideline inside the 10. On third-and-goal from the 3, Dinwiddie’s pass intended for Nunn was overthrown, but another pass interference call gave the Riders another set of downs. An illegal procedure penalty against the Riders set the ball back to the 7. From there, Dinwiddie took three shots into the end zone and each one fell incomplete. From the 7, Thigpen carried for 5 and then Glenn hit Williams for a first down at the 19. On second down, Glenn hit Stala for 17 and then came out of the game to huge applause from the crowd as he had a pretty good day throwing the football (19-30-212-2TD). Quentin Porter stepped in and picked up another first down. Thigpen then went off right tackle to midfield. Porter was then intercepted by Freeman with about a minute remaining. On first down, Dinwiddie found Hill in the right slot down to the 25. But Dinwiddie was sacked by Hickman on the next play. On second down Nunn caught a pass over the middle at the 13. On third down, Dinwiddie’s pass into the right corner of the end zone was knocked away and that was that. What a miserable afternoon that was for the Riders.