Roughriders Game 9 v. Winnipeg (9/4/11):

“Sky of Blue, Sea of Green”

After a bye week, the second Ken Miller Era began at Mosaic as the 1-7 Riders faced the 7-1 Bombers in the Labour Day Classic. Andy Fantuz was among the final cuts of the Chicago Bears and was on the Riders’ sideline during the game.

The Riders came out in their classic ‘60’s-era uniforms. Wes Cates returned to the lineup after having been out with injuries for the past few games. The Riders won the toss and started out at their 43. The drive gained 9 and Chris Milo punted away with the ball going out of bounds at the 3. Buck Pierce brought out the Bombers’ offense and they made it as far as the 10 before Mike Reynaud punted away. Tristan Jackson returned the punt back to the Bombers’49. On first down, Cates carried of left tackle for 3. Durant then scrambled up the middle for 6. Cates went up the middle on third down and fell about six inches short. From the 40, Pierce hit Kito Poblah for a first down. Fred Reid then rushed up middle for 5 and then went off right tackle for 3 more. On third and 2, the Bombers went for it and picked up a first down by the nose of a football. Clarence Denmark then picked up another first down at the Riders’ 35 on a nice catch and run. From the 32, Pierce was chased out of the pocket and scrambled left but fell short of the first down. Justin Palardy then attempted a field goal that went wide to the left. The Riders started out their next drive at the but Durant threw two incompletions and Milo punted out. The Bombers’ Jovan Johnson returned Milo’s punt back into Riders’ territory. Reid picked up about 5 before getting stopped by Dario Romero and Reynaud punted away. Durant brought out the offense at the 35. On first down, Durant found Efren Hill in the left slot for a first down and then went back to Hill on the right flat down to the 42. On second down, Durant hit Chris Getzlaf on a go-route for the touchdown. Getzlaf went down the middle, threw one juke that the corner bit on and was wide open breaking toward the end zone. With the point after, the Riders were up 7-0. The Bombers started out at their 27. On second down, Pierce hit Cory Watson for a long gain, but a holding call on Glenn January set the ball back to the 17. Pierce completed another pass but it fell short of the first down.

Moving into the second quarter, Jackson had a great punt return with the Riders setting up shop at the 45. The Riders went two n’ out on that drive and James Patrick had a great special teams tackle, pinning the Bombers inside their 20. Reynaud punted away and Jackson had another great return down to the 42. On first down, Durant connected with Weston Dressler, who made a tough catch in traffic for a first down. Cates then went up the middle for 3 and Durant then escaped a rush and ran for 3 more. Milo then banged in an easy field goal try and the Riders were ahead 10-0. The Bombers started out their next drive at the 32 after Shomari Williams made a great shoe-top tackle on the kickoff. On first down, Pierce hit Poblah for a long gainer at midfield. They advanced the ball to the 49 before punting away into the end zone for a single. Durant then hit Dallas Baker on a long gain down to the 47. Durant was then sacked by Merrill Johnson for a 9-yard loss and Milo punted away. With great punt coverage, the Riders pushed the Bombers back to the 10. After the Bombers picked up a quick first down, Reid rushed for another out to the 36. After the three-minute warning, Pierce was then chased out of the pocket and threw away the ball. Pierce was then pressured by Craig Butler and threw another incompletion. Brandon West then returned the punt back to the 22 and fumbled and the Bombers recovered. Coach Miller challenged the ruling on the field, claiming that West was downed by contact. On replay it appeared as if West’s knee did not hit the ground and it was upheld on review. The Bombers took over at the Riders’ 23. A procedure call set the ball back 5 yards. Pierce rushed up the middle for 3 and then he escaped a rush and ran for 8, a yard short of the first down. From there, Palardy knocked in a chip shot to make it 10-4. From the 35, Durant carried on the draw for 14. The drive stalled there and Milo punted away with 24 seconds left on the clock. Pierce took a knee and the first half came to a close.

The Bombers received the second half kickoff and started out at the 31. Poblah picked up 9 on first down. But Reid was stuffed for a loss by Keith Sholigan and Reynaud punted away. On second down from the 35, Cates banged up the middle to the 49. From there, Durant hit Baker on the left sideline for 40 yards. On the next play, Dressler made a leaping catch in the end zone for the touchdown and the Riders went up 17-4. Dressler initially ran a post route then cut toward the corner at the 5 and was wide open after the break. After picking up a first down at the 45, Pierce hit Watson over the middle at the Riders’ 50. On second-and-6, Pierce hit Poblah down to the 35. From the 32, Pierce’s pass intended for Edwards was tipped away by McKenzie. Palardy then booted in a 39-yarder to make it 17-7. Cates rushed up the middle for a first down. Hill then caught a pass over the middle and took a tough hit from Hedney and was a nose short of the first down. From the 41, Durant scrambled left for 15 yards. From the 24, Durant hit Dressler in traffic for a first down at the 11. The Bombers put too many men on the field and were caught, moving the ball to the 6. Cates went off right tackle to the 2. Cates was then stuffed by a loss by Lobendahn. Milo then knocked in a chip shot to give the Riders a 20-7 lead.

The Bombers opened the fourth quarter at their 35. Pierce hit Carr for 8 on first down and then Reid rushed up the middle for 4. Pierce then went for the downs and his pass intended for Edwards was broken up by McKenzie. Carr then made a brilliant leaping catch of Pierce’s throw down to the 29. Poblah followed with another grab in the slot to the 18. Pierce was then sacked and fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Dario Romero at the 20. The Bombers challenged the ruling, claiming it was an incomplete shovel pass. Get outta town! It was ruled a fumble after review. The Riders went two n’ out on the next drive and after Milo’s punt, the Bombers took over at the 40. On second-and-6, Watson tried to pick up the first down but fell a yard short. The Bombers brought out the short-yardage package and Brink pushed across for the first down at the 50. Reid was then stuffed trying a plunge up the middle. On the next play, Reid’s second effort was not enough to pick up the first down. Durant’s long pass intended for Baker was incomplete but a pass interference call moved the ball to the 35. Winnipeg’s Brandon Stewart was then ejected from the game for unnecessary roughness, putting the ball down to the Bombers’ 25. Durant then rushed right for a first down to the 12 as the clock continued to roll. After the three minute warning, Durant hit Getzlaf on a short slant route and Getzlaf easily carried the ball into the end zone. With the point after, it was 27-7 Riders and this “W” was in the books. Pierce was replaced by Brink at that point but it was garbage time. There was some pushing and shoving in the final minute but no further ejections were issued.

There were no stupid penalties and the players actually went out and executed with passion today. For this week, anyhow, the played like the Riders we’ve been accustomed to seeing under Coaches Austin and Miller.