Mitchell Blair
One would not blame Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Darian Durant if he has nightmares of the 2009 Grey Cup and the way it ended. However, on the eve of a big football game against the Edmonton Eskimos, Durant is trying to use the experiences from that game and its heartbreaking ending as a motivator for not only this game, but the remaining games this season.
Durant spread his message to his teammates in the south endzone after the team’s final workout on Friday afternoon. He says the message was a clear one.
“We had a drill here where we didn’t have enough men on the field. You laugh about it today, but you never know when that situation may come up in a game.” Durant said. “I just wanted to get the guys know that it’s real and it can happen. If you don’t pay attention on walk-through days and you don’t get it right in certain situations, it can cost you a football game — and, better yet, a championship, so you have to lock in.”
Head Coach Corey Chamblin had no problems with his quarterback bringing up that dark moment in team history saying at the end of the day, his message was right.
“It was a great message,” Chamblin uttered. “He dove into the past and talked about being in the Grey Cup and why they lost. It was a good speech and a good motivator. It’s a good mindset of growth. When you have setbacks, you have to learn from them. If you can’t learn from things like that, you repeat them and I don’t think anyone in that room who was here or even guys who weren’t here want a little thing to take them from their goal. If the guys can’t take that message to get locked in and use it then maybe they shouldn’t be here.”
Chamblin knows if his team is to have success on Saturday, his defense will have to stop perhaps the league’s best receiver in Fred Stamps. Chamblin feels Stamps gives his team and others everything they can handle.
“He presents a lot of different troubles for you,” Chamblin admitted. “D-A (Dwight Anderson) is one of the better man cover guys in this league. It will be a great battle with speed on speed. If D-A wants to play press man or whatever in his technique, it will be a game within a game. “
Anderson is looking forward to the matchup saying Stamps is the complete package.
“He runs good routes, he has good hands, I respect everything about him.” Anderson said. “That combination of things makes him so tough along with the ability to play the ball when it’s in the air. You have to be in his hip pocket at all times and you can’t let him get away if the quarterback starts to scramble or else its uh-oh time. I know he will try and get his team in better position by getting the ball so I’ll have to neutralize that.”
Anderson adds while the playoffs don’t start for a while yet, he feels the playoffs start right now.
“The season really starts in October,” Anderson said. “Every team has to start playing their best football right now. Teams start separating themselves right here. We have four games to go and it is going to set us up for playoffs. We don’t know where we are going to finish, but we want to finish strong and finish as high as we can. We know playing in Regina in October and November is a huge advantage for us and we have three of our final four here so its time to play that football we are known for. “
Kickoff is 230 p.m with television coverage being provided by TSN. 620 CKRM will start the longest and most comprehensive game-day package in the CFL at high noon when Michael Ball, former Rider receiver Matt Dominguez and John Lynch bring you “Roughrider Gameday” live from Pilsner Place. That show can be seen as it happens on www.riderville.com. At 130, Rod Pedersen will have “Rider Nation Pre-Game” followed by the play-by-play with analyst Carm Carteri. After the game, Ball and Dominguez will return to host the “Rider Roundtable” from the Harvard Broadcasting Green and White Lounge.
GAME NOTES:
- The Riders are on pace to have three 1000 yard receivers as Chris Getzlaf (931), Taj Smith (808) and Weston Dressler (804) are all on pace.
- Kory Sheets leads the CFL in 100 yard games with 7
- Punter Ricky Schmitt not only has the best punt average this season at 45.5 yds per punt, but his net average of 37.4 is also number one.
- Defensive lineman Alex Hall makes his Riders debut. Hall and his CFL leading 15 sacks was acquired from Winnipeg before the trade deadline for offensive lineman Patrick Neufeld.
