Sunday, December 20, 2009

GRETZLAF IS A RIDER FOR THE NEXT 3 YEARS




By Rob Vanstone Sun, Dec 20 2009 COMMENTS(0) Rider Rumblings

I just filed this . . .


By ROB VANSTONE Leader-Post


With a new deal secured, Chris Getzlaf anxiously awaits the 2010 CFL season.“It feels really good,’’ Getzlaf, a Regina-born receiver with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, said Sunday after it was confirmed that he had signed a contract extension calling for two years plus a club option for a third.“It’s good to get it out of the way. Now I don’t have to worry about anything next year except going out and playing hard and hopefully getting to the same place




— but with a different outcome.’’Getzlaf had a team-high six touchdown receptions during the 2009 regular season, in which he had 41 receptions for 531 yards. He added another TD grab to help Saskatchewan defeat the visiting Calgary Stampeders 27-17 in the West Division final. One week later, the Montreal Alouettes defeated Saskatchewan 28-27 in the Grey Cup.“I think the team is heading in the right direction,’’ said Getzlaf, who helped the Roughriders finish first in the West for the first time since 1976. “We had a hell of a year. It didn’t end the way quite the way we wanted it to, but we still played well.“If we can keep the same group of guys together, like it sounds like they want to, we should have a good team for years to come. Being from here and liking the situation factor in as well. I’d like to play here as long as it’s feasible because the situation is great.’’The Roughriders have yet to formally announce Getzlaf’s new deal, but it was confirmed by team sources on the weekend. A formal announcement is expected in the New Year.In addition to playing with the Roughriders, Getzlaf is a financial planner with Investors Group.Getzlaf is a product of the Usher Unicorns, Regina Thunder and University of Regina Rams football programs.The Roughriders acquired Getzlaf from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in August of 2007. In the deal, the Roughriders obtained Getzlaf and receiver-returner Corey Holmes for receiver-returner Jason Armstead.Armstead, who rejoined the Green and White in late August, was named the Roughriders’ special-teams player-of-the-year in 2009.Fourteen members of the 2009 Roughriders are eligible to become free agents in mid-February.




Roughriders general manager Eric Tillman is also believed to be negotiating with other players who are entering their option years — including receivers Rob Bagg and Weston Dressler.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

CHRIS GETZLAF RESIGNS FOR 2 YEARS AND OPTION

Effective Friday evening, Chris Getzlaf has re-signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders for 2 years plus an option.
at 19.12.09 3 comments

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

RIDER PRIDE IS WORLD WIDE !!!!

2010 is the 100th ANNIVERSARY OF THE

SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

http://riderville.com/page/page-2010_centennial

ROUGHRIDERS WOULD LIKE TO SIGN ALL OF THEIR FREE AGENTS BACK



Joe Womack



It has been a short off-season for Joe Womack.


Womack is back at work as the Saskatchewan Roughriders' director of player personnel after a two-week break. Womack, who also helped coach the CFL team's secondary, spent some of the time relaxing in Denver after the Riders were beaten 28-27 by the Montreal Alouettes on Nov. 27 in the Grey Cup game.


He also met with his good friend Brad Forsyth, a scout with the NFL's Buffalo Bills whose territory includes the midwest and west regions of the United States. The two traded notes and thoughts on some of the players they have scouted or seen during the past college football season.


"We shared information just like all scouts do and it helps you firm up your evaluation of players," said Womack. "It's a really good give-and-take thing."


There are more immediate concerns for the Riders, who had 16 players eligible to file for free agency


Feb. 15. That list was reduced by two on Dec. 4 when non-import offensive guard Chris Best and Canadian defensive end Luc Mullinder re-signed. Womack said the Riders would like to re-sign most of their potential free agents.


"It would be a little hard to get everyone back but it wouldn't be impossible," said Womack. "We would like to have just about everyone back because we're pleased with our players and how they have evolved."


Womack and general manager Eric Tillman, who is on paid administrative leave while a summary charge of sexual assault works its way through the provincial courts, have studied the list together. Tillman remains involved in the day-to-day operations of the team while on leave and oversees negotiations with the players.


The CFL isn't expected to release its list of potential free agents until early January but Womack and Tillman have seen the preliminary one. Womack said the Riders' list of possible free agents is comparable in terms of numbers to the CFL's other seven teams.


Womack doesn't expect the Riders to be too active on the free-agent market. He feels they would like to concentrate on locking up their own players first.


"Everyone in the league knows that we have some really good Canadians," said Womack. "They have good character and are good players. You might think we'd like to lock them up before other teams get a shot at them. "


The Riders' list of free agents includes imports Marcus Adams (defensive tackle), Stevie Baggs (defensive end), Wes Cates (running back), Hugh Charles (running back), Eddie Davis (defensive halfback). Steven Jyles (quarterback), Tad Kornegay (linebacker), Omarr Morgan (cornerback), James Patrick (safety) and Gerran Walker (wide receiver).


The non-imports are Stu Foord (running back), Jocelyn Frenette (long snapper), Marc Parenteau (right guard) and Chris Szarka (fullback).


© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

Saturday, December 12, 2009

FROM ROD PEDERSENS BLOG

How about some Rider news?I spoke to defensive end Stevie Baggs this week. He was in transit from Regina to Florida and wasn't able to do an interview, however he revealed he's interviewing agents this week and it appears he's set to test free agency come February 15.He made it known to me during the season that his services are available to the highest bidder. As yet, Rider G.M. Eric Tillman has yet to make an initial offer.

----Thanks to the Riders for hosting us at their annual sponsor Christmas reception last night in the locker room.Defensive end Luc Mullinder was there and we discussed his contract renewal by the Riders last week. We'll have an interview with Luc on the blog in the days ahead. Suffice it to say he's relieved to have the deal done, and is happy to be back with the Green & White.Tillman is staying true to form, making the re-signing of Canadian players his top priority.

----I bumped into Councillor Chris Szarka while at City Hall paying a parking ticket on Thursday.Chris is another pending free agent, but has yet to hear from Tillman. Szarka had some key games down the stretch, and is hoping his performances were enough to get a new offer.We decided the best thing for him to do is approach Eric first, and not wait for the call.

----I also talked with Tillman this week, and he's spent the past number of days holding extensive individual meetings with the coaching staff.One thing's for sure; Ken Miller will be back as head coach in 2010. He was asked about retirement during Grey Cup week."Well thank you for that question," Miller responded. "As we've gone through this season, after a couple of losses, I'm sure there were people who were very high on that possibility. But as we came down through the stretch, I heard that rumour circulated through the press both on TSN and in print. But I assure you it didn't come from me or anyone who's close to me.""Certainly when you get through the season you have to step back and evaluate. So there might be a time where I say it's enough, but at this point in time I have no intention of retiring."As for his coaching staff, we'll likely have to wait until the New Year to see if there will be any changes.

----The resignation of Jim Daley in Edmonton this week has left the Eskimos' defensive coordinator position open.As yet, no potential replacements have been identified. Might Rider linebackers coach Alex Smith be interested?He and Eskimo coach Richie Hall are close, and this summer Alex expressed his desire to one day become a defensive coordinator in the CFL.But is he willing to leave Regina?Likely not, but we'll explore it.

----Stampeders receiver Nik Lewis reported on Twitter this week that he had a nightmare that he was playing for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.Hey Nik! That's your DREAM, and it's OUR nightmare!

----Rider receiver Jason Clermont and his wife are expecting again. That was another thing we learned from Twitter this week.It's interesting that Jason is so guarded in interviews, yet he reveals loads of personal information on Twitter.----

Friday, December 11, 2009

CUTE......................

CUTE ........

IT HAS BEEN A VERY BAD WEEK.....


TIGER WAS CAUGHT WITH TOO MANY WOMEN



AND THE RIDERS WERE CAUGHT WITH TOO MANY MEN

TRUE NORTH STRONG AND GREEN !!!

TRUE NORTH STRONG AND GREEN !!!


CLICK HERE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPgOhy2FSk0&feature=related

Thursday, December 10, 2009

DRESSLER LOOKING FORWARD TO 2010


Dressler hoping third time's a charm

Mitchell BlairRiderville.comREGINA --


Weston Dressler has been to the last two Grey Cups, but he hasn’t taken a snap in the CFL’s championship game. In 2008, Dressler was in Montreal for Grey Cup week as he was named the league’s Most Outstanding Rookie, and in 2009 he was there with his Saskatchewan Roughrider team-mates, but unable to play because of a broken leg. He hopes the third time is a charm.Dressler’s season came to an abrupt end October 10 when he suffered the injury late in a victory over the Toronto Argonauts. Rider fans were hoping the popular pass-catcher could make a miraculous recovery and make a contribution in the playoffs, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen.


“I was still a couple of weeks from playing when the season ended,” Dressler said. “I would have loved to have been out there playing in the championship, but rushing things may have been a setback that cost me some time next year so we did the right thing.”Doing the right thing wasn’t the easiest thing though as Dressler, who was the team’s leading receiver with 62 catches for 941 yards, admits it was tough being in Calgary with his team knowing he couldn’t do anything.“It was tough being in Montreal last year knowing my team wasn’t playing,”


Dressler reflected before leaving Regina for the winter. “But it was nothing compared to this year. Its hard to put into words how disappointing it is to see your team out there practicing for the big game and you can’t do a thing. Watching is not fun for me.”As far as the injury to his leg and ankle goes, Dressler says rehab is going well.“Its getting better,” Dressler states. “I’m doing all the rehab and everything to make sure its ready for next year. I’m confident I won’t have any problems with off-season workouts and that I’ll be back here 100 percent next season.”


The Bismarck, North Dakota resident is also very confident that he will have a good chance at getting back to a Grey Cup with his teammates in 2010.“I like what’s happening here,” stated Dressler.


“Everyone saw what Darian did this season. We saw some other guys really step up and they are only going to get better. Things will change in the off-season, but we have a really strong core group here and there are a lot of guys who are ready to step up to that next level. “Despite making that statement, Dressler isn’t going to make any predictions about 2010 and where this team could end up.


“I like where we’re at,” Dressler states. “We know there will be some changes and we know that we’ve got just as good a shot as anyone to win it all next year. There’s a lot of potential in this room. When you add the way this season ended, it will be an added motivator. Losing that game is the last thing we remember and I don’t think anyone wants to experience that feeling in here.

Monday, December 7, 2009

NEW RIDER RECRUITS !!!!




NEW RIDER RECRUITS !!!!!

HOPSON TOUCHED BY RIDER FANS RESPONSE TO HEART BREAK


Roughriders president and CEO Jim Hopson
Photograph by: Don Healy, Leader-Post files

One week ago, the Saskatchewan Roughriders were silently shuffling through the Calgary airport, preparing to fly back to Regina.

Given the intensely critical nature of some Riders fans, and the propensity of media types to regurgitate every morsel of information pertaining to the community-owned team, who knew what kind of welcome awaited the Green and White?

After all, the Roughriders had just committed the mother of all Grey Cup gaffes -- taking a forehead-slapper of a too-many-men-on-the-field penalty that prevented them from defeating the Montreal Alouettes in the CFL's championship game.

Damon Duval's 43-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide as the Roughriders celebrated what appeared to be the fourth championship in franchise history.

However, Saskatchewan had 13 men on the field -- one more than permissible -- and Duval was able to try again, from 10 yards closer. Given a second chance, he was unerring as time expired. Montreal won, 28-27.

In the immediate aftermath of an unfathomable last-second implosion, it was reasonable to wonder how the locals would react.

A few observers wondered if there would be an incident to parallel the infamous manure-gate

of 2004.

Granted, there was a Facebook site that targeted the mysterious 13th man. And, yes, a Roughriders fan did spill beer on Duval's wife and two young children during the fourth quarter of the game at McMahon Stadium.

But, all things considered, the fans' response to the Roughriders' plight was overwhelmingly positive, sympathetic and commendable.

"Honestly, I probably have received hundreds of messages in various ways, and the club has received them,'' Roughriders president-CEO Jim Hopson says.
"Everyone is saying, 'We're proud of you,' and, 'What a great season,' and, 'You'll be back,' and, 'We couldn't be prouder.' It just keeps going on.

"We've heard 'Thank you' countless times. We've heard, 'Thank you for a magical season,' and, 'Thank you for representing the province and us so well.' That has been very helpful, I think. I got a letter from a lady and she said, 'We love all concerned. Love, Anita.'

"It's very sincere. That's the kind of positive feedback we've had. You don't want to let your fans down, and if your fans are telling you, 'Hold up your chin and you've done well,' that sure helps you. But, I'll tell you, there's nobody here who isn't already thinking about 2010 and going back to the Cup.

"That's the motivation now: Let's fix this thing and bury that memory.''
Hopson had spent the previous 33 years trying to bury another memory -- that of the conclusion to the 1976 Grey Cup.

He was an offensive lineman with the Roughriders when they lost 23-20 to the Ottawa Rough Riders in Toronto.

Tony Gabriel caught the game-winning touchdown pass with 20 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.

When Hopson entered the Roughriders' locker room after the 2009 Grey Cup, he noticed some similarities to 1976.

"It was heartache,'' he says. "They were almost stunned. It was, 'How did it happen?' ''
The mood began to change, albeit slightly, after the 2009 West Division champions landed in Regina and were taken by bus to Mosaic Stadium for a welcome-home ceremony.
"Of course, the flight home was tough,'' Hopson says. "The rally was good and appreciated, but hard.

"I gained a lot of respect for guys like Darian Durant, standing there for an hour or an hour and a half afterwards, signing autographs and talking to the fans. It would have been easy to run and hide, but he didn't. He's a stand-up guy. I had to go back to the airport and get my truck. Then I came back to the stadium and Darian was still standing outside, talking to fans and signing autographs. That's stand-up that he would do that, because he was hurting.

"I noticed on Tuesday that we had our little get-together and the sun had come up. It's what they tell you after a death in the family: It will get better. You have to move on and we will.''
The scenario was different after the 1976 Grey Cup. An aging team was near the end of the line. The 2009 edition, by contrast, exceeded expectations while developing a young quarterback. The presence of Durant, et al, engenders optimism about the seasons ahead.

"We want to keep it going so that we have a chance to go back and rewrite the story, I guess,'' Hopson says. "You can't help but be proud of the team and the fans and the province on this, but you also can't help feeling like we actually won the game.

"We won the 60-minute game, but we lost the game. Try explaining that one to your grandson one day. 'How did you do that?' 'Well, it's a long story ...' ''

© Copyright (c) The Regina Leader-Post



Sunday, December 6, 2009

DIEHARD RIDER FANS, NOT ANGRY...BUT HEARTBROKEN AFTER GREY CUP



REGINA - Rider pride was bruised, but still very much alive Monday as Saskatchewan football fans welcomed their team home following a stunning Grey Cup loss to the Montreal Alouettes.
More than 800 fans clad in green and white waited under grey skies for the Roughriders to appear at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. They waved signs that said "Win or Lose Always No. 1 in our Hearts" and cheered wildly as the players made a brief appearance.

"Aw, man, I just can't put into words how much this means to me and this team for the support that you guys have shown today," quarterback Darian Durant told the crowd.


Durant said the team will get past the loss and make it to the Canadian Football League championship again soon.

"I was always told that success is a journey not a destination and we're well on our way," he said in a brief speech. "You better believe that we'll be back next year and the year after and the year after. We're here for the long run and get used to seeing the green and white at Grey Cups every year."

The notoriously rabid Rider fans erupted into cheers. It was a similar scene to one played out at Mosaic Stadium after Saskatchewan won the Grey Cup in 2007.

Durant told reporters afterwards that the fan support was overwhelming.

"I didn't expect this at all," he said. "I remember how it was when we won in '07 and this is the same thing so it's a great, great thing."

The Alouettes edged the Riders 28-27 on a field goal after Saskatchewan was penalized for too many players on the field.

Montreal had missed its first attempt at the field goal and the 'Riders initially thought they'd won the Grey Cup before they noticed the flag on the play. That gave Montreal kicker Damon Duval a second chance and he connected for a 33-yard field goal.

The Alouettes were greeted Monday at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport by more than 100 screaming fans who belted out "Go Als Go! Go Als Go!" as the first players walked into the arrivals area with the Grey Cup in tow.

"This is just an awesome feeling," said quarterback Anthony Calvillo.

"I remember the (Grey Cup win) back in 2002 and how excited the city was and we disappointed them and we disappointed ourselves for so many years - to come back and get that same experience once again is something I'm always going to remember."

A smiling Etienne Boulay grabbed the Grey Cup and headed straight for a mob of howling fans. The Als safety raised the Cup high above his head, whipping the crowd into a frenzy.
He and his teammates each received boisterous welcomes.

"We have the best fans in this league, they've supported us all these years," said Vancouver-born centre Bryan Chiu, after scrawling his autograph on everything fans would put in front of him, including a poster, a jersey and a giant stuffed Alouettes panda.

"We've had some tough runs at these Grey Cups and to be able to share this with not only our teammates, but the province of Quebec - it's great."

David Dallaire, an Alouettes fan since 1970, said he had a feeling Montreal would pull off the win.

"The game was a nailbiter - we were so nervous," said Dallaire, still beaming after getting Calvillo to sign an autograph for him. "I met my idol, I'm happy now - my second idol actually - my first idol is Jean Beliveau."

Slotback Ben Cahoon recalled the dark mood in the Als locker-room at halftime, when the team was trailing 17-3.

"There was some yelling and screaming and some venting going on," said Cahoon, who won the Grey Cup's outstanding Canadian award.

"After five minutes of that, we calmed down and got a little plan - the defence told us they were going to get us the ball back in two plays and then they went out and did it. And we were able to take that ball and score (on) that first drive."

In Saskatchewan, emotions are running so high that a Regina radio station even interviewed a grief counsellor, who talked about ways Rider fans can get over the loss.
Rider fans say they're devastated, but not angry.

Bunni Anderson, who has been going to Rider games since 1964, says she's heartbroken for the players who gave it their all. Anderson was at Mosaic Stadium on Monday to lend her support, but she doesn't think it's the toughest loss the Riders have ever faced.

"Every loss is tough, every loss," said Anderson.

"This is just going to down in history a little different than the others. It's going to be hard for the players. They're going to live with it, as the coach said, for the rest of their lives."
"It's a game and it's OK. There is another year, a new year so we should be fine," said Anderson.

But "fine" is a long way off for 'Riders coach Ken Miller. He said he's grateful for the fan support, but the normally reserved coach couldn't hide the fact that he's taking the loss hard.
"I'm not doing all that well really to tell you the truth. It's going to take me a while to bounce back," said Miller.

"In a sense it's like a grieving process, something maybe like a divorce or something where you have all those things, you have denial and then anger and then finally acceptance and then you get on with things. Hopefully that term doesn't take too long."

Miller still won't say who the 13th man might have been, just that there was a breakdown in communication and that falls on his shoulders.

The last time fans in "Rider Nation" faced such heartbreak was when kicker Paul McCallum missed an 18-yard field goal in overtime against B.C. in the 2004 West final. Irate fans pelted McCallum's home with eggs and dumped manure on his neighbour's driveway thinking it was the kicker's house.

Miller says the loss could "add a little fire" to get the team started next year.
"It was a great, great football game, a great football game, had a lousy ending, but it was a great game," said Miller. "Everybody has said that Montreal was the cream of the crop in the CFL and we had our hands around their throats for 59 minutes and 55 seconds."
"That game certainly could be a springboard to us being much, much better," said Miller.

-With files from Andy Blatchford in Montreal

Friday, December 4, 2009

QUOTE FROM GENO MAKOWSKY

Here's a quote from Gene Makowsky, in response to one of my nasal questions:


You’ve been on 15 Roughriders teams now. What is it about this team that makes it unique or interesting? “It’s a good group of guys. I think the biggest edge is that the guys are always talking football on the practice field, whereas before that was not always the case at all times. Especially the quarterbacks and the receivers, they really try to get on the same page and I think that showed on the field. Darian and Steven Jyles are real leaders that way and they’re always talking, whether something was good or it was bad. They’re addicts of the game of football. They love talking football and trying to get it right. I hear the angels singing when I hear that stuff — when guys are that into it and guys care that much to get things right.

They’re students of the game and they want to get better. That’s definitely what I see from the offensive side of the ball.’’

BEST AND MULLINDER RESIGN

THESE ARE TWO GUYS THAT I WAS HOPING WE COULD SIGN.....ONLY 14 MORE !!


The Saskatchewan Roughriders re-signed non-import offensive linemen Chris Best and non-import defensive lineman Luc Mullinder on Friday. Both players were set to become free agents.

''I am very happy to have Chris and Luc re-signed for next season,'' said Roughriders' head coach Ken Miller in a statement. ''Chris has emerged into a quality starting offensive lineman and could be a fixture on the Riders line for years to come. Luc had another very solid season and has become very valuable to us with his ability to play any position on the defensive line.''
Best dressed in all 18 regular season games for the Riders this season. He started in 12 regular season games, the West Final and the Grey Cup game at left guard. The 26-year old Waterloo product has dressed in 27 regular season games for the Riders and was originally drafted by Saskatchewan fourth overall in the 2005 CFL Canadian Draft.

Mullinder dressed in all 18 regular season games, the West Final and the Grey Cup and was regularly rotated in on the defensive line. He finished the season with 20 defensive tackles, two tackles for a loss and two quarterback sacks. In six seasons with the Riders, Mullinder has dressed in 88 regular season games and has recorded 56 defensive tackles, five tackles for a loss and ten quarterback sacks.

//

RIDERS NOT GOING TO ABANDON THE 13th MAN MARKETING


Rider fan cheers before the start of the 97th CFL Grey Cup football game against the Montreal Alouettes in Calgary on Nov. 29. Little did he know that a 13th man would in fact be a nightmare for the Roughriders.
Photograph by: Mathieu Belanger, Reuters

REGINA — The 13th man is here to stay.

That is the emphatic message from Saskatchewan Roughriders president-CEO Jim Hopson.

"We're not going to abandon it,'' Hopson stated on Thursday. "It's who we are.''
Until Sunday, the 13th-man concept had entirely positive connotations for the Roughriders. A marketing campaign — "The 13th man makes all the difference'' — is predicated upon the impact of the Canadian Football League team's ardent fans on its performance.

Then came the 97th Grey Cup, in which the Roughriders lost a 28-27 heartbreaker to the Montreal Alouettes on Sunday at McMahon Stadium in Calgary. For a few seconds, it appeared that the Roughriders had won the game, after Montreal's Damon Duval missed a 43-yard field-goal attempt as time expired.

However, the Roughriders were flagged for too many men on the field, and Duval was given a second chance from 10 yards closer. His do-over, from 33 yards away, split the uprights and wounded the Rider Nation like a dagger. Since then, fans and commentators have been referring to the 13th man for reasons the team could not have envisioned when it was formulating fan-based slogans and ensuring that the number 13 was prominent.

"It's so much a part of who we are now. The (Rider) Nation has embraced it,'' Hopson said. "I had a chance to sit and watch the Western final this week. I hadn't had a chance to sit and watch it because we were so busy going to the Grey Cup. So when I was at home Monday night licking my wounds, I watched it and, my goodness, the comments from the TSN people and the crowd ...

"They kept showing the crowd and talking about the 13th man and the impact of the 13th man, and it even happened in Calgary at the Grey Cup. It's there. The 13th man is very real. It might have been a great marketing idea to start with, but I think our fans have taken it beyond the idea of a whole marketing slogan. They believe it and our players believe it. You hear them refer to the 13th man in their post- and pre-game comments.''

Hopson even thanked the "13th man'' at Mosaic Stadium when a welcome-home rally was held on Monday.
"We can't deny what happened in Calgary,'' he said. "All we can do is become a better team from that experience, and I think we will.

"A lady came up to me and congratulated me and talked to me about how she had never seen a party go flatter than the party she was at when we lost. She said she was going to get a T-shirt that says 'I'm the 13th man,' with this whole thing about who the 13th man was.

"I think our fans are pretty proud of that and a big part of it. We won't abandon it, nor would we abandon any of our players. You win as a team. You lose a team. So we'll stay the course.''

Those sentiments have been reinforced by a deluge of messages Hopson and others in the Roughriders' organization have received from fans since Sunday's heartbreaker.

"I've had a lot of fans e-mail me and say, 'This will make us an even greater franchise. We will grow from this,' '' Hopson said. "I think that's what Darian (Durant) said in his remarks — that you build from this and you go forward.

"Having said all that, if I could rewrite history, I know what I would want, but you can't.''

rvanstone@leaderpost.canwest.com
© Copyright (c) The Regina Leader-Post
I AM THE 13th MAN !!!!!


Thursday, December 3, 2009

BOB HUGHES ARTICLE AFTER THE GREY CUP

READ THE NEXT ARTICLE THAT BOB HUGHES WROTE BEFORE THE GAME FIRST



Oh no! Not again!By Bob HughesIn the suffocating moments right after the Saskatchewan Roughriders had crash-landed on McMahon Stadium’s cruel turf, knocked out for the count as it were, and the Montreal Alouettes had flown off into the night with the Grey Cup, the phone rang in our house.“Dad,” my oldest son said from Calgary, “why does this always happen to us?”

Like the little kid with his face pressed flat against the candy store window, the Roughriders just couldn’t get in. They were close enough that the nearly 50,000 people in McMahon Stadium and the millions more in bars and house parties across the nation were rising to their feet in exhilarating joy as the final seconds ticked down in what would turn out to be a Grey Cup for the ages. Only trouble is, the Loyal Disorder of Rider

Priders aged so rapidly, it was astounding.The Big Green Machine had done what it has done too many times in past Grey Cups. It had snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. It had tripped at the finish line. It had missed a six-inch putt. It flew a shot over the empty net. It had struck out with the bases loaded. You never saw so many parties come to a crashing halt as you saw on that treacherous Sunday night at the end of November in the year 2009 in a place called Calgary.


Son, let me tell you why “this always happens to us.”It happens because it happens.

It happened in 1967 because a usually sure-handed receiver named Eddie Buchanan dropped a sure touchdown pass from Ron Lancaster that turned the game around and saw the Riders lose 24-1 in the Grey Cup.

It happened in 1972 because for most of the game the Rider defence had kept Hamilton tight end Tony Gabriel in check. Then, in a moment of obscure coaching genius, the Riders pulled linebacker Wayne Shaw and put in rookie Bill Manchuk, figuring that the younger, faster, taller Manchuk could stay with Gabriel better than Shaw.“The reason Gabriel didn’t hurt us,” said Shaw, “was because he spent most of the game on his ass. That’s where I put him.”With Manchuk in the game, Gabriel caught three clutch passes, Ian Sunter kicked a field goal, and Hamilton won the Grey Cup, 13-10. Shaw was so mad that he left Ivor Wynne Stadium, drove to Toronto, and caught the first flight home.

It happened in 1976 because the Riders were unable to move the ball, and eat up the clock. They had to punt. And on a play that everybody in the world knew was coming, including the Rider defence, Tony Gabriel broke free down the middle, caught a pass from Tom Clements, and scored the winning touchdown in a 23-20 Ottawa victory.It happens. And, it’s never fair.But, never has anything like this happened to the

Saskatchewan Roughriders. It’s one for the books, maybe the next book on the history of the Riders, which should come out in about 100 years or so.If there is anything that so sadly displayed the cruel and sinister irony of this year’s Grey Cup game, it came in Saturday’s Grey Cup parade. Marching alone was a fan dressed in the garb of the Riders and carrying a sing which boldly declared,“The 13th Man. Your Worst
Nightmare!”Indeed, it was. Because it was the inability of the players, the coaching staff and everybody outside of the officials to realize that Saskatchewan has 13 men on the field for what would have been the final play of the game.

Either the Montreal kicker made it for the win, or missed it. When he missed it, the Rider Nation went nuts. So, did the players and the coaches. They figured the game was over, and they had won.“The 13th Man. Your Worst Nightmare!”Indeed, it was. Because the Riders were called for having 13 men on the field. The penalty gave Montreal another shot at winning the game, and they did, and it was like somebody had come out of nowhere and landed a body blow that knocked the air out of the whole province.

If you wanted to know what the Riders mean in this province, you needed only to go the corner of Victoria and Albert in downtown Regina.The police were ready for the fans who would surely flow to the corner when the game ended, knotting traffic, celebrating. They had barricades ready to be set up, and they would close down the streets to handle the biggest party this province had ever seen.

Instead, in the hours after the game, only one lonely soldier of the Loyal Disorder of Riders was there. He stood at the intersection, arms raised to the sky, his green and white uniform glowing in the night, wondering sadly, “Where is everybody?”You could hear Don Meredith singing, “Turn out the lights, the party’s over.”This will be a loss that will be harder for the Riders to get over than anybody can imagine. It’s one thing to lose in a Grey Cup, it’s another thing to lose the way the Riders did.One play. One lousy play. One lousy mistake. On what should have been the last play of the game. Too many men on the field. How, everybody wondered, could all the coaches and some of the players not take the responsibility of counting how many players were on the field? The officials did it, so it couldn’t have been that tough. But they blew it, and the fallout is far from over.But, was it that one misguided, ill-fated moment that cost the Riders the Grey Cup?

Of course not. The Riders played a brilliant game offensively and defensively for three quarters. They corralled the Montreal offence, moved the ball, and got field position from their specialty teams. Sitting on a 16-point lead with just 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, it’s as if the Riders drifted inexplicably and quietly into some sort of a never-never land. Their defence stopped attacking, and started watching. The offence played as if walking on egg shells. And, rapidly, Montreal took over, and before you knew it, it came down to the final play of the game. A 16-point lead had evaporated as quickly as Saskatchewan’s dream of winning the Grey Cup.The Riders are a young team, on average five years younger than the Als. They made great strides this year.

And, if anything good comes out of this Grey Cup loss, it is they learned a valuable lesson.As the great New York Yankee Yogi Berra once said, “It ain’t over until it’s over.”Or, as Ron Lancaster once said after a Grey Cup loss, “Every guy in this dressing room should remember the sick feeling he has in his gut right now, and vow never to have that feeling again.”

at 12/03/2009 3 comments

THEY HAVE COME A LONG WAYS....BABY


BOB HUGHES WAS A WELL KNOW LEADERPOST SPORTS WRITER IN THE 70'S AND THIS IS A GOOD ARTICLE.



They've come a long way, baby! No doubt about that. As they move towards celebrating their first 100 years, the Saskatchewan Roughriders inch towards Sunday's Grey Cup game against the heavily-favoured Montreal Alouettes shrouded by a quiet sense of determined confidence. They indeed are singing, "We Shall Overcome."

It really wasn't all that long ago when they seemed overcome by one of the worst football organzations the game has ever seen. Nobody ever saw what was coming when the Riders ended the 1976 with a loss to Ottawa in the Grey Cup in Toronto's Exhibition Stadium on a cool, grey November day alongside Lake Ontario. When the sun went down that day, it went down on more than just another day. It went down on an era. It darkened a great CFL dynasty. The Four Horsemen were about to ride through Saskatchewan - Famine, Frustration, Funereal and Futility. The place badly needed to be fumigated. After 1976, the Roughriders would not make the playoffs until 1988. They would not finish in first place in the West until 2009. Talk about droughts! They seemed playing under a permanent flag of defeat.

"It's too bad they didn't have the cross-over (worst west teams make playoffs in the East) then," mourned Rider great Roger Aldag to me the other day. "We might have made the playoffs a few times that way."

But they didn't make the playoffs. Those were terrible times, that stretch from 1976 to 1988. There was the massive rebuilding job handed Ron Lancaster when his playing days ended and he came a head coach with no experience and no help. Lancaster's coaching legacy here was not the two 2-14 seasons endured. It was that he made the decision to rebuild with youth and had he not stuck with rookies Roger Aldag, Bob Poley and Bryan Illerbrun, all Regina Rams, they may never have had the CFL careers they did. There was the Evil Empire of general manager Bill Quinter and coach Jack Gotta, who detested each other in ways I'd never seen in a relationship between a coach and GM. There was the wild era of general manager John Herrera, whose sole goal seemed to be to want to make the Riders into the Oakland Raiders, right down to changing their colours to black and silver.

There was so much bad to those times that you wondered if they would ever escape them. Like great tidal waves, the bad times seemed unstoppable, and were relentless in their force.

Things really did not turn around until Roy Shivers came in as GM and Danny Barrett as head coach. At least, they got the Riders into the playoffs. Before that, there was a spurt of hope when John Gregory was coaching and Kent Austin was the quarterback. They won a Grey Cup in 1989, but soon after they went back into a skid of mediocrity. Not until Shivers and Barrett came in 2000 did the Riders show signs of improving, making the playoffs. Still, they never finished better than third.

In 2007, the Rider organization underwent perhaps the most complete and jarring changes it ever has seen. The executive level of the team was completely revamped. The board, with a chair, was placed at an arm's length distance. Put in charge of the football operation was Jim Hopson, who had played on the 1976 team and was a Regina boy. Unlike Shivers, he totally understood what the Riders were all about here. He was given the title of President and CEO. He didn't waste any time. Shivers and Barrett both moved. Hopson brought in Eric Tillman as general manager and they hired Kent Austin as head coach. Austin had been the offensive co-ordinator with the Toronto Argonauts and he brought with him an assistant coach name Ken Miller, who was well into his 60s.

No organization that I can think of turned things around as quickly as they did. The Riders would win the Grey Cup in 2007. Taylor Field was suddenly boasting one sellout after another. Merchandise sales sky-rocketed. The Riders had become Canada's Team.

Even when Austin suddenly left after one year to take an assistant coaching job in Mississippi, the Riders never missed a beat. They elevated Miller to the head coaching job and in his first year he took them to the Western final. This year, Miller's unmoving support of quarterback Darian Durant, often through some tough times, paid off in a first-place finish, a Western championship and a trip to the Grey Cup game. And, just watching them practice in Calgary, you can see the fun has come back into the game for them. Why, guard Marc Parenteau, an Exit Realty Fusion agent, has become a darling of the Montreal media because he is fluent in French.

And in the process of establishing himself in the two years he's been here, Miller has become some sort of an icon in this province. Quiet, humble, smart, a born leader, a man who never courts the spotlight, Ken Miller reminds of another great Rider coach, Eagle Keys, the architect of the last Saskatchewan Roughrider dynasty.

It brings to mind a poem the great Grantland Rice penned decades ago:

For when the Great Scorer comes
To write against your name,
He marks - not that you won or lost -
But how you played the game.

Ken Miller has the Riders playing the game of their lives. One more win, and this season's goal will have been. Indeed, they have come a long way!

DURANT DESERVES A RAISE


REGINA — The ever-obliging Darian Durant has been signing countless autographs of late, but the most important signature has yet to be provided.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders must sign the 27-year-old quarterback to a long-term contract extension. In light of Durant's recent achievements, there isn't any reason for the CFL team to allow him to enter his option year in 2010.

Durant deserves more money and additional security. The Roughriders and their fans deserve some good news after enduring Sunday's devastating 28-27 Grey Cup loss to the Montreal Alouettes.

The exasperating conclusion to that game has raised an assortment of lingering questions. But, over the course of the 2009 season, Durant emphatically answered the dominant question — pertaining to the team's quarterbacking situation.

"I think he is the next elite quarterback in the league,'' Roughriders head coach Ken Miller said Tuesday. "As the people who have held that position over the last two or three years finish their careers, like (Anthony) Calvillo and (Ricky) Ray and (Henry) Burris, he's going to fit into those spots and he's going to be the top dog, or certainly one of the top dogs, at the quarterback position.''

During the lean years, the Roughriders have had some dogs at the quarterbacking position. But top dogs? That is another matter entirely.

At long last, the Riders have developed a quarterback from scratch. Miller and his staff exercised the requisite patience with Durant and were rewarded when Saskatchewan finished first in the West Division for the first time since 1976. Moreover, Durant quarterbacked a team that was within one unfathomable too-many-men-on-the-field penalty of winning its fourth Grey Cup.

In recent weeks, Durant has repeatedly stated that the Roughriders are assembling a team that will perennially contend for a championship. There is every indication that Grey Cup appearances and home playoff games will become routine — providing, of course, that the key player on the team is part of the equation.

When asked about the future on Tuesday, Durant said that he is amenable to discussing a new contract instead of waiting for his existing pact to expire in February of 2011.

"It's something that I've been thinking about for a long time,'' he said. "I just didn't want to let it affect my play and let it affect the team. We'll sit down and see how it goes.''

Durant has already spoken informally with Riders president-CEO Jim Hopson about a long-term commitment.

"I've talked to my representation,'' said Durant, a 2009 West all-star. "I've had a couple of discussions with Mr. Hopson. It seems like we're on the same page. We should be taking all the steps in the right direction here pretty soon. We have to definitely wait and see what happens with Mr. (Eric) Tillman and that (legal) situation but, as far as myself and Mr. Hopson and the organization, it seems like we're on the same page.''
The page has turned from one year ago, when the Riders' quarterbacking situation was shrouded in uncertainty.

"Things change,'' Durant said. "Opinions about me change. Last year, I never would have thought that I'd be in a situation where I could be talking about something long-term. It's just a great feeling. It's a great accomplishment.

"I have to thank my teammates for that. Without them, this wouldn't even be possible. It's just a great feeling to know that you're wanted and I'm ready to take my game to a whole other level. This year has been an experience for me — a learning experience, definitely — and I'm just ready to go to a whole other level.''
Namely to the stratosphere, as far as CFL quarterbacks are concerned.

"I'm 27,'' Durant said. "It'll be seven, eight, nine years before I even get to where Hank (Burris) is, at his age. He's at the top of his game right now and I feel like I'm still getting up there. When you talk six, seven, eight years, that's what I'm talking about.''

Even then, Durant would be younger than 37 — the age of Sunday's victorious quarterback, Anthony Calvillo.

"I'd love to play the game as long as he has,'' Durant said. "It would truly be a blessing to be able to do that. To do it in one place would be even better.''

16 RIDERS ARE FREE AGENTS


Chris Szarka, Luc Mullinder, Eddie Davis, Stevie Baggs, Omarr Morgan, Jocelyn Frenette, Marc Parenteau, Tad Kornegay, Marcus Adams, Stu Foord, Gerran Walker, Steven Jyles, Chris Best, Hugh Charles, James Patrick and Wes Cates are all eligible to file for free agency in February.
Photograph by: file photos, Leader-Post

REGINA — The Saskatchewan Roughriders face many questions now that the CFL's off-season is here.
Many of them revolve around the 16 players who are eligible to test free agency on Feb. 15. Others include who will conduct those negotiations with general manager Eric Tillman scheduled to appear in a provincial court on Jan. 4 on a summary charge of sexual assault. Tillman has been on paid administrative leave while the charge works its way through the provincial court.

"It's too soon for me to speculate on that,'' Miller said Tuesday while the Riders cleaned out their locker room at Mosaic Stadium. "I don't know how it will work out. The sooner we can get clarity then our operations can go forward much faster and at a much smoother pace.''

Tillman has worked behind the scenes for the Riders on contract negotiations and player moves. Miller, director of player personnel Joe Womack and director of football administration Brendan Taman have looked after the football operations while Tillman is on leave. That isn't expected to change.

There are some concerns among the players regarding the Riders' situation at general manager. They also anticipate that business will be conducted no matter what takes place. The Riders retain the rights to their potential free agents until the CFL deadline.

"We don't know exactly what's going on,'' said linebacker Tad Kornegay, who is one of six defensive starters eligible to pursue free agency. "If (Tillman) isn't here, then whoever will be the new guy will know what we have. Hopefully he'll try to keep us together.''

That will be a challenge. Ten starters in Sunday's 28-27 Grey Cup loss to the Montreal Alouettes can pursue free agency. It's believed that five or six may be re-signed before the deadline. Tillman and the Riders will have to make that determination based on the CFL salary cap of $4.25 million.

"Most of the time, about 50 per cent of your team is going to change,'' said running back Wes Cates, one of five offensive starters eligible test free agency. "Any way you slice it, there will be a lot of new faces in the locker room next year.''

It sounds like some of the negotiations may not be that difficult. Defensive tackle Marcus Adams lives in Regina year-round and has played all seven of his CFL seasons with the Riders.

"I don't want to go anywhere else to play,'' said Adams, who started 18 regular-season and two playoff games in 2009. "It's rare for a player to stay with the same team for his whole career, especially an American. I hope they give me a call.''

Stevie Baggs, who along with John Chick was named a CFL all-star at defensive end, is also eligible for free agency. Baggs tied for the CFL lead with 12 sacks in his first season as a starter. Baggs hasn't started negotiations but would like to return to the Riders.

"I want to be part of the Rider Nation,'' said Baggs. "I call them my fans and I have a special connection with them here. It's great to be here.''

Veteran defensive backs Omarr Morgan and Eddie Davis are also potential free agents. Morgan has spent nine of his 10 CFL seasons with the Riders. In 2007, he wasn't re-signed as a free agent and spent that season with the Edmonton Eskimos.

"This will be different than in 2007,'' said Morgan. "I haven't really thought about it because I still have that game on my mind. I know that there will be some changes made and we'll see what happens in January or February. I want to come back and play but who knows?''

It's not only starters who are eligible for free agency. Backup quarterback Steven Jyles is also on the list. Darian Durant started all 18 regular-season games in 2009 but Jyles did see some playing time. He would have to accept a backup role for another season based on Durant's performance.

"We would like to have him back but right now we haven't any idea how free agency will work out,'' Miller said of Jyles. "That's the next leg of work that we have to do. We have to get our priorities in order to make sure we get the people we need signed up.

"Steven would be a priority because earlier in the season I said that Steven and Darian could both be starting quarterbacks. I still feel that way. With Darian we experienced a unique situation where he started all 18 games. Oftentimes you need two quarterbacks in this league.''

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

24 HOURS AFTER LOSS

By Mitchell BlairFor Riderville.com

Less than 24 hours after suffering likely the most heartbreaking defeat of their football career, the Saskatchewan Roughriders were back home to face their fans one last time Monday afternoon. Around 15-hundred fans were at Mosaic Stadium to welcome back the football team after Sunday’s heartbreaking 28-27 loss at the hands of the Montreal Alouettes in Sunday’s Grey Cup game. A game the Riders thought they had won after Alouette kicker Damon Duval was wide on a game-winning field goal only to discover they had 13 men on the field giving Duval a second chance that he did not miss.Despite the pain that was still etched on the faces of many of the players, there was also a great sense of optimism. Chairman of the Board of Directors Rob Pletch reminded everyone that the future of the football club is extremely bright and that no other team in the CFL had been in the Grey Cup twice in the last three years like what the Riders have accomplished.

One player who said the reception was somewhat therapeutic was quarterback Darian Durant. “I didn’t expect this,” said Durant when the ceremony was over. “It feels good to see all these fans out here and the support that they showed us. Even in defeat, it just shows why we have the best fans in the league.’’Durant also shared a post-game conversation he had with Anthony Calvillo.

The Rider quarterback saying he told his Montreal counterpart that he has no idea how he could leave the field five times in the Grey Cup knowing he was not on the winning side because it was tough enough leaving the field a loser once.

While some of the players are slowly starting to get over what transpired on the McMahon Stadium turf Sunday night, head coach Ken Miller says it is still going to take a while for him to get over the loss. “I’m not doing all that well, really, to tell you the truth,” said a head coach who is still clearly feeling the effects of Sunday’s devastating loss. It’ll take me a while to bounce back.’’While it might take Miller a while to get over the loss, he remains steadfast that the 2009 edition of the Roughriders was one that was very, very special. “I am tremendously proud of them,” Miller said with a smile. I talk about their character, their leadership, their self-discipline, their self-motivation. I think this group of men typify the word ‘team’ maybe better than any group I’ve been around.’’

RIDERS HAVE 16 FREE AGENTS

By Murray McCormick, Leader-PostDecember 1, 2009 4:46 PM


REGINA — The Saskatchewan Roughriders face many questions now that the CFL's off-season is here.

Many of them revolve around the 16 players who are eligible to test free agency on Feb. 15. Others include who will conduct those negotiations with general manager Eric Tillman scheduled to appear in a provincial court on Jan. 4 on a summary charge of sexual assault. Tillman has been on paid administrative leave while the charge works its way through the provincial court.

"It's too soon for me to speculate on that,'' Miller said Tuesday while the Riders cleaned out their locker room at Mosaic Stadium. "I don't know how it will work out. The sooner we can get clarity then our operations can go forward much faster and at a much smoother pace.''

Tillman has worked behind the scenes for the Riders on contract negotiations and player moves. Miller, director of player personnel Joe Womack and director of football administration Brendan Taman have looked after the football operations while Tillman is on leave. That isn't expected to change.

There are some concerns among the players regarding the Riders' situation at general manager. They also anticipate that business will be conducted no matter what takes place. The Riders retain the rights to their potential free agents until the CFL deadline.

"We don't know exactly what's going on,'' said linebacker Tad Kornegay, who is one of six defensive starters eligible to pursue free agency. "If (Tillman) isn't here, then whoever will be the new guy will know what we have. Hopefully he'll try to keep us together.''

That will be a challenge. Ten starters in Sunday's 28-27 Grey Cup loss to the Montreal Alouettes can pursue free agency. It's believed that five or six may be re-signed before the deadline. Tillman and the Riders will have to make that determination based on the CFL salary cap of $4.25 million.

"Most of the time, about 50 per cent of your team is going to change,'' said running back Wes Cates, one of five offensive starters eligible test free agency. "Any way you slice it, there will be a lot of new faces in the locker room next year.''

It sounds like some of the negotiations may not be that difficult. Defensive tackle Marcus Adams lives in Regina year-round and has played all seven of his CFL seasons with the Riders.

"I don't want to go anywhere else to play,'' said Adams, who started 18 regular-season and two playoff games in 2009. "It's rare for a player to stay with the same team for his whole career, especially an American. I hope they give me a call.''

Stevie Baggs, who along with John Chick was named a CFL all-star at defensive end, is also eligible for free agency. Baggs tied for the CFL lead with 12 sacks in his first season as a starter. Baggs hasn't started negotiations but would like to return to the Riders.

"I want to be part of the Rider Nation,'' said Baggs. "I call them my fans and I have a special connection with them here. It's great to be here.''

Veteran defensive backs Omarr Morgan and Eddie Davis are also potential free agents. Morgan has spent nine of his 10 CFL seasons with the Riders. In 2007, he wasn't re-signed as a free agent and spent that season with the Edmonton Eskimos.

"This will be different than in 2007,'' said Morgan. "I haven't really thought about it because I still have that game on my mind. I know that there will be some changes made and we'll see what happens in January or February. I want to come back and play but who knows?''

It's not only starters who are eligible for free agency. Backup quarterback Steven Jyles is also on the list. Darian Durant started all 18 regular-season games in 2009 but Jyles did see some playing time. He would have to accept a backup role for another season based on Durant's performance.

"We would like to have him back but right now we haven't any idea how free agency will work out,'' Miller said of Jyles. "That's the next leg of work that we have to do. We have to get our priorities in order to make sure we get the people we need signed up.

"Steven would be a priority because earlier in the season I said that Steven and Darian could both be starting quarterbacks. I still feel that way. With Darian we experienced a unique situation where he started all 18 games. Oftentimes you need two quarterbacks in this league.''

mmccormick@leaderpost.canwest.com
The 16 Saskatchewan Roughriders eligible to file for free agency on Feb. 15
Marcus Adams l DT
Stevie Baggs l DE
Chris Best LG
Wes Cates l RB
Hugh Charles l RB
Eddie Davis l DB
Stu Foord RB
Jocelyn Frenette LS
Steven Jyles l QB
Tad Kornegay l LB
Omarr Morgan l CB
Luc Mullinder DE
Marc Parenteau RG
James Patrick l S
Chris Szarka FB
Gerran Walker l WR
(l - denotes import)

RIDER PRIDE......EMBRACE IT !!!



TAMARA IN CALGARY SHOWING US WHAT RIDER PRIDE IS !!!!



I'm sure we'd all agree that our Rider's mean more to us than just football. But if we look at it as just football, then it is just one loss. We win games or we lose games.





Players get traded, signed, hurt, retire, but the football keeps going, win a game, lose a game. Obviously this was a BIG game, but like Durant said so many times, he just has to go out and play the game of football. Now there are days like today when we look past football and realize what our Rider's mean to us.





We all know how being members of the Rider Nation brings us together and gives us all an unspoken bond, wherever we go. I have a 'gasp' Stampeder fan who told me today he finally understands us Rider fans after witnessing what we went through.





The Rider Nation is the envy of the country and this country is going to watch how we respond to this. If we respond by throwing a few under the bus and calling for changes, well, it is hard to be envious of that.





But if we respond like it appears we are responding, by embracing our team, standing behind them, and standing proud (like we did when we whipped the Stamps for the final), we will show the country that the Riders are WAY more than just football. It is not a game for us... you win and lose games... This is something that can never be lost.





Long live the Green Machine!

WHO WAS THE 13th MAN

Who was the 13th man?

COMMENT - I AGREE 100% WITH THIS ARTICLE....IT DOES NOT MATTER WHO THE 13th WAS. IT HAPPENED AND WE CANT CHANGE IT NOW. THE TEAM PLAYED GREAT AND WE HAVE TO MOVE ON. LETS GO IN 2010.......GO RIDERS

By Murray McCormick, Leader-PostDecember 1,

REGINA — While the Saskatchewan Roughriders were defending returner Jason Armstead, another player was being identified in a television report as the mysterious 13th man.

TSN reported Monday that West Division all-star linebacker Sean Lucas was the extra player when the Riders were penalized for having too many men on the field in Sunday's 28-27 Grey Cup loss to the Montreal Alouettes at Calgary's McMahon Stadium. The Alouettes defeated the Riders on a 33-yard field goal by Damon Duval with no time remaining. It was Duval's second shot at a game-winning field goal because he was wide right on an initial 43-yard attempt.

Duval was given another chance when the Riders were assessed the 10-yard penalty for having 13 players on the field. After studying videos of both field-goal attempts, TSN said it appeared that Lucas was the 13th man. When interviewed Monday by the Leader-Post, Lucas would only say: "We just had too many men on the field.''

Kavis Reed, the Riders' special teams co-ordinator, accepted responsibility for the mistake immediately after Sunday's game. On Monday, he said he would never reveal who was the extra player.

"I know people want that information because we're an information-based society,'' said Reed, who is responsible for counting the players on the field in special teams situations. "It's not important. We want to say that a crucial mistake was made. Ultimately it was something that I didn't do correctly. The important part is there was a mistake made, not who made the mistake.''

The Riders did want to clear up who wasn't responsible for the penalty.

"It wasn't Jason,'' Joe Womack, the Riders' director of player personnel and secondary coach, said during Monday's welcome-home rally at Mosaic Stadium. "He hasn't been anything but wonderful for us.''
Womack was responding to media reports that Armstead was the 13th man. He said that Armstead was supposed to be on the field in that situation. He was needed to return or down a missed field goal or to serve as defensive insurance if the Alouettes attempted a pass.

"Jason Armstead didn't do anything wrong,'' said Womack. "He was back there as he always is on field goals. He wasn't the extra guy on the field ... that's his responsibility.''

Riders head coach Ken Miller said they were attempting to block the game-winning 43-yard attempt by Duval. That meant there were some players who don't normally play on the field-goal cover team were on the field. That formation may have created some confusion regarding personnel.

"There was an extra player out there but it really doesn't matter to me who it was,'' said Miller. "In the last couple of weeks I've told the media that we have really worked well on our communication. What we had was a breakdown in communication. Regardless of who that player was or what component of the team . . . really, that falls on my shoulders.''

Armstead declined to comment when asked about reports that he was the extra player. He was appreciative of the approximately 1,500 fans who turned up for Monday's rally.
"I'm sorry that we had to end the season that way,'' said Armstead. "The reception was great and it's a sign of the great people that we have here.''

The Riders were still reeling Monday from the defeat. It's one they know will take a long time for which to recover.

"We all hurt deeply because if you take the game as a whole, we outplayed Montreal,'' said Womack. "They played great at the end and they made some drives and stops but we were extremely disciplined and well-prepared team. It's gut-wrenching to lose like that but it's all of us and I would never put the blame on anyone. It just happened.''

mmcormick@leaderpost.canwest.com

RIDERS AT ROCK BOTTOM....BUT HOPEFUL

By Tim Switzer, Leader-PostDecember 1, 2009 6:00
REGINA — Darian Durant should have been on top of the world.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback seemed to be on his way to leading his team to a Grey Cup win in his first season as a starter on Sunday, throwing for one touchdown and rushing for another in the big game.
But the 27-year-old pivot ended up in the exact opposite spot after a too-many-men-on-the-field penalty — in addition to other Riders' mistakes — allowed the Montreal Alouettes to come all the way back from 16 points down and score a 28-27 victory in the CFL championship game.

But as down as Durant was a day after the loss, he was also hopeful.

"You have to go to the bottom to make it to the top," Durant told reporters after the Roughriders were welcomed back to Regina by 1,500 fans at Mosaic Stadium. "We're at rock bottom right now, but we'll be back up."

As players and other team officials addressed the gathering, they noted that, yes, it was difficult to be in front of the crowd so soon after the loss, but were also quick to point out the Roughriders- successes during the season. Many observers picked Saskatchewan to finish last in the West Division and when the Roughriders did reach the Grey Cup, they were 9 1/2-point underdogs.

"Someone told me once that success is a journey, not a destination ... and we're well on our way," Durant said. "We're going to be back next year and the year after and the year after. Get used to seeing the Green and White in the Grey Cup every year."

Head coach Ken Miller got choked up several times while discussing his players and the end of the game with the fans in the stands and the media.

"This group of men typifies the word 'team' more than any group I've been around," Miller said.
Miller also hoped to see the loss act as a "springboard" to better things ahead for the Roughriders, much as losing the 2008 Grey Cup did for the Alouettes.

Jeremy O'Day, Saskatchewan's veteran centre, had few doubts that that will happen.
"It's going to take time, but if anything is going to fuel this team, motivate this team to get back to where we were, it's a game like that," he said.

"I'm hoping to God they can keep everyone together to finish what we started."
Lines like that brought what few smiles came from Roughriders players during the homecoming rally. Long ovations for Miller and Durant also elicited a few grins from players on the stage while every single person associated with the team seemed touched by the crowd of supporters.

"These fans never let us down no matter where we go," said O'Day. "We're fortunate enough to have not just nine (home) games — we have 10 or 12 a year."

"On a work day for us to come back and the fans to show us their appreciation, it's huge," said Durant. "I didn't expect this at all. I remember how it was in '07 when we won and this is the same thing."

tswitzer@leaderpost.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Regina Leader-Post

Monday, November 30, 2009

RIDERS RALLY ON THEIR ARRIVAL HOME

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE RALLY FOR THE RIDERS COMING HOME


http://rodpedersen.blogspot.com/

RIDERS IN SHOCK AND MOURNING


After being welcomed home by about 1,000 cheering Saskatchewan Roughrider fans on Monday afternoon, players leave the turf at Mosaic Stadium for the final time this season. The Riders lost in the Grey Cup 28-27 to the Montreal Alouettes in Calgary on Sunday.
Photograph by: Bryan Schlosser, Leader-Post

REGINA — Saskatchewan Roughriders players usually cannot wait to get on the field in front of a horde of the CFL team's devotees at Mosaic Stadium. Monday was not one of those days.

Clearly appreciative of the support, players walked to the stage set up at midfield as some 1,500 fans cheered from the west-side grandstand, Sunday's 28-27 loss in the Grey Cup game after a second-chance, last-second field goal by Montreal Alouettes kicker Damon Duval still fresh in everyone's mind.

The setting for Monday's homecoming was entirely the same for the Roughriders' return in 2007 after they defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 23-19 to win the Grey Cup. This time there was an obvious lack of excitement on behalf of the Roughriders, who in a matter of two minutes Sunday went from thinking they were CFL champions to barely being able to comprehend what had just happened.

But while there was little enthusiasm from the players, that of the fans was not far off from two years ago.
"I was really surprised (players) actually could (be there)," said Reginan Ron Thomas. "I don't think any of us have any idea the work, the preparation, that went into this and the total devastation these guys must feel. It must have been one of the hardest thing to put in that brief appearance. It's wonderful they did it, though. Everybody really appreciated it."

After players took the stage, chairman Rob Pletch, president and CEO Jim Hopson, veteran centre Jeremy O'Day, quarterback Darian Durant and head coach Ken Miller each made quick speeches to thank their co-workers and the fans.

"It's one of the most difficult things to come up here after a difficult loss like that," O'Day told the gathering, most of whom were decked out like any other game day. "I'd be lying to say we're not hurting."
The game's finale, which saw Duval miss his first field-goal attempt but get a second chance when the Roughriders were flagged for having 13 players on the field, left the entire Rider Nation — and many other CFL fans — in shock.

While the shock for some fans was beginning to wear off by Monday morning, it did not seem the same could be said for Roughriders players.

"That game is something that's going to stay with us for a long time," O'Day said as players left the field, with fans still cheering loudly. "It's not going to go away real quick. It's the toughest way you can ever lose a sporting event so it's going to stick with us for a while. But this team will bounce back. It always has.

"(Monday's crowd) means a lot. It's a been a pretty quiet morning and night so it's nice to see everyone still behind us. Not a lot of guys were looking forward to coming out here on the stage, but after we were out here, it helped us."

RIDER PRIDE LIVES ON !!!


INDIAN HEAD CURLING RINK












FROM MESA ARIZONA



WESTJET PILOT
IT WAS A VERY DISAPPOINTING LOSS, BUT WE WILL LIVE TO PLAY AGAIN
GO RIDERS




NIGHTMARE ENDING FOR RIDERS

By Rob Vanstone, Leader-PostNovember 30, 2009

CALGARY — The 13th man made all the difference.
Just when Saskatchewan Roughriders fans thought they had seen and endured it all, the 97th Grey Cup was played Sunday at McMahon Stadium.

The Roughriders had it won. Saskatchewan players were streaming on to the field as the clock hit zero, celebrating what appeared to be the fourth Grey Cup in the history of the beloved CFL franchise, when ... uh, hold on. No, it can't be.

Too many men on the field, Saskatchewan.

Damon Duval had lined up for a 43-yard field goal, only to falter. There was pandemonium on the Roughriders' bench, as flags flew. It turned out that 13 Roughriders, one more than was permissible, were on the field for Duval's errant attempt. The ball was moved ahead 10 yards, to the horror of a predominantly pro-Saskatchewan crowd of 46,020. Duval tried again, from 10 yards closer, and the kick was true.

Montreal 28, Saskatchewan 27. The game was over but, back in Saskatchewan, the longest winter was merely beginning.

In a season of surprises, most of which were exhilarating for denizens of the Rider Nation, who could have possibly imagined this? Even the longest-suffering Roughriders fans, who have weathered an assortment of low moments, have not experienced anything quite like the excruciating events of Sunday.
In nearly 100 years of existence, the Riders have celebrated four Grey Cups, but have won only three. The latest celebration lasted mere seconds, which exacerbates the devastation.

"It's just total, 100-per-cent disappointment,'' a disconsolate Ken Miller, the Roughriders' head coach, said shortly after Sunday's shocker. "The disappointment of this loss is going to last for each of us for as long as we are on the planet.''

Appropriately, Duval's winning kick was from 33 yards away. It was 33 years (and one day) earlier when Tony Gabriel's last-minute touchdown catch became an infamous moment in Roughriders history.

Twenty seconds remained when Tom Clements found Gabriel in the end zone from 24 yards away. That play — that nightmarish play — gave the Ottawa Rough Riders a 23-20 victory over Saskatchewan at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto on Nov. 28, 1976.

Back then, as on Sunday, the Roughriders' offence failed on its final possession. In 1976, the Roughriders handed off twice to Tom Campana for negligible yardage before punting away the ball, setting the stage for Gabriel's game-winning major. On Sunday at McMahon Stadium, the Roughriders were clinging to a 27-25 lead when they assumed possession on their 12-yard line with 1:39 remaining. The first play — a handoff to Wes Cates — went nowhere. On second-and-10, Darian Durant hit Rob Bagg for four irrelevant yards. Punt.
Montreal began its final possession with 40 seconds left — in 1976, Ottawa's final drive commenced with 44 seconds remaining — and marched into field-goal range.

You know the rest. You will be hearing about it for days. Months. Years. For as long as it takes for the Roughriders to advance to another Grey Cup and erase the pain of Sunday.

After 1976, the Roughriders missed the playoffs for 11 successive seasons, and it took them another 13 years to win the second Grey Cup in franchise history (23 years to the day after the landmark conquest of 1966). Saskatchewan waited another 18 years before Kent Austin and friends engineered that elusive third title.

This time around, the Green and White was agonizingly close to a second championship in three years, a pronounced contrast to the once-in-a-generation happening that has become a Saskatchewan championship season.

The Roughriders stood toe to toe with a nine-point favourite — assuming a 27-11 lead with slightly more than 10 minutes remaining — before Anthony Calvillo rallied the Alouettes. Calvillo's opposite number, Durant, was on the verge of attaining legendary status in his first full CFL season as a starting quarterback.

There will likely be other opportunities for Durant and his teammates, considering the standards that have been established in the past three seasons. They were one forehead-slapper of a miscue away from engineering a monumental Grey Cup upset, only to deal with "upset'' in an entirely different context as they smashed helmets into the turf, stunned and disbelieving.

"We just have to look forward to next year,'' Durant said. "This is going to be a tough one to swallow, but time heals all wounds. It's just going to take a little time. There's always tomorrow and there's always next year.

It's just a little added motivation to come back and get it right.''

There is considerable hope for the future, given the team's talent level and its many unexpected successes in 2009. But, for the Roughriders and their fans, that is of little solace in the present.

rvanstone@leaderpost.canwest.com

Sunday, November 29, 2009

RIDERS ARE THE PEOPLES CHOICE TO WIN THE GREY CUP
















CALGARY - It could be any one of a number of elements. An electrifying kick return from Jason Armstead. A last-play kick from Luca Congi. Bruise Brothers Stevie Baggs and John Chick arriving together, and in ill humour, on Anthony Calvillo's doorstep at a decisive moment. An off-the-cuff Darian Durant scramble inside the red-zone.





Or, who knows, it might be something as offbeat, as insignificant, as 2,000 calories of sugar-impacted creamy goodness.





''My lucky cheesecake,'' explained Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back Eddie Davis. ''I always eat a piece of lucky cheesecake the night before a big game. I've been doing it since college. Got to have my cheesecake. Superstition, I guess.





''So my wife's made a cheesecake and I'm taking it back to the room tonight.
''Could've ordered room service, I suppose. But my wife's cheesecake is better than anything you can get at a hotel.''





Saves $10 or so, too.





Eddie could use that ten-spot to slap down on the Riders' nose.
Given the line, he might win enough to stock the fridge with enough cheesecake to last from now until Canada Day.





''We are confident. Very confident,'' said Stevie Baggs, a rush end, following Saskatchewan's final walk-through dress-rehearsal early Saturday afternoon. ''In ourselves. In our game plan. But it's often said: The person who exalts is humbled; the person who is humble is exalted.





''A year and a half ago, I was out of football, back home. And now I'm playing in the Grey Cup Game. I feel blessed. The week has been tiring, exciting.





''But when we step out on that (field), it's time to get it done.''





With due deference to the tourists from next door and their insatiable appetite to party, what has most characterized this Grey Cup week is, frankly, a deadening air of predictability. The Makin' Whoopee question concluded the annual head coaches media conference on Wednesday. As always.





Als evergreen pivot Anthony Calvillo managed a feat at the CFL Awards soiree that no defence in the league could over 18 weeks - slam the brakes on Joffrey Reynolds' runaway train. As expected.





Commissioner Mark Cohon two-stepped around the sensitive Canadian/import ratio question as if auditioning for a spot on So You Think You Can Dance Canada. Well, now there's a shocker.
It snowed. Of course.





By the walk-throughs, the media mob had run dry of fresh questions and the players were understandably short on coherent answers. Natch.





But there's one intangible that has the power to lift the 97th edition out of the ordinary and into the realm of happening: A Saskatchewan Roughriders victory.





Nothing whatsoever against the Montreal Alouettes intended, understand. General manager Jim Popp and head coach Marc Trestman can take luxurious bows for building and then improving upon a first-class organization; the envy of all. They've conducted themselves here with pristine professionalism. Athletes as gifted and classy as Calvillo, Ben Cahoon, Anwar Stewart and Scott Flory deserve to be spared such habitual Grey Cup heartache, and forced into answering the same numbing questions trip after blessed trip to the big game.





The 15-3 Als seem superior in virtually every facet. They exude the sort of the destiny-fulfilled aura instantly recognizable in past champions.





And yet . . .





''This is one game for all the marbles,'' pointed out Riders kindly coach Ken Miller. ''History doesn't matter. Statistics don't matter. When we tee it up and kick the football off, it's just one game between two good football teams.





''I have a good feeling about it, yes.''





After watching the revitalized Calvillo kill the spirit and then autopsy the corpse of the B.C. Lions last week, the Riders are being given as much chance Sunday as one of the those quick-pay ''contenders'' Mike Tyson used to flatten during his murderous reign as heavyweight champion. Most analysts consider them the football equivalent of, say, Pinklon Thomas or Tony Tubbs.





But if they're not the bettor's picks, they're certainly the people's choice. All the fence-sitters across this land seem to have invested emotionally, for at least one day, in the Riders.





When asked why he felt that was so, Miller's response drew a big laugh: ''Well, we're a nice bunch of guys.''
If the two lopsided losses inflicted by the Als earlier this season had done any lasting psychological damage on that nice bunch of guys, they haven't let on this week.





''We're calm. We're confident. But once we hit that field, we'll channel all our pent-up emotion towards the Montreal Alouettes,'' said Davis, supported Sunday by his dad Eddie I, in from St. Louis, and his infant son, Eddie III.





''Besides, no pressure on our shoulders.'' A conspiratorial wink. ''We haven't got a snowball's chance in hell, right?''





When Mark Messier arrived in the Big Apple specifically to end an agonizing half-century title drought at MSG, he wasn't shy about admitting he drifted off to sleep at night fantasizing about the thrill of a Stanley Cup parade down Broadway. Durant understands where Mess was coming from.





''You have to visualize something before it happens,'' explained the quarterback on the hot seat Sunday. ''See it in your mind. Play it out in your head.''





Funny, but Baggs has been seeing the same movie over and over in his head.
''We'll do whatever it takes,'' he vowed. ''Whatever we need. We've got to stay strong and resilient. The smallest detail, one you don't even think of, could end up being the difference.''





As small, as insignificant, say, as a slice of Mrs. Davis' lucky cheesecake?





In spite of overwhelming odds, the 97th Grey Cup could yet provide a spectacular, unpredictable ending. A green ending.





''We know the blood, sweat and tears shed to get to this point,'' said Durant, gently defiant. ''We're approaching the game the way we did the last two against Calgary, when the stakes were huge, too.
''These guys are my guys. Soldiers. Warriors. I wouldn't trade them for anybody.





''We deserve to be here. We know that.





''Now we have to show the world.''





Calgary Herald





gjohnson@theherald.canwest.com