Roughriders receivers put up eye-catching numbers
By Murray McCormick, Leader-PostOctober 16, 2009Be the first to post a comment
CALGARY — The Saskatchewan Roughriders' receivers answered any doubts that might have emerged with the loss of slotback Weston Dressler to a broken leg.
The receivers combined for 410 yards and scored two touchdowns in Saturday's 44-44 CFL overtime tie with the Calgary Stampeders. Some felt that having Dressler — who was injured Oct. 10 against the Toronto Argonauts — in the lineup Saturday may have been enough to earn the Riders a win instead of a tie.
"I'm sure that he would have helped,'' said Rob Bagg, who moved from wide receiver to slotback to fill in for Dressler. "I thought that everyone stepped up. It's hard to feel good about what took place (in the overtime tie) but it's hard to feel bad. It's kind of bittersweet.''
It became even more bitter when wide receiver Gerran Walker was sidelined in the first quarter with an ankle injury. The loss of Walker meant more touches for slotback Jason Clermont, who had been used sparingly this season. Clermont responded with four receptions for 90 yards, including a 65-yard bomb from quarterback Darian Durant.
"I was going to share a couple of series with (Chris) Getzlaf, then Walker got hurt,'' said Clermont. "I got thrown into the mix.''
The mix also included slotbacks Andy Fantuz and Getzlaf. Fantuz had 10 receptions for 149 yards and a touchdown. Saturday's offensive explosion came two days after Fantuz and the Riders reached a verbal agreement on a contract extension, which allows him to explore his options with NFL teams after the 2009 season. If Fantuz doesn't hook up with an NFL team, he could then re-sign with the Riders.
"I don't think that had anything to do with it,'' said Fantuz. "We're just getting back into the groove with the offence coming off the (hamstring) injury. It took us some time to get our timing back. It just happened to be a long game and I just happened to catch a few breaks.''
Getzlaf also contributed with five receptions for 65 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown during the Riders' second overtime possession. Getzlaf's touchdown provided the Riders with their first lead in the showdown for first place in the West Division. It was also the second time that Durant and Getzlaf had stung the Stampeders with a late touchdown this season.
On Aug. 1, Durant and Getzlaf connected on a 65-yard touchdown pass with 82 seconds remaining that helped the Riders pull out a 24-23 victory.
"It kind of felt the same because we knew at that point they had to score on their possession to win the game,'' said Getzlaf.
Durant completed 35 of 45 passes for 427 yards. He also completed passes to nine different receivers. It wasn't enough to pull out a win but it was enough to help the Riders earn a tie. It was Saskatchewan's first overtime tie since July 28, 2000, when it played Calgary to a 52-52 draw at Mosaic Stadium.
"If you look at the overall picture, we didn't lose,'' said Durant. "We're still in first place (in the West Division) and there some positives to take from this game. Of course, we didn't win but to come into their place, play like we did and not leave with a loss, we'll take it."
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