Saskatchewan Roughriders' Jason ClermontPhotograph by: leaderpost.com, photo illustration
Finding myself in the same situation, I asked Chris Szarka early in the year how he managed to stay physically and mentally into the game while on the sideline. He told me to just watch each play and mentally put myself in the game, to keep up with the emotion and tempo of the action on the field. Then, when you are sent out for a play or two, just rev the engine up as you jog into the huddle. I found myself doing just that last game, as Andy Fantuz waved for me to take his spot as he stepped off the field to get some attention from the trainers. I popped my jacket off, jogged to the huddle and got ready to play. A block, a catch and back to the sideline.
I joked with Andy that next time he should take a knee, so I can get three plays in. Fairly happy with the job I did of filling in cold, I was quickly grounded late in the game when Szarka went in for spot duty. He didn't take off a jacket before he headed out for a fullback dive, because he wasn't wearing one (says it's not very fullback-like). That dive became my favourite play of the year, as he sidestepped one defender and outran a few others before straight-arming Brandon Browner (No. 27) and getting tackled inside the five-yard line. It was a 36-yard run to seal the game when all we needed was one yard. Capping it off, he pounded the ball in two plays later for a game-clinching touchdown that ensured us first place in the West.
As the final seconds ticked off the clock, I looked at Neal Hughes and saw my own emotions written all over his face. For a split second, we became Rider fans again -- not because we spend more time watching the game from the sideline than playing it (which may be true, but that is a whole other issue altogether!). I felt myself thinking, "The Riders just wrapped up first place -- that has never happened in my lifetime." The energy of the crowd was overwhelming and the emotion of the guys in the locker room was spectacular.
The best part of it all is that we have earned extra rest and preparation for the West final, in front of our fans and in our city. This will be my sixth West final, and the fifth time my team has earned the bye week. The reality is that I only have one Grey Cup ring. The regular season means nothing now. There will be four teams battling next week to get to Calgary for the Grey Cup. One of those teams will be coming into our house, coming off a big win in the West semifinal and looking to knock us out. What we have earned is a little extra time to get physically and mentally ready for that fight.
(Clermont's Corner appears weekly throughout football season.)
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