Against a lesser team, the BC Lions possibly escape with a victory. Unfortunately, tonight they faced off against the two-time defending Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes instead and a valiant second half rally fell short by a 30-26 score.
With the first possession of the game, the Als managed to do what neither Calgary nor Saskatchewan could during the preseason, score a major on the Lions defence. Diamond Ferri took the opening kickoff from Paul McCallum at the Montreal 14 yard line, and the season was underway. Ferri would be brought down after a 23 yard return by Anthony Reddick and six plays later, Anthony Calvillo found S. J. Green behind the Lions secondary and the 51-yard scoring toss drew first blood, putting the Alouettes up 7-0 after the conversion.
While Montreal may have gotten exactly the start they could have hoped for, the same could not be said for the visiting Lions, who went 2-and-out on their opening possession, yielding a sack on the first play under centre followed by an incompletion from Lulay intended for Jamal Richardson, leaving McCallum to kick the ball away.
The little errors and untimely penalties which plagued last year’s edition of the Lions looked as if they might recur when an unnecessary roughness penalty against Aaron Hunt tacked fifteen yards onto a Brandon Whitaker 28-yard run, moving the ball inside the Lions’ 25, leaving BC in danger of dropping ten or more points in arrears less than halfway into the first quarter. The Als were unable to convert, however, with Sean Whyte hitting the right upright on a 35-yard attempt.
The Lions were able to capitalize somewhat on the momentum shift after the Whyte miss, moving the ball sixty-four yards in eleven plays before getting on the board with the first of McCallum’s four field goals on the night. On the drive, Geroy Simon caught a sixteen-yard toss from Lulay to move into fourth place among the CFL’s all-time receiving leaders.
The Lions secondary in particular looked shaky for most of the first half, letting the Als stretch the defensive backfield and tally 27 points by the half with the Lions only managing to add a late touchdown throw by Lulay to Akeem Foster on a drive kept alive on a 2nd-and-10 completion from Lulay to rookie receiver Dobson Collins good for 49 yards.
The second half would see the Lions come out and move the ball downfield only to stall when a blown coverage allowed Ferri to drop Jarious Jackson, who had come in on the short-yardage play with the Lions looking at first-and-goal from the 2 yard line for an eleven yard loss. Rather than punching the ball in for the touchdown, the Lions settled for McCallum’s second FG of the night to close to 27-10.
Reddick would continue his strong play on defensive special teams with a big hit on Tim Maypray which seemed to set the tone for the Lions’ play when Montreal had the ball in the second half. The Alouettes generally had the better field position through the third quarter, but the BC defence proved stalwart when needed and kept their hosts from capitalizing.
With three minutes left in the third quarter, Tim Brown managed to pull off something which had the Lions’ faithful (and your BCLionsDen.ca staff) asking “Yonus who?” as he returned a Whyte punt 97 yards for the touchdown bringing the black and orange to within ten. If Brown can continue with the play he showed this evening, his predecessor as Leos’ kick returner will surely be forgotten in the “ecstasy” of the Lions’ coaching staff and fans.
Montreal would close out their side of the scoring ledger with a Whyte field goal in the waning seconds of the third quarter and would take the final turn up 30-20. Bracketing the opening of the final frame, Lulay would find Simon and Collins for 36 and 14 yards respectively before the drive would fizzle when Lulay just slightly overthrew Collins in the end zone. McCallum would tally his third field goal of the night from 39 yards, and it seemed as if the comeback might be on.
In the end, though, Lions’ fan’s hopes to steal a victory from the beast of the East were dashed as the team started to win the field position battle, forcing Montreal coach Marc Trestman to elect to have Sean Whyte punt from fifteen yards deep in his own end zone up by seven points with under three minutes to play. The Lions started to move again, but without a timeout came up a bit short and settled for McCallum’s fourth field goal of the night to round out the scoring.
Coach Buono’s decision to kick the field goal on third-and-five rather than going for the conversion will certainly be questioned at some length before next week’s tilt at Empire Field against the Stampeders. With the momentum and field position favouring the Leos and Lulay having success finding several receivers, the call seemed an overly conservative one, as with no timeouts left and 1:42 left on the clock at the change of possession, the Lions were unable to get the ball back to take one more shot at the victory.
Quick Hits:
- Travis Lulay had a good statistical evening, going 26 of 45 for 366 yards and out-throwing Calvillo, who ended up 22-of-30 for 312.
- The offensive line for the Lions showed significant improvement in their pass protection, only allowing the opening drive sack of Lulay and the blown coverage which dropped Jackson down in the red zone.
- Tim Brown had five punt returns for 132 yards, including the 97-yarder; and added 50 yards on three kick returns, with Andrew Harris netting 59 on the other three.
- On the defensive side of the ball, Solomon Elimimian led the charge with seven tackles, while Anthony Reddick tallied five and a pair on special teams.
- Geroy Simon, Shawn Gore and Jamal Robertson each had five catches, followed by Dobson Collins, Akeem Foster and Nick Moore with three apiece. Simon’s catches netted 115 yards, rookie Collins finished with 85.
Next game: Friday July 8th versus Calgary at Empire Field. 7:30pm. Tickets
Sometimes when you make a mistake you need to man up and do the right thing. On Tuesday night, Richmond BC’s Shea Emry had his Grey Cup ring stolen from his car from a parkade in the 600 block of Richards street in Vancouver. Emry had forgotten the ring in the car and it was stolen some time between 8:30pm Tuesday evening and 5:30am Wednesday morning.
The ring is valued at $20,000 and was the first ring Emry won as a member of the Montreal Alouettes. He will receive another one shortly for the team’s 2010 win, but would dearly love to get this one back.
The ring is a dead giveaway and is personalized, so anyone trying to pawn it for cash should be automatically reported. The right thing to do would be to contact the Vancouver Police Department at and turn the ring in so that it can be returned to Emry.
Hopefully whoever took it, or whoever has it now, will do the right thing.
LIONS 38 ALOUETTES 17
Ok, just maybe the football gods aligned everything in the football universe for the BC Lions to break their seven game losing streak Friday night in Montreal. The Alouettes, pretty much as sure a thing at home as you can get, were not only without quarterback Anthony Calvillo, but they were giving young QB Chris Leak his first professional start. The Lions of course were a desperate team heading into Quebec and needed to take advantage of the missing Calvillo. Take advantage they did.
Of course Chris Leak wasn’t the only QB in the game under the microscope. BC’s Casey Printers was under pressure to get this offence going after a sputtering injury filled start to the year. Both QB’s struggled getting their teams going early, with the clubs exchanging field goals early. McCallum added a single and another field goal to make the score 7-3 until late in the half when Casey Printers connected on two big plays to Paris Jackson. He then went to Geroy Simon in the endzone for the touchdown with :34 seconds remaining in the half and the Lions led by 11 at the break.
Second half adjustments and production have been a problem for the Lions this season, and fans were left wondering how the team would fair when the emerged from the locker room. The quarter started off ominously as both Korey Banks (Dislocated finger) and Dante Marsh (Seperated shoulder) had to leave the game, and Leak had some success moving the ball in their absence. However, his promising drive would end badly as he threw a deep floater over the middle that gave safety Tad Crawford his first interception of the year. Crawford returned the ball 40 yards to midfield, but the Lions failed to get a first down, setting up a Paul McCallum punt. But the wily veteran kicker had other ideas as he pulled the ball down and ran 11 yards for a first down. That play would turn out to be huge, as Jamall Robertson rumbled the ball into the redzone with carries of 7 and 33 yards to set up a Printers touchdown pass to rookie Steven Black, who was making his first start for the Lions in place of the injured Darius Passsmore.
From there the wheels fell off for the Alouettes. Both teams would punt on their next possessions but the next time the Als touched the ball Leak was picked off by Korey Banks who had returned the the game. Travis Lulay replaced Casey Printers who left with a leg injury that was reported as “cramping”. His departure was “precautionary” with the big lead. The Lions started at the Montreal 31 yard line and Lulay hit Jamal Lee for a nice gain before handing off to Yonus Davis who ran the ball in for the score. On the Als next possession, Leak fumbled on a strange play where he caught his leg in the turf, stumbled and fumbled the ball into the arms of Banks who took it to the endzone to give the Lions a 35-3 lead just like that.
The Lions were dealt another injury blow in the 4th quarter when centre Dean Valli was rolled on from behind and suffered a broken right leg.
Overall the Lions offence looked creative and much more aggressive than in past weeks. Steven Black had a nice game, and leader like Simon, Jackson, Printers, Banks stepped up to set the tone. The addition of Joe McGrath at right tackle seemed to help stabilize the offensive line, which will see another change next week with Reid plugging in for Valli and the possible addition of Jesse Newman that the club announced Saturday.
Casey Printers finished the game 14/28 passing for 235 yards 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. The Lions were also more successful on the ground with Jamal Robertson pounding out 63 yards and Jerome Messam getting three late touches for 26.
Quick Hits:
- The Lions announced the acquisition of non-import offensive lineman Jesse Newman from the Calgary Stampeders today. The club will give up a 2nd round pick in the 2011 draft and a fourth round pick in the 2012 draft. Newman should be a welcome addition to the offensive line, and is also a native of BC.
- Initial reports from Dante Marsh, according to The Provinces Lowell Ullrich yesterday indicate that Marsh says he’ll be ready to play next week after separating his shoulder Friday.
- Lions 2nd round pick and recent Green Bay Packers cut Shawn Gore was in the crowd watching his potential future teammates. The two sides are rumoured to be making progress on a contract for the young Canadian receiver who was at the game to catch up with Jamal Lee, James Yurichuk and Dan McCullough.
- Martell Mallett, Ricky Foley, Stefan Logan were all released by their respective NFL teams, and all are hoping to either be picked up or offered practice roster spots. Former Saskatchewan Roughrider DL Stevie Baggs was also released by the Arizona Cardinals, and like the former Lions is awaiting word on waivers and a possible PR spot.
By Jack Bedell for BCLionsDen.ca
For the better part of a decade, fans and pundits alike have been pining for a more competitive CFL East Divison. Too often of late, the division has been a foregone conclusion both within and without.
Aside from a few one-off challenges from Toronto and Winnipeg, the Montreal Alouettes have had the division under wraps by the end of September each season. And the other three teams in the East have been looking over their shoulders at looming crossover teams from the West.
While the numbers suffered a slight correction in 2009 with the Als and Hamilton Ticats winning the majority of their East/West battles, those cross-divisional match ups have pretty much been Nolo Contendere in recent memory.
If the first three weeks of 2010 are any indication, though, it looks like the East might just be back in business with a vengeance. And that’s both in terms of its own race and in its ability to compete with teams from the West.
Now that I’ve had a chance to watch each team both home and away, here’s my take on what I’ve seen:
Hamilton Ticats
Well, it’s safe to say the Ticats showed up this past weekend primed and ready to kick off the 2010 season against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Unfortunately for Ticats fans, this past weekend was week 3 of the 2010 season!
After being pegged by many pundits as a legitimate threat to the Als’ eastern dominance, the Ticats sleep-walked through a 49-29 week 1 drubbing at the hands of the Bombers. Week 2 saw an improved performance against the Stampeders, but the result was the same, a tough 23-22 loss.
In week 3, though, the team most people thought would open the 2010 campaign finally showed up. The Ticats offence operated with great tempo and efficiency behind Kevin Glenn sizzling 29 of 36 passing display for 336 yards and three majors.
Hamilton’s aggressive secondary shut down Winnipeg’s deep passing game, and the Ticats front seven held Buck Pierce in check on the ground, finally pushing him to the sidelines with a knee injury.
With Dave Stala coming back to form, Mo Mann looking like he’s finally back to full speed, and Marquay McDaniel and Arland Bruce III moving chains regularly, the Ticats certainly proved they can be as dangerous as any team in the league offensively. And when you consider DeAndra Cobb has yet to get untracked this season, things can get even better.
Montreal Alouettes
After last Friday’s 16-12 win at Empire Field, the Als managed to come out of a grueling three-game road trip to open their season with a 2-1 record. Instead of earning rave reviews for their toughness and resiliency out west, though, the Als are currently receiving fire for their “slow start.”
While I’d have to agree those two victories were of the ugly variety, don’t count me among those pundits prepping Montreal’s eulogy just yet. Both wins came against teams absolutely desperate to avoid 0-2 losing streaks at home this season, not to mention how difficult it’s been for Montreal to come out of Commonwealth Stadium and any venue in Vancouver with Ws for the past several years.
And the Als’ one loss, a 54-51 double-overtime instant classic in Regina, came at the hands of a team with absolutely everything working in its favour to open the season with a win—a rabid, sell-out home crowd, the burn of last season’s Grey Cup loss, and host of big-play talent healthy and ready to rock and roll. Even with all that tilting the field towards green, the Als gave the Riders all they could handle for 60 minutes and some change.
All that said, there are a few storm clouds looming over the defending champs. The Als’ secondary, particularly Billy Parker, Etienne Boulay, and Jerald Brown, have shown a propensity for giving up big plays and bigger penalties in man coverage. The front seven has failed to generate the pressure you’d expect from guys like Anwar Stewart, John Bowman, and Shea Emry. And the inability to get Avon Cobourne off has caused a few hiccups in the redzone.
With Anthony Calvillo showing no signs of a drop-off, however, and receivers like S.J. Green, Jamel Richardson, Ben Cahoon, Brian Bratton, and Kerry Watkins making plays, you’ve got to figure the Als will be in the mix come November. Plus, they’ll have the experience of eking out a few wins early to fall back on when the competition heats up heading into the playoffs.
Toronto Argonauts
The real surprise of the 2010 season in the East for me, though, has to be the Argos cohabitating in first place with Montreal after three games.
As soon as Toronto flushed its previous coaching staff and cadre of QBs, I knew this season would be full of positives steps. I’d be lying if I told you I thought the Argos would be 2-1 after facing Calgary and Hamilton to open their campaign, however.
Considering it had been a while since Jim Barker had been behind the bench and the fact that the Argos were going with Cleo Lemon at QB, the learning curve was sure to be steep. Add to that mix opening the season with games against two teams picked by some to be Grey Cup Contenders, and it would have been better than par for Toronto to earn platitudes for new-found discipline and competitiveness with a scrappy 0-3 start.
Instead, the Argos have made solid decisions on and off the field since Barkers hiring, and the results have come quickly.
Despite opening the season on the road against probably the toughest defensive coordinator a CFL rookie QB could face in his first outing, Lemon and the Argos managed to enter their last possession of the game down only a single score with a good chance to tie things up before Chris Jones dialed up the perfect blitz to cause a turnover and end the game.
In wins over Hamilton away and Calgary at home, Lemon has proven to be a quick study, learning protection schemes and escape routes on the fly. RB Cory Boyd has also proven to be a beast, leading the league with 283 yards on 47 carries.
Watching how quickly the Argos have gotten themselves together this season, I’d have to agree with Coach Barker—they’re no longer the free space on the bingo card for their opposition.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
There’s been quite an about-face in Winnipeg, too, this season. Out is the rudderless Mike Kelly administration. In is Paul LaPolice and a staff of well-prepared, media-friendly coaches who’ve changed the whole feeling around Big Blue, not to mention installing a pro offence that’s improved the product on the field considerably.
Even sitting at 1-2 on the year so far, it’s clear all the changes have given the team some traction, starting first and foremost with new pivot Buck Pierce.
Pierce jumped out of the gate in his first two games for Winnipeg absolutely on fire, passing for over 600 yards and five TDs while rushing for 192 yards and two TDs. No doubt, he showed up in the Peg ready to play as advertised.
As B.C. Lions fans can attest, Pierce deserves to have his picture in the dictionary next to “fiery competitor.” And watching the Blue Bombers play the first three weeks this year, it’s pretty clear that attitude rubs off on teammates quickly.
Unfortunately, as Lions fans know all too well, Pierce should have his picture installed under “brittle” as well. All those running yards took a toll on his shoulder forcing him out of practice, and a knee sprain picked up in last weekend’s loss to Hamilton is going to knock Pierce out of action for at least a week.
Winnipeg’s defence has shown it has the ability to put pressure on the quarterback, and their secondary has shown a nose for the ball. But without Pierce, it remains to be seen if that’ll be enough for the Bombers to keep progressing under the new regime.
Ex-Riders QB Steven Jyles will be under centre in week 4. My money had him winning the starting job outright in camp, so I’d expect the team to be in games with or without Buck Pierce. It may even give Fred Reid a chance to break out with his first 100-yard effort.
By Vanya Tucherov: BCLionsDen.ca
Earlier this week, Lion centre Angus Reid noted on his Twitter feed that he had never lost to the Montreal Alouettes at home over the course of the ten years of his career. He can no longer make that statement after the Lions fell to the Als this evening at Empire Field to fall to 1-2 on the young season before heading East for a road tussle against the Toronto Argonauts.
If there are bright points for the Lions to pick out of tonight’s 16-12 debacle, they would be the solid defensive performances turned in by veteran Korey Banks and newcomer Solomon Elimimian, and Jamal Robertson’s 15-yard touchdown catch just before the end of the first half; with an honourable mention to the security staff for effectively breaking through a breakdown in coverage to corral the rogue streaker after Robertson’s fumble was covered by Damane Duckett near midfield with about two minutes left in the third quarter.
As a whole, the Lions defence performed reasonably enough, keeping the Alouettes from being able to crow after punching the ball into the end zone, with only Als’ kicker Damon Duval managing to register points for a Montreal team which had tallied 84 through the first two weeks of the season. Duval registered four field goals and a pair of rouges, but failed to connect on two more, missing wide (left, I think) from forty yards and ringing one off the uprights from forty-seven. Montreal’s other points came on a safety conceded by Paul McCallum in the first half.
Duval would add the final points after ringing the uprights yet again, banking one in off of the left post the likes of which are more frequently seen from the Sedin brothers in Vancouver.
That wasn’t the only resemblance to a Canucks’ game in the evening. The first quarter closed with a score more fitting a hockey tally, with the Lions’ trailing 4-2 after the frame on Duval’s first field goal and single. He also conceded a safety touch after the Lions successfully held the Als to a three-and-out after McCallum successfully angled a punt deep which Montreal’s Tim Maypray took out of bounds at the six-yard-line.
McCallum would return the two points early in the second quarter, with Casey Printers’ TD toss to Robertson rounding out the scoring in the opening half. The Lions seemed to be sleepwalking through the half until the final drive, with Geroy Simon making three of his five catches for 55 yards.
Statistically, the Lions looked better with the ball in the second half, but were still unable to mount significant sustained drives. The offensive line looked shaky at best throughout the game. Even though they only yielded a single sack, the Alouettes were able to pressure Printers regularly. Perhaps due to the line’s rocky performance, the Lions almost completely abdicated the running game, managing only seven yards on the ground on nine rushes.
Printers didn’t have a bad game, even though he was knocked around quite a bit. He ended up with 253 yards on the night, going 20-for-40, with the highlights coming on the touchdown and a scrambly 23-yard completion to Derick Armstrong down to the Montreal 14-yard line. After stalling, the drive would culminate in the McCallum field goal which would prove the final points on the evening for the Lions.
Quick Hits:
The “Beer snake” phenomenon hit Empire Field Saturday, and security forces and police were quick to snuff it out. Seriously Lions fans we can come up with something better than that. The beer cups raining down on fans were uncalled for and kudos for the PNE for the way they handled it despite the repeated attempts…The pre game tailgate parties were great once again and more fans and families seem to be catching on to the fun proving that tailgaters are not the evil, riot causing entity that opposing groups made them out to be.
By Jack Bedell
Despite what CJAD play-by-play man and CFL.ca columnist Rick Moffat might think, the Montreal Alouettes’ slogan for 2010, “Stay the Course,” is about as far from a conservative approach as the team could have as they get ready to defend their 2009 Grey Cup championship.
If the Als had chosen “Keep Chugging Along” or “Ho, Ho Status Quo” as their motto for 2010, Moffat might have a case. But when you’ve set your sites on excellence like Montreal’s head man Marc Trestman has the past two years, staying the course involves taking some extraordinary measures and making some very difficult decisions.
Unlike some successful championship teams in recent memory, the Alouettes have not chosen to simply maintain their roster and schemes from 2009. They’ve embraced proactive change by overhauling one-third of their playbook, and by making some hard coaching/personnel decisions, like the recent firing of new special teams coordinator Richard Kent or the choice to allow veterans Davis Sanchez and Keron Williams head to B.C. this past off-season.
The hallmarks of Marc Trestman’s Alouettes have been preparation, self-discipline, and focus. All of these characteristics are never-ending pursuits. Complacency in any of the above would mean regression. The Als’ veteran core—manned by high-character, top-shelf players like Anthony Calvillo, Ben Cahoon, Paul Lambert, Scott Flory, Anwar Stewart, Shea Emry, John Bowman, et al—would never stand for that.
Probably the most striking evolution the Alouettes have undergone on Trestman’s watch has been the steady strengthening of the group as a team. It’s been said before ad nauseum, but it bears repeating: there are no egos on the Als. Every player has an important role to play, and every player accepts that role along with the responsibility that goes with it.
In the past, offensive droughts, defensive ineptitudes, special teams gaffes, injuries, or retirements might have derailed Montreal. Now, the team truly has a next-man-up, next-game-is-the-most-important attitude that drives it week to week. Pure progression, no matter what.
If the offence fails, the defence kicks it up a notch, and vice versa. When a player like Bryan Chiu retires, Paul Lambert steps up. If a marquee player goes down, the team trusts in the depth GM Jim Popp has built up and down the roster.
Repeating as Grey Cup champion is a difficult task. The list of teams that have accomplished that goal in the modern era is pretty short. But effort, planning, talent, and a high-degree of adaptability give the Als a shot at pulling it off. And you can bet they won’t be lying down in the face of the challenge. That would be the easy choice.
Accepting mediocrity or expecting setbacks would be the safe, conservative approach to 2010. Continuing a steady drive for excellence, in my book, is a bold move.
After losing some veteran talent in the secondary with the retirement of Barron Miles, the BC Lions decided to look to another veteran defensive back to plug into their defense come training camp in June. The Lions announced the signing of CFL veteran Davis Sanchez on Tuesday. Sanchez, who played with the Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes last season, had a clause in his contract that allowed him to try and get a deal closer to home after last season. When the chance came to sign with BC, Sanchez made use of the out.
Sanchez told BCLions.com that BC was his only choice.
“The Lions are the only team I wanted to play for this season and moving forward,” said Sanchez. “I have always respected this outstanding organization’s quality of coaches and players and I know I’m part of team that will be very difficult to play against.”
Sanchez will be 36 years old in August, and his role on the team is likely yet to be defined. His experience will be an asset, but his age and a good showing by younger talent at training camp could make this signing one to watch in Kamloops.
Davis Sanchez Career Stats – CFL.ca
The BC Lions arrived Sunday’s Eastern Final with the Montreal Alouettes as underdogs. They left with their tails between their legs after a dominant 56-18 trashing at the hands of the CFL’s undisputed best team.
The Alouettes showed that they made good use of their bye week, and were a finely tuned machine come game time. The first ominous sign for the Lions came when cornerback Dante Marsh left the game with a knee injury, forcing Jerome Dennis to the corner spot and Lavar Glover to an unfamilar side of the field. Cue the veteran Anthony Calvillo, who attacked the BC secondary for a record tying five touchdown passes on the day.
After the teams traded field goals on their opening drives, a fumble by Martell Mallett set the Alouettes up in the BC redzone. Calvillo wasted little time and went deep to a wide open Jamel Richardson. Another turnove would bite the Lions after Printers threw an ill-advised pass under pressure instead of throwing the ball away and was intercepted. The Als capitalized and just like that it was 17-3 for the home team. So much for silencing the crowd.
Nothing the Lions did seemed to change the momentum Calvillo threw an interception of his own that the Lion could garner any points off at the end of the half. Every time the Lions scored, the Alouettes would match it and then some. Not even a playoff record 105 kick return by Ryan Grice Mullen could spur the Lions on, the Als simply replied with another easy TD drive.
The defense had no answers for Calvillo’s offense, and listening to A.C. speak, that twas the plan all along.
“We had a lot of plays designed to get a shot downfield,” said Calvillo. “We felt that when they went into zone (defence), they sometimes get out of position and that’s how it happened.
“It was crazy, throwing the ball and finding guys wide open.”
The Montreal defense forced five turnovers and with rookie running back Martell Mallett playing with one shoulder, the Als were able to hold him to five yards on six carries. The Lions running game had only 12 total yards all game, which meant the Als could just pressure Printers constantly. For some reason the Lions felt that Ian Smart couldn’t carry any of the load.
The Lions Ricky Foley summed it up.
“They were better than us, that’s it.” “Up front, in the back end, offense, defense, you don’t get beat like that and have too many good parts of the game.”
So, what now?
The Lions are going to have to seriously look at the organization from top to bottom. Wally Buono is safe, but will he choose to move himself upstairs and assume full time GM duties? What will happen to his coaching staff, who at times seemed brilliant, but at others seemed badly out adjusted and out game planned.
There will be changes, and you can start at quarterback. There is no doubt Casey Printers will go into next year as the preferred starter, and that being the case, one of, if not both of Buck Pierce and Jarious Jackson may not be back. My money is on Pierce being released, which is unfortunate. But Lulay has showed promise, and Pierce just can’t stay healthy. The Lions have too much money committed there and will need that to resign some players, and hopefully address some weaknesses in other areas as well as come up with money for Printers on a restructured deal if he’s to be the starter.
In four games this season the Lions were blown out badly. That has to be rectified, and someone has to be held accountable for that. Yes, the team used five quarterbacks this year, but what about the inability to stop the run? What about the last minute cave jobs by the defense. Attendance was down 16%, and the Lions also need to address that. They aren’t off to a great start with another round of ticket price increases on season tickets, and a move to a downgraded temporary stadium next season.
Big decisions face Wally Buono, it will be interesting to see what he does, and how this organization rebounds from a tough year indeed.
Two weeks ago many had the BC Lions left for dead. I have to admit, that after the final regular season game against Edmonton, I wasn’t holding out a lot of hope, especially thinking we had lost Casey Printers. Strange things happen when you get a second chance, and like the Lions I feel invigorated as a fan and have great hope as the team prepares to take on the class of the CFL, the 15-3…haven’t lost at home…Montreal Alouettes.
There is no doubt the Lions will have to play their best game of the season to have a chance of advancing to the Grey Cup. Montreal’s stellar year was no fulke and they will be in front of a crowd in excess of 50,000 people at the Big O in Montreal. The Lions had two very good games against the Als this year, splitting the season series and losing the second on the last play of the game. The Alouettes have yet to face the “Casey Printers” version of the Lions.
Let’s take a look at the match up of Sunday’s Eastern Final and the Lions keys to success on Sunday.
Where: Olympic Stadium, Montreal QB
When: Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 10:00 AM
Where to watch: TSN, TSNHD
Where to listen: TEAM 1410 AM
2009 Results:
Offense: The Casey Factor
Casey Printers didn’t play in either of the games against the Alouettes this year, in fact he wasn’t even on the team at that point. The Lions are clearly a different team with Printers in the lineup and he’ll pose a definite problem for the Montreal defense. Allow him to set up in the pocket and he has time to go deep. Allow him to escape the pocket and you can really get in trouble. Printers is no doubt a key in Sunday’s game, and he seems to be getting better with every start. His chemistry with Geroy Simon is impressive, and he’s also taking a liking to solid rookie receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux. Both of them had 100+ yard games versus Hamilton and they know if they get open down field, Printers can get it there. Failing that Paris Jackson is always a threat, and O’Neil Wilson has provided timely catches.
Printers showed great calmness in last weeks game versus the Ticats in a tough environment. He kept his cool during adversity, whether it was a bad penalty or in overtime after he had watched an 11 point 4th quarter lead slip away in the dying seconds. Right now he’s oozing with confidence, not only in himself but with the talent surrounding him and come Sunday if he’s on again, the Lions have a real shot at knocking off the Beast in the East.
Martell Mallett
Mallett hurt his shoulder in the Hamilton game and depite the fact he will play, it may be bad enough to keep the Western Division rookie of the year nominee from being anywhere near 100% come Sunday. The Lions will pray he can gut it out, because he was a force against the Als this year. In their first meeting of the year Mallett rushed for a club record 213 yards eclipsing the 212 yard total previously registered by former Lion Sean Millington. He was held to 66 in the second meeting, but the Lions will need a solid running attack to keep Montreal’s defenders honest against the pass. Ian Smart will no doubt work into the mix as well and was an effective tool last week, particularly on pitch outs and screen passes.
The Offensive Line
Somewhat lost in the satisfaction of last weeks win in Hamilton was the fact that a costly penalty could have cost the Lions a place in the Eastern Final. Late in the game with the Lions driving for the winning field goal a catch by Geroy Simon that would have given Paul McCallum a relatively easy field goal for the win was wiped out by a procedure call, the sixth of the game charged against the Lions offensive line. And it wasn’t just one player. Noise was blamed for the confusion, that and the fact the club is without the general of the line, Angus Reid. But if noise was a problem at Ivor Wynne, the Lions need to rectify this issue quickly if they are going to have success in front of a huge Olympic Stadium crowd.
The Lions will be happy that tackle Daren Heerspink will be able to go Sunday. It’s not known how healthy he is, but considering early reports had him questionable for the game, it’s good for the Lions he can play. The Lions had moved Justin Sorensen to tackle and inserted veteran Bobby Singh last week. But to have Sorensen start at tackle in a game of this magnitude would be a lot to throw on the rookie.
Defense
On defense, the Lions will look to have the same success against Avon Cobourne this week as they did against DeAndra’ Cobb last week. All week the Lions heard they couldn’t stop the run, however they may have changed some minds after their success last week. That said they is always Ben Cahoon, Jamal Richardson and Kerry Watkins to worry about.
The key to it all will be to get to QB Anthony Calvillo early and often. Get him off his game and out of the rhythm he’s famous for getting into. Calvillo’s release is accurate and quick, and if the Lions allow him enough time, it’s going to be a long day for Lions fans. Brent Johnson and Ricky Foley will be the keys to this success, and look for extra pressure from the blitzes of all-star Korey Banks.
The secondary had a strong game in Hamilton, but they have been giving up big chunks of yardage at critical times as well, mostly due to blown assignments. Barron Miles will look to lead the group and advance to the final, in what could be his final year. Look for the stamps to test Lavar Glover early.
Special Teams
Ian Smart doesn’t like the Alouettes. Cast aside by the Als, Smart would like nothing better than to be a factor in this game, not only at running back, but returning kicks. He’s joined in the return game by Ryan Grice-Mullen, who has had a few big returns of later, and looks to be getting comfortable as a CFL return threat.
On the other side of the ball, all hands will be required to stop the lethal Larry Taylor. Taylor is a threat every time he touches the ball, and when it looks like you have him he can make you look real dumb, real quick.
Both Paul McCallum and Damon Duval are capable kickers. The Lions will use the stronger leg of Sean Whyte for kickoffs and rely on the expertise and experience of McCallum for punting and field goal kicking. Field position will be huge, int he loud surroundings, and the Lions will need to be strong on special teams to ensure they have an upper hand in that department.
Coaching
Wally Buono, the most successful coach in CFL history against the new blood, and highly thought of Marc Trestman. Both coaches will have their teams ready to play, but the big question as usually will be the adjustments made during the game. The Lions devised a wonderful game plan for the TiCats last week and will have to have an even better one for Montreal. The Als have the advantage of the bye, and possibly adding things the Lions haven’t seen, while the Als have film from last week that shows how the Lions were successful.
Our Prediction:
Does anyone else kind of sense this is turning into a story book ending for Casey Printers? Clearly the Lions are a different team with him at the controls. His ability to escape the rush, and as proven last week, stand in the pocket gives the offense so much more weapons. Case in point, the production of Geroy Simon since Printers’ return. The Lions are playing with nothing to lose against the beasts of the CFL this year, and have been a decent road team. Top that off with the fact they seem to be one of the few teams that consistently play the Alouettes tough and…
Lions 28, Alouettes 21 and the first all west Grey Cup in CFL history.
Can’t see the blog above? Click Here
