By Kevin Thompson
A couple of weeks ago, we talked about the resiliency of your team. This characteristic was evident yet again Saskatchewan as your offence rallied to score 23 points in the second half to tie up the game. What other positives from the game can the team build on in that loss?
MB – “The fact that we played hard on the road, we stayed positive and were able to get back into the game which was a challenge obviously so that is positive. I thought we had a good spur of play in the second half which shows the player’s confidence can give them an opportunity to win anytime on the road.”
So far this season, the Ticats offence has had tremendous success in the second half outscoring their opponents 95 – 44. Why has the team been so successful in the second half?
MB – “We make the right adjustments, the players do a good job of putting the ball in the end zone and defending the end zone, making adjustments to the style of play during the game and our players are playing sixty minutes so obviously that allows you to get stronger as the game goes along and continue to play faster to have success.”
We saw Kevin Glenn come in at quarterback in the 2nd quarter in the game against Saskatchewan. Can you talk about your decision to go with Glenn? Have you decided on the starter for Saturday’s game against Edmonton?
MB – “We had a few struggles and we weren’t moving the ball very well so we gave the opportunity to Kevin. We were planning to put Quinton back in but he had hurt his knee, so Kevin did a good job for us. As for this game, we will make a decision when we get there on game day.”
An exceptional special teams play during the Saskatchewan game was Markeith Knowlton’s punt block in the 3rd quarter. After the first seven games, can you give us your assessment of the special teams performance as a unit?
MB – “The special teams are doing a great job. They have managed to make plays, our cover teams are playing well, they have been a bright spot and very consistent for this team. We have had maybe one game where we probably didn’t play as well as our opponent so I am happy with where we at but there is still room for improvement.”
On Tuesday, the team added two new players to the mix, defensive back LaRoche Jackson and defensive lineman Bryan Robinson. What are your expectations for each of them?
MB – “You won’t see them on the roster Saturday. Right now, we are evaluating them, how they fit in, what their talent levels are and where they might fit in with us. It will be a week to week evaluation in terms of their progress.”
The Eskimos are a tough team to beat at home so how critical is it for your team to have a quick start and put points on the board early in the game?
MB – “It is always important to start well in any football game, regardless of whether you’re on the road or at home. It is just as important to play well on defence and keep them out of the end zone so you like to get off to a good start to put yourself in a better situation going into half time. As long as you can hang with them going into the second half then you’re giving yourself an opportunity.”
What are the keys to achieving a win in Edmonton?
MB – “Turnovers are always key especially when you are on the road. We are going to have to play well on special teams and make some big plays on both sides of the ball at opportune times. It is a tough field to travel 80, 90 yards on drives so we need some big plays offensively.”
There appears to be some minor changes to the Black and Gold’s offensive and defensive units during practices this week with some players getting more reps than usual. Should we expect to see changes to the starting roster on Saturday?
MB – “We haven’t made any decisions yet, we’ll decide as we get closer to kickoff how we are going to line up so right now we are just experimenting a little bit and we will see how that goes.”
Both Darrell Adams and Garrett McIntyre went down with injuries during the Saskatchewan game. What is the status of their injuries?
MB – “They are both getting better and improving, fortunately for us we’ve got some depth here. Khari Long is healthy and Montez Murphy so we have guys that can play for them if need be.”
Some unfortunate news about Agustin Barrenechea being moved to the injured list due to blood clots in his lungs. Who will you look to step it up in his absence?
MB – “We need everyone to step up, not just one guy because he did such a great job for us on special teams and on defence so it has to be a collective group effort, that is the first part. The second part of that is he was playing well and was a leader for us so we need guys to step up in that leadership role.”
