Dave Campbell
CFL.ca
Prior to last week’s game between the Eskimos and the Roughriders, Edmonton general manager Eric Still stopped by the visitors broadcast booth for a chat with myself and Morley Scott.
The biggest concern expressed by Tillman was the fact that the offensive line had to be re-vamped during the week.
Projected left tackle Jeremy Parquet ruled himself out with a suspected concussion, Junius Coston was the only import left so Kyle Koch had to play right guard, giving the line four Canadians – one more than the original plan.
Tillman announced on our pre-game show that the playbook was reduced by 30 to 40 per cent. But the question everyone had on their minds was whether or not the offensive line could protect Ricky Ray.
The answer turned out to be a resounding yes.
The Eskimos scored 42 points which included five touchdowns, two field goals, and a punt single. Ray threw for three touchdown passes – the first time he accomplished that feat since 2009.
Receiver Jason Barnes caught two touchdowns; he along with Adarius Bowman both cracked the 100-yard receiving mark.
The ground game rushed for 113 yards using Calvin McCarty, Jerome Messam, and Daniel Porter. Let’s not forget the defence, they allowed 28 points – but only eight in the second half.
So where did this come from? Defences are usually miles ahead of offences at this time of year, but the Eskimos didn’t follow the script.
Ray says he hasn’t felt that good after a game in an awfully long time.
“Yeah, it feels like it’s been a while,” said a very happy Ray.
“You know we just executed pretty darn well the whole game. We had some big plays and that’s huge. If you get both of those combinations good things are going to happen and we’re able to put some points.”
It was so shocking to see the Eskimos play an aggressive style that you could almost see every local media outlet posting the same bulletin: “THE ESKIMOS ARE ACTUALLY THROWING THE BALL DOWN THE FIELD, THE ESKIMOS ARE ACTAULLY THROWING THE BALL DOWN THE FIELD…MORE AT 11PM.”
The first touchdown of the game happened in the first quarter, yes, the first quarter.
“We’ve had a tradition of starting slow here in the last couple of years and that’s something we want to kind of break away from,” explained Aaron Fiacconi.
“When we got that first touchdown on the board in the first quarter, we were up 7-0. Felt good, felt like we were in control, we felt like we knew what we were doing.”
The game did feature some adverse moments for the Eskimos. Damon Duval shanked a punt late in second quarter which led to the Riders scoring a touchdown in the final minute of the first half to cut the Eskimos lead to 27-20.
The offence struggled for about seven to eight minutes before righting the ship and cruising to their first win. Last year, the Eskimos simply would lose that game.
One game does not a season make, it’s a good start but the Eskimos need to build off their season-opening performance.
Defensively, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats will bring the fight to the Eskimos much more so than the Riders did; who looked like they were attending a tea party and not a football game.
For now, the Eskimos are 1-0 and feeling good. Head coach Kavis Reed likes seeing the happy faces in the dressing room and says he wants his team to play with a sense of confidence.
“I think enthusiasm is a good thing and I hope the guys weren’t feeling any pressure after the pre-season,” said Reed.
“I thought the guys had progressed very well in during the training camp. We were very satisfied as a coaching staff with the progress those guys were making towards the regular season. They went out and they did a good job.”
It’s early but the Eskimos have a winning record, you couldn’t say that at any point last season.
Notes: Kavis Reed says he expects to use Jerome Messam, Calvin McCarty, and Daniel Porter once again in the ground attack. Arkee Whitlock is still out nursing a hamstring injury. Reed says even if Whitlock was healthy he’s not in game condition and would need to sit out an extra game. Offensive lineman Cliff Washburn (finger) and Brian Ramsay (knee) both returned to practice but are not expected to suit up Saturday. The Eskimos are 6-3-1 in their last 10 home openers.
