Kyle Myers
Ticats.ca
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are 3–0, and for good reason. Their defence has kept their opponents away from the big play, and their offence has been tops in the league, scoring more touchdowns and points than any other team in the CFL.
For the next two weeks, the onus on stopping that offence will fall to the Tiger-Cats, including one defensive lineman quite familiar with Mosaic Stadium.
Shomari Williams is entering his first season with the Ticats after three years in Saskatchewan, and so he knows how much the Rider faithful expect from their team, and how wild they can be come game time.
“It’s probably one of the craziest crowds in the CFL,” he said after practice on Thursday. “They’ll definitely be loud when our offence is out there.”
Rider Nation has certainly had much to celebrate so far this season, but the Ticats are hoping their streak of success comes to an end this weekend. Hamilton’s defence is coming off their best performance of the season last week, holding Winnipeg quarterback Buck Pierce under 200 yards passing and bottling Chad Simpson’s rushing success in the second half.
Their next task will be to contain the CFL’s leading rusher.
With over 440 yards on the ground and four touchdowns after only three weeks, Kory Sheets is making some early MOP noise. But according to Williams, the Ticats have a plan in place to stop Saskatchewan’s top offensive weapon, and hopefully end his streak of 100 yard games at three.
“He’s a great back, but we definitely have a game plan for Kory Sheets,” he said. “We’re going to make the same commitment we made last week to stop the run, and build off our success. We want to be a great-run stopping defence so we can set things up for the pass.”
Unfortunately for the Ticats, the Riders offensive weaponry doesn’t end at Sheets. Darian Durant is one of only two starting quarterbacks without an interception through three games, and Geroy Simon, the CFL’s active leader in career receiving yards, is set to make his 2013 debut. Durant has been nagged by an injury this week, but Drew Willy is ready if Durant can’t go, and the Ticats won’t sleep on the 26-year-old back-up.
“Everyone on that football team is a professional, we game plan like we’re playing their best players at all times,” said Arthur Hobbs, who has started at halfback in the last two Tiger-Cats games. “We don’t look at Drew Willy as a back-up, we look at him as a starter. If he’s in there, he’s in there for a reason.”
And as for Simon? Hobbs believes he must be treated with the respect that a player of his caliber deserves.
“A lot of DB’s probably sleep on him because he’s a veteran and an older guy, but based on what I’ve seen on film, he’s just as good, if not better than a lot of other receivers in this league,” he said. “He brings that veteran mentality and he’s an instinctive player. He’s been doing this for a long time so he’s CFL-savvy.”
The coaching staff has been tinkering with the defensive lineup in each of the first three weeks of 2013, and that trend will likely continue this weekend against the league-leading Roughriders. Much of the focus this weekend will rest on Kory Sheets and Geroy Simon, and how well the Ticats are able to contain them. It’s more easily said than done, but in Williams’ eyes, it’s all about fundamentals.
“We have to be sound defensively,” he said. “If one thing breaks down in the defence it ends up being that big play. Everyone just needs to focus on their responsibility, not try to make the big play, and just play good football.”
