Johany Jutras/CFL
Week 9 of the CFL season was an eventful one on and off the field. On field action gave us another dominant Hamilton Tiger-Cats win while the Riders came oh so close to their first win once again. The biggest story likely came off the field, though, as the Montreal Alouettes relieved Head Coach Tom Higgins on Friday night. After contemplating it all weekend, I’m still having a tough time wrapping my head around the decision.
Head scratcher
Personally, I don’t think firing Higgins was the right choice. I say that mainly because I like what the Als have done this season, even though their 3-5 record doesn’t necessarily agree. While this is a business based on results, I think Montreal has played better than its record suggests.
More than anything, the timing puzzles me on this move. The Als took a huge win over the Lions the night before, a win we’ll touch on a little later on. Even more odd is that Higgins was allowed to coach just eight regular season games in the season following a Coach of the Year nomination. I’m not saying either of those things guarantee job security, but they do make the timing more difficult to understand.
But the timing of this is secondary to my main objection on this decision. General Manager, and now Head Coach, Jim Popp said in his news conference that the team wasn’t playing at a high enough level to start the season under Higgins. Popp compared the beginning of 2015 to Montreal’s nightmare start to 2014. But I don’t see it that way, because I think the Als are better now than they were at this point last year.
In some ways, that’s the way it should be. Montreal finished 2014 with an 8-2 record, which helped it erase that disastrous 1-7 start. Some might ask why the Alouettes didn’t just pick up where they left off, which I understand. But there is one big factor that needs to be mentioned.
One of the biggest reasons, if not the biggest reason, why the Als got things back on track was because they finally found an answer at quarterback. Jonathan Crompton gave them solid work at pivot, even if it wasn’t always spectacular. Prior to that, the position was a disaster in the wake of Anthony Calvillo’s departure. Crompton gave them continuity and reliability in 2014. The problem is we’ve barely seen him in 2015.
Johany Jutras/CFL
Crompton hasn’t played since Week 1 when he suffered a shoulder injury. Despite Rakeem Cato’s blazing start, it’s tough ask for any team to pick up where it left off without arguably its most important player. That’s not on Higgins, the same way he can’t be blamed for Cato coming back down to earth. He’s a first year quarterback going through the growing pains most other guys go through.
The reality is, the Als were going to be in tough once Crompton went down. Yet, they’ve stayed competitive and haven’t fallen out of the playoff conversation at all. Montreal’s four losses since the Crompton injury have come by a combined 11 points. They’ve allowed the second fewest touchdowns and points against in the CFL. While 3-5 is never good, it also wasn’t catastrophically bad either.
For all the flux that has accompanied Higgins’s coaching tenure in Montreal, I actually think he’s done a remarkable job. From what I had seen this year, I was expecting a much better second half of the season. Who knows, that might still happen with a very capable Popp on the sidelines. I just think it’s a shame Higgins won’t be involved at all, because I believe he deserves to be.
Who’s next?
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats just keep on setting the bar higher, and I don’t know how you can argue that they’re not the CFL’s best team right now. Week 9 saw the Ticats throttle the league’s number one defence to the tune of 49-20. Prior to Friday’s beat down, the Eskimos hadn’t allowed more than 26 points in a game all season. That was almost doubled against Hamilton.
Zach Collaros is the league’s most dialed in quarterback right now as he continues to make the Ticats’ decision to go with him after their 2013 Grey Cup appearance the right one. You can safely say that Collaros is a number one guy in this league, and at the age of (almost) 27, he’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
Offensively, it’s just so tough to slow Hamilton down. That’s thanks to Collaros, an effective group of receivers, and a functional running game. But it’s also thanks to what’s happening on the other side of the ball.
The Tiger-Cats are crushing everyone right now. They’ve scored 31 or more points during every game of this five-game win streak. With 292 points scored in eight games, no one touches Hamilton’s offensive prowess. Yet it’s not like the Ticats are running away with things when it comes to their yardage totals. So why are they scoring so many points?
Say hello to a CFL coach’s best friend: Field position. Go back and watch these last five games and start paying attention to where the Ticats are starting drives. Collaros and company don’t have to go as far as they would if they weren’t helped by a superb defensive unit.
Right now, you just can’t run on Hamilton, especially if you’re a tailback. Two Edmonton running backs combined for 24 total yards on the ground on Friday night. The week before, Andrew Harris became a non-factor for the Lions because he wasn’t allowed to be.
The way the Tiger-Cats have turned opposing offences into one dimensional attacks isn’t just impressive, it’s winning them games.
WATCH: Norwood puts another one on the board for the Ticat defence
