Dickenson on Daniels’ highlight reel catch: ‘It was much needed’
The Canadian Press
CALGARY – Just when the Ottawa REDBLACKS looked to be clawing back into the game on Saturday afternoon, DaVaris Daniels made an unbelievable, one-handed catch right on the sideline for a touchdown to swing the momentum back into the Stampeders’ direction.
“I trust my hands enough but my hands are actually kind of small so I don’t really anticipate making one handed catches,” laughed Daniels. “I’m just happy I made the play, we needed it, it was at a pivotal point in the game, we needed something to happen and I’m just happy I came down with it.”
Calgary headed into the locker room at half time with a 30-14 lead over the REDBLACKS and perhaps they let themselves become too comfortable.
Starting the second half, Ottawa’s defence held Bo Levi Mitchell and the Stampeders’ offence completely off the score sheet in the third quarter. Ottawa pivot Trevor Harris and co. started to roll down the field and score points of their own, first from a Greg Ellingson touchdown and second from a Chris Milo field goal, cutting the lead to 31-23.
“When anybody relaxes and gets their mind thinking that it’s okay because were up, that’s when things change,” Mitchell told reporters after the game.
And things did start to change in favour of the visitors at McMahon Stadium. That is until Daniels took things into his own hands – literally – making a highlight reel catch to extend Calgary’s lead in the fourth quarter.
“It was much needed. It was one of those games where you win 48-23 but you’re just out of gas,” Stampeders’ head coach Dave Dickenson told reporters following the victory. “(We) never felt safe because we know they have a lot of weapons.
“They did come over top on a lot of us on coverage. But our defence scoring two touchdowns, that can certainly always help out and they played well.”
“I trust my hands enough but my hands are actually kind of small so I don’t really anticipate making one handed catches.”
DaVaris Daniels
Jamar Wall nabbed the first major for the defence, intercepting Harris in the second quarter and taking it 60 yards down the field for the score.
The second was a Ja’Gared Davis scoop-and-score late in the fourth quarter.
It was a better start for the Stampeders this week as they scored 30 points in the first half. Last week, Calgary scored just three points in the first thirty minutes against the Eskimos – something that Dickenson made sure his team corrected this week.
“We did say ‘let’s start faster.’ We didn’t have our best start last week. It was a point of emphasis to get out of the gates (faster),” said Dickensen. “Last week, it was the first half where we struggled a little bit, this week, (it was the) third quarter. It’s basically the ebb and flow of football. You’re going to have some good quarters. What it is is can you find a way and who’s going to make a play?”
This week, it was Daniels who both found a way and made the play en route to the Stamps’ ninth victory in a row.
Next week, Calgary will look for the next man to make the play when they host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers – a team that is riding an impressive winning streak themselves (seven in a row).
