Cauz: The tale of the tape between the Lions and Elks

Matthew Cauz

CFL.ca

@mcauz56

Hello everyone, did you miss me? You know what, don’t answer that. I just got back from a 16-day vacation when I ran the Bordeaux Marathon (slowly) and I was in Marrakech, Morocco during the earthquake (scary/surreal).

Before you ask, yes, I did see someone sporting a Roughriders hat during my travels. When I returned, the first game I watched was that ridiculous 41-37 comeback win by the BC Lions over the Ottawa REDBLACKS; a classic CFL game. It’s good to be back!

In boxing the saying goes “styles makes fights” which is absolutely the case for Friday’s match-up between the Lions and the Edmonton Elks. The Lions are the CFL leaders in passing yards per game while Edmonton’s recent success has been spurned by the No. 1 ground game.

“In one corner you have the Pacific Bombers! When they’re not skiing and swimming on the same day, they’re lighting up the field attacking you short, deep and everywhere in between! It’s the BC Lions! In the other corner in the Green, White and Gold trunks is the Prairie Pound led by the Glimmer Twins, quarterback Tre Ford and running back Kevin Brown. It’s the Edmonton Elks!”

I know I have focused on Tre Ford a great deal recently, but Brown deserves so much credit for the team’s winning ways as of late. In the team’s past four wins the second year running back has carried the ball 64 times for 475 yards, including a career high 175 yards in the Elks’ 36-27 victory last week over the Saskatchewan Roughriders. That showing put him over 1,000 yards and second in the league behind only Brady Oliveira.

Of all the attributes about Brown as a runner, what stuck out against Saskatchewan the most was his patience. On his 32-yard run at the end of the first quarter he waited for a moment after taking the handoff, read his blockers and kicked out to his left as Brett Boyko was pancaking everyone while Dillion Mitchell and Eugene Lewis conducted a clinic on receiver downfield blocking.

His third quarter 35-yard touchdown was a carbon copy. The run is supposed to go up the middle but his Spidey senses kicked in, Brown shuffled wide, Lewis sealed the corner and the game is tied at 20. Beyond his split-second decision making what stood out on that play was his speed. I did not expect him to hit that second gear and run away from his defenders. The guy is a fast bowling ball of a runner who can make people miss in small spaces. No running back in the CFL has a better average yards per carry than Brown and re-watching that game it’s easy to see why.

Speaking of yards per carry, you want to know why Edmonton as a team also leads in that category? It’s because of Tre Ford’s gaudy 10 (yes, 10) yards per carry. I know it’s a small sample size (47 total carries) but that man is a walking, talking, running first-down conversion. Not to be a broken record or go full Guns N’ Roses on you but one of the keys to Ford’s early success is also patience.

On so many of his carries he is looking to pass first and run second. You saw that early in the game and late on his 10-yard touchdown scamper that gave Edmonton a 34-27 lead. Ford goes through at least one if not two different options before he starts to make magic with his legs. Listen, I could go on and on about how Ford’s athleticism bought himself seven seconds of time to find a wide-open Lewis in the end zone for a 30-yard score, but I kept going back to many of his second-down conversions. His growth as a quarterback can be tied into his mentality to pass first and run second. It means there is more room for him as a runner, as defences must commit to his arm and not just his legs.

As for Edmonton’s opponent I’m just curious to see what other tricks they have up their sleeve this week. Down 16 with under four minutes to go, yes, I understand in the CFL anything is possible but no one saw that ending against the REDBLACKS coming.

In my mind the story was Douglas Coleman III’s 50-yard interception touchdown. That was until Terry Williams went the length of the entire field and changed everything in an instant. Just like Edmonton is learning who they are as an offence, the Lions know their success comes from Vernon Adams Jr. slinging it all over the field. The team doesn’t have one receiver in the top-five in yardage, but they attack you in waves of talent.

On Saturday it was Justin McInnis playing the role of hero in the fourth quarter. The best part about the winning touchdown was that it was an aggressive decision by Adams. Down by three with 22 seconds left, the team could have elected to go conservative and throw short. If you score a touchdown, fantastic but at least get the field goal and force overtime. Nope. Instead, it was a shot to the back corner of the end zone to Lucky Whitehead and pandemonium ensued.

What makes this game so much fun is who you root for may say a lot about who you are as a football fan. You want 40 passes of pyrotechnics, then the Lions are for you. You like a more old school, physical ground attack, then Chris Jones’ squad will be the one you’re rooting for. Friday night’s game presents two different styles of attacking on offence. Let’s see who wins this fight.

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