A Bridge too far
Roughriders’ backup QB proves no match for Blue Bombers defence in West semifinal
REGINA — A game usually swings on a handful of plays, and it is always decided by the players on the field, regardless of who watches from the sidelines.
But it might be difficult convincing dejected Riders fans of that old truism today, as they bemoan a 23-18 loss to Winnipeg that ends Saskatchewan’s season and sends the hated Blue Bombers to Calgary for the West final next weekend.
And from there, who knows, perhaps the Grey Cup in Edmonton, if their hot streak continues. This was the Bombers’ sixth win in seven games, and with running back Andrew Harris carrying an entire team, perhaps an entire province, toward the finish line, anything is possible. He was brilliant on Sunday, lugging the football 19 times for 153 yards, chewing up the clock, scoring the gamewinning TD, and sending 30,609 Mosaic Stadium fans home unhappy.
It was the end these fans surely dreaded, as soon as they heard the news that the team’s starting quarterback would not be in uniform.
Zach Collaros was unable to shake off the effects of a high hit from B.C.’s Odell Willis two weeks ago, and everyone in this football-mad city and province will be what-iffing the last game of the year, the most important one played without him.
Everyone that is, but Riders head coach Chris Jones, who doesn’t have time for hypotheticals. He ran misdirection plays on the media all week long, refusing to name his starter, after he had already decided to give the ball to Brandon Bridge. Collaros had told him he wasn’t feeling quite right.
“He was cleared and all that, so on paper he could go. … He didn’t say it was a concussion. He just said he didn’t feel 100% … Brandon did a real nice job standing in for him. You know, they pressured a lot. Who is to say that either guy would have done any better?”
Bridge is a better runner than Collaros, and he legged out 86 yards on just five runs. But he doesn’t throw a great deep ball, so the Riders offence changes to a short yardage, run-heavy unit. It’s not onedimensional, but it’s close enough to give the Bombers defence a leg up on Sunday.
When Bridge didn’t run it, he gave the ball to Cameron Marshall or threw it short or medium to Naaman Roosevelt. He was good on 12 of 22 for 100 yards. But on the play that turned the game in favour of Winnipeg, he threw it deep to Kevin Fogg, who is a Winnipeg defensive back and returner. Bridge was under pressure in the backfield from Adam Bighill, Winnipeg’s middle linebacker and the heart and soul of their defence. Bighill made a desperate grab and ripped a strip of Bridge’s jersey off, but the elusive pivot got away. He would have been wise to throw the ball away. Instead, he threw up a duck, loosely intended for K.D. Cannon.
Fogg had all kinds of time to settle under it unimpeded. With plenty of room to manoeuvre, he rambled 51 yards the other way to Saskatchewan’s 43.
Just four plays later, Matt Nichols pump-faked Saskatchewan defender Mike Edem into submission, then threw a rainbow for receiver Drew Wolitarsky who hauled it in, to the dismay or the Mosaic Stadium faithful.
“They got the turnover and ended up turning that into points. That was really the turning point of the game,” said Jones.
It was still early, but Harris took over the game in the second half.
“We didn’t tackle very well,” said Jones. “We had him at the line of scrimmage or close to the line of scrimmage two or three times and we just did not tackle very well in the second half. … There was a lot of things we could have done better as a football team. You can’t taking anything away from what they’ve done in Winnipeg.”
The Bombers didn’t commit a turnover. They were tough and physical. And they knocked Bridge out of the game. It was an unpenalized helmet to helmet hit from Jackson Jeffcoat with just eight seconds left in the game, and the Riders trying to manufacture a miracle from their own side of centre.
A one-yard rushing TD from Nick Marshall had made it a one-possession game with less than three minutes to play, but the Riders needed more than a field goal to tie after Roosevelt couldn’t haul in a two-point convert toss from Bridge.
With Bridge knocked out of the game, David Watford came on in relief and threw a long interception.
Game over.