Eskimos need to avoid the sack
Stampeders got to Reilly 14 times in two games last season Fourteen times.
That’s how often the Calgary Stampeders were able to sack Mike Reilly in last year’s Labour Day Classic series.
Those two games were in hindsight, telltale moments for Reilly and the Edmonton Eskimos.
They had all of the heart in the world, as their monstrous 27-point fourth-quarter comeback on Labour Day showed, but they weren’t able to win the close games and they certainly weren’t able to protect Reilly, who should have at least won a purple heart for enduring the punishment that he did.
More than 10 months later, the Eskimos are a different team, 4-0 and atop the Canadian Football League standings. The Stampeders look just as good as they did a year ago, holding opponents to 30 points through three games, all of them wins.
The stage is set at Commonwealth Stadium for a clash between two football titans. This is the first time in 35 years that Edmonton and Calgary have met this deep into the season with undefeated records. It’s also the first time in a long time that the Battle of Alberta is worth capitalizing, where a meeting between the provincial rivals actually has meaning.
For the ride to continue for the Eskimos, though, they’re going to have to avoid that ugly number from last year. Calgary sacked Reilly seven times apiece in those two games, with defensive end Charleston Hughes leading that painful charge. Hughes picked up seven of his leagueleading 18 sacks last year in the three games he played against the Eskimos.
“I have great memories of playing against every team. I’ve sacked every quarterback in this league except the new ones,” Hughes said on Wednesday, shortly after the Stampeders arrived in Edmonton.
“Sacking Mike Reilly … you should be asking him if he has any great memories of me sacking him.”
Reilly has known Hughes since the two worked a football camp in Kelowna in 2011. The quarterback got to know him in a much more violent capacity last year. Reilly remembers the hits, but as far as the make and model of the trucks that hit him?
“I’m sure he did (get to the quarterback a lot). We got sacked a lot in the back-toback games that we played against (Calgary),” Reilly said. “I’m sure he had his fair share.”
Last week’s game in Winnipeg was a test for the Eskimos in terms of playing a good team on a big stage. It’s dialed up a notch this week, thanks to a veteran team that will test every phase of this upstart Eskimos group. Specifically, Hughes, who has three sacks this year, brings an enormous test to the Eskimos’ offensive line.
Right guard Matt O’Donnell saw plenty of Hughes last year. With a 4-0 start this year and part of a line that’s allowed 11 sacks in four games (fourth in the league), there’s a different feel for the Eskimos this time around.
“We’re trying to keep calm, but keep confident at the same time,” O’Donnell said. “We don’t want to be arrogant, think about different games, different things, this and that. We just want to come here Thursday night, play ball and let it out all on the field.”
Some success against Hughes would be a welcome sight, though. Hughes enjoyed letting the Eskimos know how much he was enjoying the sack party last year.
“He’s a good player, a good hustle player that never really stops on a play. You’ve got to make sure you block him to the whistle and then a little more just before (you draw) a flag,” O’Donnell said of Hughes.
“He’s also a guy who likes to run his mouth a lot. I try not to get into that stuff and just leave it on the field.”
Hughes will see more of his former teammate, left tackle Tony Washington, than O’Donnell on Thursday. It’s a different line, but Hughes still sees opportunity when he watches the group on tape.
“I can see some areas where I can take advantage of the whole offensive line but I think they have improved,” he said. “They’ve added Tony Washington and made some changes to the tackle and guard position but I do see myself still being unstoppable.”
“He’s a good player,” Reilly said of Hughes. “But I’ve got all of the confidence in the world in my guys up front, so he’s not in my realm of worry. I have to worry about the linebackers and the defensive backs and trying to read coverages and throw the football. My guys up front should take care of him.
“So far to date this season I have a ton of confidence. They’ve been playing great football.”