Post-game blog post

Ok. Technically there was still 32 seconds left when I shut it off, but the game was done a while ago in essence.

The only good thing to come out of tonight's game was I learned how to watch TSN games on broadband. Worked slick, once we figured out where all the links were. (Check out tsn.ca if you want to try it!)

But back to the game...

Or lack thereof.

I can not make excuses for this team. They've got the talent, the coaching, and this year (for a change) a playbook. Yet they could not pull it together tonight. They looked like a bunch of rookies playing high school football for their first game.

There are no excuses left. We've seen what this team can do. And tonight they didn't just fail to live up to expectations, they failed to show up for the game.

And I think they can no longer afford to do that. They've given Riderville a taste of victory - not just scraping by and winning by a few threads on a football seam, but actually winning a game like we know what the heck we're doing and not many fans are going to stand for anything less.

Three things I was happy to see: Fantuz finally stepping up to the plate and CATCHING a ball. They need to get the ball to him when he's hot and open.

The second thing... Austin actually pulled the quarterback. I have screamed myself hoarse in previous seasons trying to communicate to the previous coach the value in changing up the playmaker.

However, those pleadings fell deafly on my TV as Barrett would often refuse to pull the QB until too late in the game to make a difference. What's the point in changing quarterback's in the fourth quarter when they have just 15 minutes to clean up a game's worth of mess?

Having said that, I do believe KJ should have been tossed back into the game when Crandell threw his first pick. The change may have kept some positive energy going, rather than letting it die completely.

And the final thing I was thrilled to see... going for it on third down! And it paid off more than once. The 3rd down gamble can often generate badly needed momentum and can change the entire direction of a game. (If used properly.) There's always risk involved, but hey... in a game like tonight could they have gotten much worse?

I see some tremendous potential because these things demonstrate Austin's creative playmaking genius.

However, I am completely dismayed at the team's lack of consistent effort.

Receivers need to catch the ball. Tossers need to toss.

And the gladiators... well.. actually they did a pretty good job. If not for their gritty play, the game could have been much much worse.

Inconsistency is the only consistent thing for the Roughrider fans for far too many years. So let's hope this one massacre at Mosaic Stadium is the only time we look like we're still trying to learn high school football.

Because this team can do better.

And has done better.

Because the fans deserve better.