10 LABOUR DAY WEEKEND THINGS

Taking Shots …

1) LDC: This is why they call ’em Classics. Saskatchewan beat Winnipeg 32-30 in overtime in Sunday’s Labour Day Classic LIX and the game will be debated for days, if not years. Today Blue Bomber media & fans are furious that Rider defensive lineman Pete Robertson headbutted their QB Zach Collaros late in the game and wasn’t ejected. However what it did was set Winnipeg up in a 1st-and-goal situation that allowed them to score a TD and take a late lead. Which they blew, by subsequently conceding a rouge and then falling in OT. Collaros wasn’t great in this one – his first-ever Labour Day Weekend loss in seven games – and Winnipeg got whipped.

And that really is why they’re mad today, but they’re directing their anger towards Robertson.

And I find it particularly entertaining that Hall of Fame Bombers Voice Bob Irving is trying to shame/dare the CFL into suspending Robertson on Twitter for next weekend’s Banjo Bowl. Love it! Let’s see if the CFL bends. (I doubt they will).

2) THEY DON’T GET IT: Honestly, I blame sports fans for this. The grumbling was particularly loud this week over Deion “Prime Time” Sanders leading his Colorado Buffaloes to a shocking 45-42 win at Texas Christian University on Saturday (the Buffs’ first road win over a Top 25 team in over 20 years). Coach Prime took a boatload of money and 80 players to Colorado this off-season and has apparently turned the program around in a jiff.

In Canada, the grumbling was felt coast-to-coast as the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes hired reviled coach Bill Peters to lead their team, four years after he was let go by the Calgary Flames for his role in an ugly racial dressing room situation.

Ladies and gentlemen, ALL THAT MATTERS IS WINNING! That’s it. If you don’t win, you’re fired. That is at ALL levels of the program. Also, if you don’t win, your stadium or arena is empty, the ratings are in the toilet and the media coverage disappears.

People love a winner and crap on a loser.

It’s the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Nice Guys.

Ole Miss’s Lane Kiffin said it at their media day, “Why don’t we just say we’re pro?”

One U.S. coach huffed to me on the phone this weekend, “It’s out of control. It’s just like pro free agency. I get a ton of offers every  off-season but I’m happy where I am. It’s too volatile. And it’s teaching the kids NOTHING about loyalty or seeing things through.”

Pressure to win. This is what you get.

Bravo.

3) COLLEGE NOTES: What caught my eye in Week 1 was Kent Austin’s Auburn Tigers blowing out UMass 59-14 … The Kurtis Rourke-less Ohio Bobcats beat LIU 27-10 (they’re apparently saving Rourke for this Saturday’s date here at FAU). … Speaking of, Tom Herman won his Florida Atlantic University debut as the Owls routed Monmouth U 42-20 in Boca Raton. I was there, and the game took 3 hours and 44 minutes to play. That’s gotta change. Thank God it was a beautiful night. … The debate is on: Who’s the best college team in South Florida – Miami or FAU? Give the Hurricanes 38-3 waxing of Miami-Ohio on Friday night, it’s gotta be the U for now. …. The photo adorning this column is of FAU Stadium. … That was my first game as an accredited photographer, after only 35 years in this perilous trade. … Adapt or die. Other blogs are folding up and going home. … Steve Sarkisian’s Texas Longhorns handled Mike Kershaw’s Rice Owls 37-10. … Alabama steamrolled Middle Tennessee 56-7. You actually think Nick Saban didn’t know he was going to start Jalen Milroe at QB?

4) FEAR THE DEER: The Edmonton Elks ride a 2-game win streak into Monday’s Labour Day clash with the Stampeders in Calgary. I saw several media pundits asking why the Elks waited so long to start QB Tre Ford; the triggerman on these streak? Go ahead and ask yourself what coincided with the QB change in Edmonton. I’ll wait …

The Offensive Coordinator. Stephen McAdoo was a Taylor Cornelius fan and Jarius Jackson is a Tre Ford fan.

And now you know The Rest Of The Story.

5) SWAMP KINGS: After all the hype from the RP Show audience, I spent the weekend delving into the Netflix series Swamp Kings, chronicling the Urban Meyer era of the mid-2000’s Florida Gators. In a way, I don’t get the hype. It’s exactly what we thought went on in Gainesville during that era however what we learned is the uber-tight relationship between Meyer and his QB Tim Tebow. We also learned a lot about longtime BC Lions kicker returner Chris Rainey and one-time Roughrider QB Chris Leak. However I also see people admonishing Meyer for his authoritarian ways and saying he should never be able to coach kids again.

Apparently now it’s a crime to ask your players to workout, show up on time and give your best.

What a world we’re in right now. 

6) DECADE OF DECADENCE: Jim Hopson, Steve Mazurak, Eric Tillman, Kent Austin, Brendan Taman, Ken Miller & Corey Chamblin. Now if there’s a Netflix series begging to be produced it’s Decade Of Decadence, chronicling the rise of the Saskatchewan Roughriders from 2005-2014, and then the fall after Hopson retired. Four Grey Cup appearances, two national championships and absolutely none since. Honestly, if you had ANY idea what went on during that span! I think people across North America would watch it. If people were fascinated with the documentary about the United Hockey League’s Danbury Trashers, then they’d go ga-ga over this. It’s ten times a better story.

7) HIGH SCHOOL: The RP Show is accredited with the NFL, NHL, NCAA & FHSAA in South Florida, so it’s going great. However it wasn’t going great on Friday night for the 3-time Florida 5A State champion Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs (#23) who jumped out to a 4-0 lead on a pair of early safeties at Bud Tight Field, but then lost 41-4 to the Chaminade-Madonna Tigers (#10). Afterwards Chiefs coach Matt Dubuc (CFL alum and RP Show football analyst) pinned all the blame on himself for not having his team prepared properly. I disagree, as the Chiefs generally get out to a lead but wither in the second half (and I go to all their games). It’s pretty damn cool to watch the top-ranked high school programs in all of the USA every Friday night.

8) EDMONTON-TORONTO STANLEY CUP: One year before the Blues and Bruins met in the Stanley Cup Final, that match-up was predicted by TSN analyst Craig Button, just a year too early. One year before the Golden Knights and Panthers met for the Stanley Cup, that match-up was predicted by yours truly. Just a year too early. I’ve got a sense that all that talk of an Oilers-Maple Leafs Stanley Cup Final last spring may actually come true this year as each team is the best on their side. Training camps begin in just over to weeks!

I. can. not. wait.

9) DIVISION PREDICTIONS: Here are mine as outlined on The RP Show over the past few weeks: 
ATLANTIC: Toronto – Florida – Tampa Bay – Buffalo – Boston – Detroit – Ottawa – Montreal
METROPOLITAN: Carolina – New Jersey – Pittsburgh – NY Rangers – Washington – NY Islanders – Columbus – Philadelphia
CENTRAL: Dallas – Colorado – Nashville – Winnipeg – Minnesota – St. Louis – Chicago – Arizona
PACIFIC: Edmonton – Vegas – L.A. – Calgary – Seattle – Vancouver – Anaheim – San Jose

10) RANDOM THOUGHTS: This month watch for the debut of the Cats ‘N Bolts Podcast on all major podcast platforms. Sarina and I will be hosting the show, covering Florida’s NHL teams with equal emphasis on the Lightning and Panthers. We’ll have the biggest name NHL guests of any Florida hockey show and we’re very excited about it! … Also on Wednesday, join our Twitter Space at 8 pm ET as I’ll be repping Tampa Bay hockey media previewing the season with host Kirby Lupul. … I’ve now realized why on TV shows, the guy holding the handgun rarely hits his target. It’s not that easy! … Until recently, I hadn’t shot a handgun since we were kids hunting gophers. … When the CFL gets the bill from Genius Sports, they’d better not pay it. … People that ask me to Like and Share their posts but have never Liked nor Shared mine. … I’ve seen NFL betting projections for a Bengals/Cowboys Super Bowl. I’ll take it. I’m a terrible bettor. Can’t separate my head from my heart. … If Kevin Costner’s not going to be on Yellowstone any longer, then I won’t be watching. … AND HOW WAS YOUR WEEK?

Y’er welcome,
RP
@rodpedersen