DAYTONA HOMES FRIDAY RODSERVATIONS
LET’S GET IT GOING!
* This City of Regina Transit bus has Rider Pride and it’s time you did too! The 8-1 start by the Roughriders this season had Rider Pride at an all-time high but the four-game losing streak in September definitely zapped our momentum. Now, on the cusp of the 2013 playoffs, it’s time to get it back! You have to look far and wide across the city to see any evidence of support for the team on business signs so here’s a challenge: dress up your store-front or billboard with GO RIDERS GO, send a pic to ridervoice@yahoo.ca, and I’ll be glad to post it in the Monday Morning Goalie. No matter how you feel about how this season has gone, it’s time to come together and show the Saskatchewan Roughriders that they have the province’s support in their Grey Cup quest.
LET’S GO!
* We also need a playoff pep rally downtown next week where the players are introduced on stage one-by-one and the head coach speaks to the crowd like the good old days. Let’s get it going!
* Judging by the poll on the upper left side of this page, the majority of Rider fans feel their team will be in the big dance. It’s the silent majority, but the majority nonetheless.
* TSN’s Glen Suitor was a big winner in Thursday evening’s Friends of the Riders Touchdown Lottery. Tom Shepherd informs me Suitor won the Dash Tours Platinum Grey Cup Package worth an estimated $3,777.90. It includes deluxe hotel accomodations, tickets to the Kickoff Party at Casino Regina’s Show Lounge, party passes, President’s Dinner at the Diplomat and of course game tickets. Just what Glen needed!
* Here’s one of CFL types who wondered the whereabouts of former Edmonton Eskimo PR man Dave Jamieson. He won the CFL’s Media Relations award so many times that the trophy should be named after him. Anyway Dave is now hosting a sports talk radio show on TSN 1260 in Edmonton. I’ll be on the show with Dave today at 1:20 pm so please tune in.
* QUOTE OF THE WEEK #1: Actually there were several of them in Mitchell Blair’s interview with CFL Director of Officiating Tom Higgins in the SportsCage on Wednesday. Here are a few:
ON THE STATE OF CFL OFFICIATING:
“It’s never as bad and it’s never as good. The officials will never officiate a perfect game and there will always be mistakes. I don’t know that there’s any more mistakes or less mistakes than there have been the last number of years. Probably one of the most difficult, thankless jobs that you can ever do is officiate.”
ON OFFICIATING IN THE GREY CUP PLAYOFFS:
“One officiating crew will be dropped for the playoffs. One crew will get eliminated but one of that crew will get put into one of the four crew spots that are operating in the playoffs. Then you have to be in the one of the top two in order to qualify for the Grey Cup. I’m disappointed (this discussion) is out there because we probably have the most difficult, thankless job. There are times where mistakes are made but I know our officials make less mistakes throughout the course of a game than the coaches and the players do. That doesn’t make it right, we don’t want to make any mistakes, but that’s where we are. We can always be better.”
ON THE P-I CALL ON TERRELL MAZE IN THE LAST MINUTE IN CALGARY:
“That call had to be made.”
* QUOTE OF THE WEEK #2: It came from Hockey Hall of Fame broadcaster Rod Phillips, the former voice of the Edmonton Oilers, in the SportsCage regarding the last-place Oilers. “We’ve had five coaches in seven years,” Phillips said. “It’s not a coaching problem any more. It’s a player problem.”
* QUOTE OF THE WEEK #3: This one came from SportsCage football analyst Mike Abou-Mechrek on Tuesday. I said if the players and coaches don’t like pointed questions, nor do they want puffball questions, what exactly do they want? “WE JUST WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE!” Abou yelled. I regretfully inform Mike that without the media, the stadiums would be empty each week. These interviews truly are a necessary evil as a conduit to the fans.
* Rider defensive back Graig Newman figures he lost about $150 in bets with his teammates over the PFC final last weekend. Newman, a Hilltops grad, lost bets with gleeful Regina Thunder products Dan Clark, Paul Woldu and Zack Evans.
* The Riders host the Edmonton Eskimos Saturday at 3:00 pm on TSN and the CKRM Rider Radio Network. The forecast calls for clouds and 6 degrees Celsius. The Riders are favoured by 5-points.
* Last week in Calgary the Stampeders were 4-point favourites by the oddsmakers. They won 29-25.
* A little late, but congrats to Rider linebacker Diamond Ferri on appearing in his 100th career game last Saturday in Calgary. He is one of my favourites.
* Rider running back Kory Sheets will be an interesting person to watch on Saturday. He enters the game 201 yards behind Calgary’s Jon Cornish for the CFL rushing lead but, with Cornish expected to carry a light load in BC on Friday, could Sheets catch him to win the crown? By Saturday morning he’ll know what he needs.
* Kory is also tied with George Reed for the most 100-yard rushing games in a Rider season with nine. Will the record fall on Saturday?
* Another reason to come out for Saturday’s game: it could be the last for Edmonton quarterback Kerry Joseph. That’s what I’m hearing out of KJ’s camp. It would be nice for him to get a standing ovation from the Rider Nation for what he did for this franchise.
* Rider slotback Chris Getzlaf will see his consecutive games streak end at 94 due to a knee injury this week. I spoke to his father Steve outside the stadium a few days ago and they’re all concerned about Chris’s status. Right now no one knows whether he’ll be available for the playoffs but my best guess is that he’ll be in the lineup against BC. It would take a team of horses to drag him away.
* Weston Dressler has hit 1000-yards receiving for the fifth time in his career. He’s played six seasons and would have hit 1000-yards in all of them but for a broken ankle in 2009. Meanwhile WR Taj Smith enters Saturday’s game 99 yards shy of 1000.
* Kent Austin set the Rider record for touchdown passes in a season in 1992 with 35. That year he also threw 30 interceptions. Darian Durant’s at 31 TD passes this year but is being sat down for the regular season finale. His pick total is 12.
* Edmonton quarterback Mike Reilly has led his team in rushing in each of the last three games. A Rider fan said to me this week, “Reilly is Buck Pierce 10 years ago”.
* With Buck getting the start for BC against Calgary Friday night at BC Place, he’ll be the 19th different quarterback to get a start in the CFL this year. Of course Pierce is a double-counter, as he started for Winnipeg this season as well.
* The Lions are 15-2 at home under head coach Mike Benevides.
* The longest current CFL playoff streaks (Montreal-18, BC-17, Calgary-9).
* Rider coach Corey Chamblin has a personal playoff streak of seven seasons. 2012 was the first time a Chamblin team failed to make it to the division final.
* Argo quarterback Ricky Ray will be sat down for Friday night’s game against Montreal in favour of Zach Collaros. With that, Ricky will set the single-season pass completion record at 77.2.%, breaking the old mark of 74% set by Dave Dickenson with BC in 2005. That’s unfair because Dave played a heckuva lot more that season for the Lions than Ray did this year for Toronto.
* Not to worry, Dave’s name is on the table for induction into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. So too are Jason Clermont, Vic Stevenson and Eddie Davis.
* This is the first time in 17 years that all games on the final weekend of the CFL season mean nothing in the standings. Not exactly a ratings-grabber, but the playoffs will make up for it.
* Fans coming to Saturday’s game may notice how much of the land has been cleared at Evraz Place for the new stadium. Driving by, it looks like it’s going to be a tight fight.
* Can we leave these temporary stands up at Mosaic Stadium after the 2013 Grey Cup? It seems the joint will look a little naked without them.
* This past Monday marked just the second time the same U.S. city hosted the Monday Night Football game as well as a World Series game on the same night. This year it was St. Louis. The last time was in 1986 when the New York Giants played the Washington Redskins while across town, the New York Mets hosted Boston in Game 6 of the World Series.
* The Rams-Seahawks game drew a paltry 10.3-million viewers on ESPN. The Cardinals baseball game drew 4-1 viewers than the Rams did.
* It was a dismal crowd at Wednesday’s Rider Pride Night in the Brandt Centre between the Regina Pats and Moose Jaw Warriors which left organizers scratching their heads. A night to honour the Riders, plus a visit from the Warriors, surely should have drawn more. It’s a pity because people missed a heckuva hockey game. The Pats won 3-0 and they’ve won all three meetings with the Tribe this year. In a way though, you can’t blame the fans. Last Friday the Pats welcomed the largest crowd of the season but got spanked 7-2 by the Edmonton Oil Kings. Once bitten, twice shy.
* CJOB Winnipeg’s Jim Toth reported this week the Regina Pats will be sold by December. I can only say it’s not the group fronted by former Regina Pat and Boston Bruin Nevin Markwart. As far as the speculation goes, I’m sitting this one out. It will be interesting to see what happens.
* Former Pats and Warriors coach Curtis Hunt is the assistant coach for Team Canada for the 2014 Paralympics in Sochi, Russia. He’s asking if anyone is interested in giving sledge hockey a try, if you’re an amputee or have a disability, please call Bobbi or Rick at 306-924-5079 or email bobbibolianatz@sasktel.net. You’ll practice Sunday afternoons at the Mahon Arena.
* Pats great Dale Derkatch informed me this week that Curtis is not the only man to coach both the Pats and Warriors in their history. He says Barry Trapp had that honour first, although Trapper never coached a full season in Regina.
* Hockey legend Mike Modano will be honoured in Prince Albert tonight before the WHL game between the Pats and Raiders. I’m not sure if they’re retiring his number or just exactly what they’re doing but I’d love to be there for it. We all know Modano is the brightest Star of all-time but is he the greatest P.A. Raider of all-time? Likely. Or Dan Hodgson. Anyways, it should be a fun night in the “Gateway to the North”. Former Raider voice Kevin Smook (Winters) is the emcee.
* A plug for Bob Poley and Tony Playter: Please consider buying a ticket on the Ducks Unlimited Canada lottery to raise funds for wetland conservation. Only 9000 tickets will be sold and there’s a $5000 early bird cash prize. For more information or to purchase, visit www.ducks.ca/sasklottery or call 1-855-810-DUCK (3825).
* Went to the movie Bad Grandpa last night, the movie which stars Jackass’s Johnny Knoxville who dresses up as a senior citizen and acts inappropriately in public. It was slow going, and we almost left but by the end I had tears rolling down my cheeks from laughing so hard. The best parts? When he goes to a male strip club and gets on stage and when he enters his grandson in a children’s beauty pageant. That one got me. One-and-a-half thumbs up from the MMG.
* The TV show McMorris & McMorris starring Regina’s snowboarding brothers Mark and Craig McMorris debuts tonight on MTV Canada. I’d prefer McMorris, McMorris & McMorris by throwing their father, the honourable Don McMorris, MLA for Milestone-Indian Head into the show. The former Driver’s Ed teacher and Milestone Flyers defenceman can teach his boys something about being cool. He used to drive the women wild back in the day. Maybe he still does.
* Don’t forget the time change is this weekend meaning on Sunday we in Saskatchewan will be ONE hour behind Toronto and ONE hour ahead of Alberta. To me this SUCKS! I prefer the CFL, NHL and NFL games to come on at 5:00 pm rather the way it will be for the next six months.
* The Press Box Sports Bar has done away with the Friday lunch buffet but here are their Friday specials at 909 Albert St. N.:
BBQ Side Ribs $10.99
Clubhouse Wrap $9.99
THAT’S ALL! HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND
RP
@sportscage
I'm with you Rod, let's get the buzz going about our Rider team, signs, lights, flags, clothing, let's show our team how much we care, GO RIDERS!
Im going up for Modano night tonight, Rod. I believe its a number retirement. There isnt a player that wears 9 this year either. Looking forward to it though. Will be nice to see Winters there too.
I'm guessing Diamond Ferri is one of Jamie Nye's favourites too!
Rod…their retiring #9 ….hoisting the jersey to the rafters at the AHC…first ever…should be an great nite of hockey….not many tickets left was the word….should be a sellout tonite….then sportsman dinner tomorrow nite too…great times in hockeytown North….have a great rod
Riderville North(p.a)
No more PB buffet? That sucks, looked forward to going there every Friday when I lived in Regina. Speaking of the PB, Kevin if you're reading this I'd highly recommend that you hire some extra security for UFC pay per views at the bar. I was there for the Velasquez-Dos Santos fight and there were a couple guys there who were jacked up on roids and you could tell that they were going to cause trouble. Our waitress told us that she said that they should be thrown out but either the manager or another waitress said no it's ok,… Read more »
The buzz around here quit when people saw through the smoke screen that Rider management and Regina media had created. The coffee shop isn't filled with Rider fans anymore it's filled with pissed off people and most of the negative comments are aimed at the top end of the organization.
BB
In your small little world maybe. Go cheer for your own team.
CKRM CFL Picks?
BB,
You and others who want to belittle coaching and management have truly become a broken record.
A win tomorrow and we are 12-6. We lost to the best team in the league last week by four points and had all sorts of chances to put it away.
Personally I am going to take the high road, appreciate the talent management has assembled and gear up for the play – offs. That is what REAL fans do.
Have a wonderful weekend to all.
Joe
Yes Rod the Raiders are retiring Modano's #9, the first number retired in the history of the club. The Raiders also have a wall of honour, similar to the Riders plaza of honour,where past players and builders are recognized.
I saw the DVD of "The Last Gladiators" which is mainly about the life of Chris Nilan. Highly recommended viewing! Chris has a great story about first meeting Guy Lafleur in a Q&A in the special features.
What Joe said. Like it or not, this is the group of guys that we will be going into the playoffs with. We all need to get behind them and support them. There will be plenty of time to piss and moan if we lose but until then lets cheer our lungs out. And if we don't lose out and win the cup, who's going to complain about that? Well, other than that idiot poster who said he hopes that we lose out just to teach management a lesson. Lets see, either win a Grey Cup or teach management a… Read more »
Picks are in the post below.
RP
My Rider excitement left me as I walking out of Inverstors Group Field being laughed at by Bomber fans and hasnt come back to me since. This offence has been offensive to watch since then and if they don't improve they will fall to the BC Lions in the semi which I am predicting the Riders lose!
i get the feeling u were probably one of those who were also predicting a 3rd place or worse finish for the riders around the time if the losing streak? #amiright?
so at 8-2 you lost your Rider excitement and credibility in one day.
Doesnt' it bother anyone that CFL Director of Officiating Tom Higgins says he doesn't know if theres more or less mistakes than last year? Seriously, isn't that his job? evaluating his officials? Thats like saying a GM doesnt know if his players are improving/regressing/staying the same. If he is doing his job he should have an exact answer for this question. He should be reviewing all game film and evaluating officials just like coaches evaluate players and grade them out. Secondly, "Probably one of the most difficult, thankless jobs that you can ever do is officiate." Seriously? I can think… Read more »
He knows exactly, he went on to say all calls are graded. And a descent salary to officiate!? You obviously don't officiate anything, it ain't for the money! Full time senior officials make about $18,000 a year.
Wonder if that game between the Mets and Red Sox was the infamous Bill Buckner game?
Remple thinks he knows a lot about the WHL but he's a little naive. A few years back when Ron Robison had to come out to assist/act as the mediator between the Brandt Centre and the Parker's it was widely known the league and the Pats were not happy with the treatment and lease they have been receiving by the rink. When the Brandt centre removed the centre score clock, this again raised many eyebrows at the league office. The truth behind some new owners is a very real (I'm sure Roddy would agree but I'm sure being a pro… Read more »
As a dad and hockey coach/parent here are 3 reasons why I couldn't attend the Pats game on October 30. 1 – I was already at another rink that day. 2 – It would cost me $60 plus fees for 5 tickets plus another $20 minimum on snacks so let's say $85 on a Wednesday night. Shit's expensive these days and people have to choose what to spend their money on. 3 – It is the night before Halloween and a school night. It takes some preparation the night before for that kind of stuff.
People like BB have been b*tching about the riders since they were born and will be for the rest of their lives. They are uncomfortable to be around when they get on their pathetic rants.