July 7, 2018

Our Passion Is What Can Make Us Win

We didn’t lose because of injury or lack of talent. We lost because we didn’t execute. We didn’t show enough passion out there,” admitted Mike Sherman after the game against the REDBLACKS that ended with the score of 28-18 in favour of our opponents on Friday.

He continued: “Could we have beaten this team? Absolutely. We have to give them credit: they did the things they had to do to win this game. We made a gallant effort in the fourth, but it’s not enough. You win or you lose and we lost.

Difficult for our Alouettes to lose a second game at home in front of you, the fans, but the consensus in the locker room is that this first part of the season does not have to determine how things pan out after bye-week. A quick review of the highs and lows of a lively evening at Percival Molson Stadium.

The Defensive Enigma

Rich Stubler’s unit had performed incredibly well in Saskatchewan and it sure pulled itself together immediately after allowing Jean-Christophe Beaulieu to open the score last night. In their second offensive series, the REDBLACKS were forced to a two and out thanks to Dominique Ellis with the quick tackle and Chris Ackie who knocked down a pass from Trevor Harris to a particularly energized Brad Sinopoli.

If only the trend continued… Too many missed tackles and a lack of pressure on the QB (s/o to Jamaal Westerman who made the only Alouettes sack of the game) allowed Harris and his teammates to stay on the field for way too long.

We know our defence is strong. We need it to be consistent.

Surprises on Offence

Jeff Mathews handled himself admirably,” said Coach Sherman.

Jeff himself told us that he wasn’t satisfied with the effort. “We didn’t stay on the field long enough. We picked up the pace in the fourth because of the sense of urgency, but we have to do that from the start.

The offence accumulated 323 yards, its highest total since the beginning of the season. Despite losing Chris Williams in the first quarter to a hamstring injury, Jeff Mathews was able to find his receivers several times. BJ Cunningham showed how reliable he is by nailing his 6 catches for 68 yards. Eugene Lewis caught a 39-yard bomb pass and ran for 26 to stop at Ottawa’s 14-yard line and allow Mathews to reach Chris Harper in the end zone two plays later. Chris Harper, small receiver who joined the team recently, had been targeted often in practice this week and did not disappoint at his first outing as an Alouettes. It goes to show that there is depth in coach Chris Tucker’s squad.

On the Bright Side

Two of the biggest issues of the past weeks were penalties and the o-line.

The team was sentenced to 139 yards in penalties versus the Riders in week 3. Last night, only five flags were thrown against our Alouettes for 52 yards. Special teams, who were criticized for pulling the offence back because of too many roughness errors, were impeccable.

*We wish Stef Logan – who left the field with a sprained ankle – a speedy recovery. Hopefully he comes back in his usual phenomenal shape after bye-week.

Three sacks were allowed but Coach Sherman indicated that the o-line had made progress in his post-game press conference. Jeff Mathews surely has the ability to get the ball out quickly, but he was also less threatened in his pocket than Drew Willy had been in the first three games.

When one thing goes better, something else falls apart. Now, we have to pull it together, collectively,” said the Head Coach.

At the end of the day, many guys did their part. We mentioned special teams already, but Boris Bede was perfect once again. Not only did he clutch all his field goal attempts, he proved that his punting is on point by forcing the REDBLACKS offence to start in its own zone a few times. Tyrell Sutton, as always, showed sheer grit during the entire game in addition the closing the Als first offensive series in the end zone. We bet he dedicated his touchdown to his mama, Connie, who visited him for the first time since he’s been in Montreal. The running back ended the game with 41 rushing yards and 54 receiving yards, but it’s his ability to break tackles that mostly stood out. That’s what you call playing passion. And that’s exactly what this team needs to win.

As a matter of fact, Coach Sherman finished his speech in the locker room on that note. “We are not the type of team that can just show up and win. That’s not who we are. Our passion is what can make us win. Our team has so much heart, but we didn’t bring it on the field tonight.