Riders ride big third quarter to victory over Alouettes
The Saskatchewan Roughriders offence caught fire in the third quarter and burned the Alouettes for 21 points in a 41-20 win over the Montreal Alouettes on Saturday night at Mosaic Stadium.
The Riders got touchdowns from Jamal Morrow, Cody Fajardo, and Kian Schaffer-Baker in the span of 7:58 in the third quarter en route to victory. Second-year running back Jamal Morrow eclipsed the 100-yard rushing plateau (103) for the second time in four games.
“Goes to show that when we get hot, we can be a really good team and all we’re trying to do is keep pace in the west.” Said Fajardo after the game.
“We just played better. Not perfect. I was really proud of them. They came out in the third quarter and played like we wanted to.” Head Coach Craig Dickenson added. “The second half, I challenged them to show me their character, win lose or draw, play as hard as you can and leave it all out there and they went out there and really did the job.”
The Roughriders defence enjoyed a big bounce-back from a week ago. Anthony Lanier recorded three quarterback sacks, while Pete Robertson finished with a pair of sacks on quarterback Trevor Harris. Robertson now has seven quarterback sacks in the team’s first four games, this season.
“Coach put a big emphasis on rushing as one and I was just so happy to see everyone getting sacks, having fun and getting the win.” Lenier said after the game of his three sack performance.
Emerging star returner Chandler Worthy scored the Alouettes only touchdown of the half on an 84 yard kick return, as he wound and weaved his way though a field of green defenders. The score put the visitors up 10-7.
The Riders scored the game’s first touchdown when Cody Fajardo connected with Regina product Mitchell Picton on an eight yard strike. The play was set up by a 40 yard catch and run by Tevin Jones.
Picton and Jones were splitting time in place of injured receiver Shaq Evans. Jones caught all three targets on the afternoon for 56 yards, while Picton caught two of three intended balls for 14 yards and a major. Brett Lauther tied his career long with a 57 yard field goal late in the half. The Riders trailed Montreal 13-11 at half time.
The Riders had a couple of scary moments in the first quarter. Derrick Moncreif went down hard on a tackle and headed to the locker room holding his left arm.
He later returned to the game looking no worse for wear. Moncreif recorded a quarterback sack and an interception in the fourth quarter. Receiver Duke Williams, 29, was helped to the locker room in the second quarter after an attempted play on the ball in coverage.
The replay on TSN showed Williams’ head whipping hard against the turf. He, too, would return to the game after half-time. Williams had an uncharacteristic zero catches on five targets in the contest. “If you put on the tape, what he did for the receivers, blocking on the perimeter, that’s why he’s one of the top receivers in this league.” Said Fajardo of his star receiver.
The Roughriders defence did not allow a touchdown against in the contest until there was under ten minutes to go. Walter Fletcher cut through the line for Montreal’s first major, drawing them to within 12. The Alouettes comeback efforts were thwarted by Nick Marshall.
With Montreal on the move, Harris threw a ball toward Eugene Lewis, but Marshall jumped the route and had nothing in front of him as he dashed 90 yards to pay dirt. Marshall’s pick-six extended the Saskatchewan lead to 39-20. Fajardo connected with Morrow for the two point conversion to give the Riders a 21 point lead.
Cody Fajardo completed 18 of his 29 pass attempts for 224 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Jamal Morrow led the way rushing the ball for Saskatchewan with 103 yards on 16 carries. Kian Schaffer-Baker led all Saskatchewan receivers with 90 yards on seven catches and one touchdown.
It was a game filled with penalties. Saskatchewan took 16 flags for 155 yards. Montreal was called 12 times for 105 yards. Montreal defensive lineman Michael Wakefield, who was so explosive on the Alouettes 37-13 win over the Riders the previous week was ejected after receiving a second misconduct penalty.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders return to action on Friday, July 8th when they host the Ottawa RedBlacks. Kick off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. child killer's lawyer walks out of review hearing
The lawyer representing child-killer Allan Schoenborn walked out of his client's annual review hearing Wednesday – abruptly ending proceedings marked by tense exchanges and several outbursts.
Why drivers in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada will see a gas price spike, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
It's the biggest election in history. Here's why few Indians in Canada will take part
In the Indian general election that gets underway on Friday, almost a billion people are eligible to vote, but a vast majority of the overseas Indian community in Canada won't be casting a ballot.
McDonald's customers left with 'zero value' collection of free hot drink stickers after company ends program
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
Juror dismissed in Trump hush money trial as prosecutors ask for former president to face contempt
Prosecutors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump asked Thursday for the former president to be held in contempt and fined because of seven social media posts that they said violated a judge's gag order barring him from attacking witnesses.
Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.