Bombers soaked by storm

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/07/2010 (5886 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

HAMILTON — You didn’t need a Farmer’s Almanac to see this system coming.

That’s the backdrop for what happened at Ivor Wynne Stadium, as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers found themselves caught in a downpour of urgency in a 28-7 defeat to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats Friday night. The Bombers, losers of two straight, fell to 1-2, while the Tiger-Cats (1-2) got into the win column for the first time.

As most Prairie folk know, the hotter the temperature, the more likely a storm is brewing, and that chemistry served as the back drop for Winnipeg’s first road game of the 2010 season. Hamilton, on the hot seat all week for their disappointing showing through the first two games of the CFL season, put this game in the ‘must-have’ category, knowing full well tough challenges await them in Montreal and Regina in the next two weeks. Losing this game against an East Division rival at home was not in the forecast.

On the other side, the talk was before the game was to just weather the storm, Winnipeg appeared to approach the Tabby tornado like country folk prepare for those ominous, dark clouds coming off the horizon:

You can brace for it all you want, but even the best emergency plan can’t prepare for what’s coming.

“I don’t know if they did anything special; we just came out flat,” Bombers centre Obby Khan said after the game. “They came out with a purpose and we failed to match that. There’s the story, right there. Offensively, we can’t get off to the start like the way we did. Period.”

The Bombers struggles started right from the opening possession. Winnipeg went two-and-out, while Hamilton quarterback Kevin Glenn orchestrated a nine-play, 94-yard march ending with a two-yard dump off to running back DeAndra Cobb. The former Winnipeg quarterback went 6-of-6 on that six minute drive, as the Bombers pressure that was so evident in Week 1 (Winnipeg had seven sacks in the 49-29 win) wasn’t there.

Glenn, who finished with gaudy 29-of-36 passing for 336 yards and three touchdowns, controlled the Bombers defence in the early stages. Not only did he not miss a Hamilton receiver with his first 14 passes, he also lead the Ticats to a 14-0 lead at the break.

Not an insurmountable lead by any stretch, but one the Bombers offence would struggle to overcome.

While Glenn was raining footballs all over Ivor Wynne, Winnipeg quarterback Buck Pierce struggled to find any rhythm. In an homage to the 2009 season, the Bombers strung together four straight two-and-outs, not finding a first down until midway through the second quarter.

Pierce, the reigning offensive player of the week, left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter (no update was given on his condition and he did not speak to the media after the game), but by then, the dye had been cast.

“They got good pressure on the quarterback, and I think our momentum was stalled at times with a penalty,” Bombers head coach Paul LaPolice said, noting the handful of drops from his receivers contributed to the poor Winnipeg flow. “When you’re not in rhythm it’s really hard to get anything going. We weren’t in rhythm, and they did a good job defensively.”

Remember in Week 1, when Hamilton could only scrape together minus-two yards in the first half? This time, the Tabbies hung 255 yards on the Winnipeg defence.

As the host continued to soak the Bombers defence, Winnipeg struggled to mount a blustery attack. LaPolice felt the turning point in the game came in the second quarter, when Pierce marched the ball down the field, only to throw an interception to Ticats linebacker Markeith Knowlton in the end zone.

“You can’t turn the ball over in the end zone and defensively we have to get them off the field,” the coach added.

Pierce finished his night 10-of-19 for just 117 yards and an interception.

Backup Steven Jyles came in for Pierce and displayed the poised the Bombers coaching staff has said he has.

Jyles finished the game 9-of-13 for 95 yards and rushed for Winnipeg only touchdown in the game — a quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter.

Following the game, the Bombers were a stunned bunch.

They knew Hamilton would be a hurricane of intensity, but seemed unable to stop it. Winnipeg running back Fred Reid summed it up best:

“We just started off slowly,” Bomber tailback Fred Reid said.

“We needed to come out and match their intensity, from the first quarter to the fourth quarter, and we didn’t do that. They played us well, they came out and took it to us like we took it to them the first week.”

NOTES: Winnipeg had 15 penalties for 161 yards…The Bombers held the Ticats return game to just 43 yards…Hamilton WR Maurice Mann had two touchdown passes, while Cobb added a late score… Ticats kicker Sandro DeAngelis missed two more field goals. He’s only 4-of-8 this season and 10-of-20 career in Hamilton.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca

jyles pitches in with buck on bench D2

Bomber Recap

Tiger-Cats 28 Bombers 7

Next Game

Home: Edmonton Saturday, July 24, 5:30 p.m./TSN

Key Play: With field tilted Winnipeg’s way late in the game. Hamilton LB Otis Floyd sacked QB Steven Jyles for a nine-yard loss. That was the ball game, as the Bombers couldn’t find any momentum after the only Hamilton sack of the night.

Key Player: Kevin Glenn. The fomer Bomber QB was 29-of-36 for 336 and three touchdowns. He completed 14 straight passes to start the game, a run which set the tone for the Ticats offence.

Key Stat: 87 yards. The mileage on the ground from the Winnipeg rushing attack. The Bombers had 211 yards on the ground against the Tabbies in Week 1