Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/10/2009 (4149 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The heat came by way of a tirade by the Canada West Football team's coach Brian Dobie. He wasn't so much chewing out his troops because of the loss, as he was for the way they dealt with that loss.
His patience reached its breaking point as a few of his players straggled in from the alumni tent, downing free hamburgers with one hand, and holding a cold beverage with the other.
"I don't want us ever to accept not being the best that we can be," he said following his dressing down of the team. "It's not just about not accepting losing. It's more than that. I am disappointed in some of the (player) reaction at the end.
"I want our program to be represented with class. I want everyone in the program to show each other how much pride they take in winning, and how much they care about losing. That was what that talk was about in there."
It's not that Dobie doesn't want his players to mingle with the alumni following a game. "I encourage that. Some guys they played with last year are alumni, and I think that is awesome that the alumni want to congratulate them. I think it is a win-win (situation), but our teams do not do that after a loss. It looks like just another day at the office and they've accepted whatever the consequence is. If it is a win, great. If it is a loss, great. Well, that will never happen again in this program."
Bisons running back James Gerardy scored with two minutes remaining in the first half to give the Herd a 7-6 lead late in the second quarter. However, on the ensuing kickoff, Jeff Harder ran the ball 86 yards to the Bisons 10.
A horse collar penalty to the Bisons added nine more yards to the return and Tyler O'Gorman crashed in from the one to give the Huskies a 15-7 lead at the half.
"The kick return was a very big play" said Gerardy, who also rushed 11 times for 55 yards. "They answered us right back."
Scott Dixon kicked a 42-yard field goal and a convert for the Bisons. O'Gorman added another touchdown for Saskatchewan and Corey Jones had the other.
Still, the Herd had an opportunity to go up before the half ended. Defensive lineman Adam Hindley intercepted a pass from Laurence Nixon enabling to Bisons to make it down to the Huskies nine-yard line with a third and one situation staring them in the face and only seconds on the clock. Choosing to gamble for the major, the Herd came up short.
"That was a big play," said Gerardy. "That just kind of sucked it right out of us."
Dobie defended his decision. "We needed to rise to the occasion. At that point, scoring (a TD) would have put us up by one, and it would have been a great momentum changer. You've got to be able to get one yard. I think the risk was worth the payout. Do I regret it? No I don't."
The loss leaves the Bisons at 2-4, but they still have a chance of making the playoffs, albeit a slim one. "We are in a position where we will have to win two in a row, and maybe hope for some help," said Dobie. "It isn't the position we want to be in, but it is still back-against-the-wall doable at this point."
The Bisons play the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday in Vancouver, and will close out their regular season on Oct. 31 at home against Simon Fraser.
allan.besson@freepress.mb.ca