Friday, July 29, 2005

How about those Renegades!

Ottawa records a huge 21-16 road win at Taylor Field in Saskatchewan

Jason Armstead, second in the CFL in combined yards, led the Renegades in receiving yards again on Friday night.

REGINA -- The Comeback Kids may have been born on Canada Day, but they were brought back to life on Friday night here at Taylor Field.

After amassing only two first downs in first half, of putting no offensive points on the board, of going into the break searching for an identity, the Renegades replied with a complete third and fourth quarter to record a stunning 21-16 victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Friday, in a stadium that an Ottawa team has not come out victorious from since 1996, the Renegades re-wrote Capital football history with a crucial win on the road -- the first for the club in 2005.

"It's really tough to play here at Taylor Field," said Renegades head coach and general manager Joe Paopao. "For us, we needed to get started winning on the road. In the fashion we did it, with our defence, we got the win. Our guys did it with composure. This is a great win for this team and the whole organization."

Paopao has raved all year about his 'bend, but don't break defence' and through the first quarter-and-a-half of play, the unit was exactly that.

And in the second half, the defence barely bent.

Ottawa gave up no -- check it, a garbage time touchdown when the win was sealed -- points in the second half and forced a game-breaking turnover (Anthony Collier interception that went for a touchdown on a lateral to Kyries Hebert), which completely changed the face of the game.

The Renegades prevented Saskatchewan from seeing the end zone in the first half, settling for three field goals (a fourth attempt never got off because of a bad snap) and Ottawa's only points came after the Riders kneeled for a safety before the break.

The Renegades were awful offensively in the opening two quarters, unable to convert their opening first down until mid-way through the second period. But in the third quarter the team came to life after the half for a come-from-behind win, the second of the campaign for the now 3-3 team that is in sole possession of second place in the CFL East Division.

"It's about making plays and that came at a lot of different areas," said Paopao in the locker room as the players celebrated the win behind him. "This equates to a win. They came together toward the back end. We have a lot of work ahead of us. We've had a tough schedule the first six games and we've still got to get back and get to work."

Saskatchewan kicker Paul McCallum converted on three field goals to give the home side a 9-2 advantage after 30 minutes before a 16-point third quarter explosion provided the Renegades with momentum. Ottawa quarterback Kerry Joseph, the second-leading rusher on the team (behind Josh Ranek, the second-leading rusher in the CFL) waltzed into the end zone on a 20-yard scamper.

As if keeping the team in the game wasn't enough, the defence stepped up again.

Collier, the league sack leader picked off a Nealon Greene pass and began rumbling down field. At the last moment, next to the sidelines a split second before being tackled, the towering defensive lineman launched the ball over his back right shoulder on a lateral toss to Hebert, the starting free safety, who took the rock to the house.

Ranek led the way on the ground for 58 yards and Jason Armstead was the leading receiver in the victory that propels Ottawa into becoming a contender in the CFL East division. At 3-3, Ottawa has as many wins as the division leading Toronto Argonauts. Montreal is in third place at 2-3 and Hamilton, at 0-4, visits Edmonton Saturday.

"This win is a credit to the players," said Paopao. "It doesn't matter who we have out there, we have got to get those wins and we did."

...Joe Paopao -- post-game thoughts after 21-16 Renegades win over Saskatchewan>>
...CLICK HERE for Renegades roster>>
...CLICK HERE for Renegades team stats>>
...CLICK HERE for first quarter stats>>
...CLICK HERE for second quarter stats>>
...CLICK HERE for halftime stats>>
...CLICK HERE for third quarter stats>>
...CLICK HERE for fourth quarter stats>>
...CLICK HERE for individual defence stats>>
...CLICK HERE for individual stats>>
...CLICK HERE for penalties and scoring stats>>

	1	2	3	4	OT	T
OTTAWA Renegades	0	2	16	3	0	21
SASKATCHEWAN Roughriders	6	3	0	7	0	16

SASKATCHEWAN		OTTAWA
Passing (comp/att/yards)	27/49/247	Passing (comp/att/yards)	14/27/135
Rushing (att/yards)	25/175	Rushing (att/yards)	20/108
Total Yards (Net)	384	Total Yards (Net)	231
1st Downs	26	1st Downs	15
Sacks Allowed	1	Sacks Allowed	2
Turnovers	4	Turnovers	3