Riders host TiCats tonight

The Saskatchewan Roughriders host the Hamilton TigerCats tonight in week #7 CFL action at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.

The Roughriders are 3-3 for 6 points this season, 2 points behind West-leading Edmonton. Saskatchewan, still looking for more consistant play from quarterbacks Darian Durant and Steven Jyles, have dropped 3 of their last 4, after starting the season 2-0. The Riders looked flat last Friday at Vancouver, scoring just 7 points on three BC turnovers to start the game, eventually losing to the Lions 35-20.

Hamilton is 4-2 for 8 points, 4 points behind East-leading Montreal. Under new Head Coach(and former Saskatchewan assistant) Marcel Bellefeuille, the TiCats have already won more games in 2009 than they did in all of 2008, when they finished 3-15. Hamilton quarterback Quinton Porter passed for 211 yards(26 of 37) and a touchdown and rushed for the winning touchdown with 1:07 remaining in last Saturday's 28-21 win over Edmonton.

Kickoff is set for 7:00pm EDT. The live broadcast, with Rod Pedersen and Carm Carteri calling the action, can be heard on 620 CKRM(Link to the right) beginning at 6:00pm EDT.

This just in....

Jimmy took his first steps today! I was sitting on the couch, stood him up in front of me(Jimmy has stood unaided several times in the past few days), held his Baseball Tigger in my lap, let him go and Jimmy, without touching or otherwise holding anything for support, took 3 or 4 steps towards me to get his Tigger. And he did it again a few moments later. Small steps for sure, but it's crossing another developmental milestone off the list.

We are so proud of our little Jim-Jim!

Monday Morning Meissnervations

Heydee-ho there good neighbor. It's Monday Morning once again. Here we go....

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The Saskatchewan Roughriders lost to the BC Lion 35-20 Saturday. The team showed flashes of solid play, but flashes won't get it done. When you're away from home, and your opponent turns the ball over on each of it's first three possessions, you'd like to think your chances to win increase IF you can score more than 7 points. The Riders Darian Durant and Steven Jyles had their chances, but just weren't able to get the offense rolling consistantly.

Is it a "down" week because they lost? Yeah, I guess. But to paraphrase Rider broadcaster Rod Pedersen, (link to his blog to your right) you can remain positive when you consider the team is 3-3, tied for first in the West and is in the upper half of the league record-wise.

Riders are home to face the resurgent Hamilton Tiger Cats next Sunday. Hamilton, in the first six weeks of '09, has already won more games this season(4) than they did all last season(when they finished 3-15). Kickoff at Mosaic Stadium is 7:00pm EDT, with the live broadcast on CKRM(Links to the right) beginning at 6:00pm EDT.

The CFL West has a three-way tie for first with Edmonton, Calgary and Saskatchewan all 3-3. BC is a game back at 2-4. In the East, Montreal is 5-1, Hamilton is 4-2 and both Winnipeg(Hey, Yvenson Bernard finally got in a regular season game and had 54 yards on 6 carries) and Toronto are 2-4.

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The Tampa Bay Rays dropped 2 of 3 in Seattle over the weekend, losing to the Mariners yesterday 11-2. It just looked like one of those days yesterday. With Boston slumping(they lost to the Yankees again yesterday), the Rays are in the very thick of the Wild Card race.

In the American League, the Yankees lead the East by 6 1/2 over Boston and 8 over Tampa Bay. Detroit leads the Central by 3 over the White Sox and 5 1/2 over Minnesota. In the West, the Angels are 3 1/2 ahead of Texas and 8 ahead of Seattle. Boston and Texas are tied for the Wild Card lead, with Tampa Bay 1 1/2 back, Seattle 4 1/2 and the White Sox 6 back.

In the National League, Philadelphia is first in the East, with Florida 4 and Atlanta 4 1/2 back. St. Louis leads the Cubs in the Central by 2 and both Houston and Milwaukee by 6. In the West, the Dodgers lead both Colorado and San Francisco by 5 1/2 games. The Rockies and the Giants are tied for the Wild Card lead, with the Cubs 2 back, Florida 3, Atlanta 3 1/2 and Houston and Milwaukee each 6 back.

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Kim and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary last Thursday. Friday night, we went to the coolest burger place of all time, Biff Burger. It was classic car night too. The hi-lites were the 1966 Dodge Charger(I used to own a '67) that I had saw previously at a car show in Palm Harbor, and an absolutely gorgeous 1963 Plymouth Valiant, complete with the push-button gear shift on the dash. I owned 4 Valiants in my past, two '63s, a '64 and a '66. Never paid more than $200 for any of them, but I'll bet if the one at the car show had been for sale, it would have brought at least 5 grand. The guy who owns the Charger followed us around the building to see the Valiant and was just as impressed as we were.

The absolute hi-lite of the night though, was being with my Kim. I find myself falling more in love with her every day. She the best. Thanks dear!

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Jimmy is in the other room playing, while I pound out this week's Meissnervations. We are waiting for Gramma Jan to come over to sit with Jimmy, while I go to my latest doctor's appointment. Isn't it frustrating to be sick, know there's something going on, but still no one can find anything? It's sorta like trying to do your own car repairs. You know something's wrong, but you're not sure what. So, you just start removing parts, hoping the next one you replace will solve the problem. Here's hoping today's visit with the gastroenterologist(GI Joe?) will provide some answers this continued feeling of "oogliness" I'm experiencing. Wish me the best please.

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That's it for this week. Have fun everybody!

Who says it rains in Tampa Bay?

This is what we drove through on our way to dinner Friday night.

Can I borrow some lumber for our ark please?

Lions overcome early turnover woes to beat Saskatchewan

The Saskatchewan Roughriders had momentum handed to them on an orange-and-black platter but were unable to build on a second quarter lead and lost to the BC Lions 35-20 Friday night in CFL action at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The game started porely for BC in front of their home crowd, as they turned the ball over on each of their first three possessions. The Riders capitalized after the third one, as Darian Durant threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Rob Bagg. Luca Congi's convert put Saskatchewan up 7-0 with 4:12 left in the opening quarter. BC would come back late in the first, intercepting a pass and scoring two plays later on a Buck Pierce to Martell Mallett 2-yard scoring toss. Sean Whyte converted with 9 seconds left in the first, tying the game 7-7.

Riders got the lead back as Durant hit Bagg again, this time from 33 yards out. Congi converted to put Saskatchewan up 14-7 with 9:04 left in the half, capping a 6-play, 94-yard drive. Riders Punter Jamie Boreham conceded a safety touch with 4:22 to go in the half, cutting the Saskatchewan lead to 14-9. The Lions drew within 2 with 2:44 left in the half, as Whyte booted a 44-yard field goal, making the score 14-12 in favor of the Riders. BC took the lead in the final minute of the half on an extremely weird play. Saskatchewan's Gerron Walker fumbled the ball on a punt return. BC's James Yurichuk kicked the ball forward, Walker (allegedly) got a hand on it, then O'Neill Wilson picked up the loose ball at the Rider 38 and ran it in for the major score. Whyte's convert with 36 seconds on the clock put the Leos up 19-14 at the half.

Whyte opened 2nd half scoring 4:30 into the third, by booting a 41-yard field goal, to increase BC's lead to 22-14. The Lions once again drove deep into Saskatchewan territory on their next possession, but had to settle for Whyte's third field goal of the game, this one from 18 yards out with 5:24 to go in the third, increasing BC's advantage to 25-14, a lead they would take into the final quarter.

Whyte's 33-yard field goal 48 seconds into the 4th put the Lions ahead by two majors, 28-14. The Riders found a seat on the bench for Durant, replacing him at quarterback with Steven Jyles. Saskatchewan continued to have trouble moving the ball, but finally advanced into scoring position late. Forced into a third-and-10 at the BC 17 with just under three minutes remaining, Jyles threw the ball away, turning it back to the Leos. The Riders got the ball back at the BC 47 with 89 seconds left. After a 35-yard completion from Jyles to Johnny Quinn to the Lions 1, Chris Czarka punched it in from there with 44 seconds remaining. Congi's convert was blocked, leaving the deficit at 28-20. Saskatchewan attempted an onside kick but failed when the kick didn't go the required 10 yards. Rider penalties on a skirmish after the kick set up the Leos for a 13-yard touchdown run by Mallett with 32 seconds left, with Whyte adding the convert for the 35-20 win.

For Saskatchewan, Darian Durant was 10 of 19 passing for 189 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, while Steven Jyles was 6 of 12 passing for 78 yards and an interception. Rob Bagg caught five passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns, while Chris Czarka had the only rushing touchdown and Luca Congi added 2 converts. BC was led by Buck Pierce, who was 26 of 34 for 215 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, while Jarius Jackson threw two incompletions and an interception. Martell Mallett scored twice, once on the ground and once through the air. O'Neill Wilson had a defensive touchdown on the fumbled punt and Sean Whyte had 4 field goals and 3 converts for 15 points.

The Riders actually outdid the Lions in total offense, 348 yards to 345 and had 17 first downs to BC's 22. The difference came in sacks allowed, as Saskatchewan allowed 5 Lions sacks to the Riders 2, while BC, who turned the ball over in each of their first three possessions, coughed it up just once more for a total of 4, while Saskatchewan gave the ball away five times total. The Riders were flagged 6 times for 78 yards, while the officials dropped the laundry on the Leos 7 times for 61 yards.

Saskatchewan, now 3-3 on the year, doesn't play again until Sunday, August 16th, when they host the Hamilton Tiger Cats. Kickoff is set for 7:00pm EDT, with the live broadcast on http://www.620ckrm.com/ is set for 6:00pm EDT. BC, now 2-4, plays at Toronto on Friday, August 14th, with kickoff set for 7:30pm EDT.

Riders at Leos tonight

The Saskatchewan Roughriders, riding the wave of their come-from-behind one-point win at Calgary last Saturday(24-23), at at BC Place in Vancouver tonight for a Friday night battle with the BC Lions.

The Riders enter tonights game with a record of 3-2 and are tied with Edmonton for first in the West. The Lions, 1-4 entering play tonight, are last in the West, after last Friday's 30-18 loss at Hamilton.

Three story lines to watch for tonight, are the return to Vancouver of Regina native Jason Clermont, who spent several seasons catching passes for the Leos; can BC Coach Wally Buone rally his troops after their poor start to this season; and just how much with Saskatchewan Coach Ken Miller use quarterbacks Darian Durant and Steven Jyles.

Tonight's game kicksoff at 10:30pm EDT, with the http://www.620ckrm.com broadcast, featuring the call of Rod Pedersen and Carm Carteri, beginning at 9:30pm EDT.