Before we get to the calamity of errors I must give a huge shout out to the 29,746 fans that attended the game on a very hot Friday night. The day before the game, there were about 28,000 tickets sold.
That means that on game day, about 1,746 tickets were sold! Well done Bomber fans! Bomber fans were also out in full force enjoying some tailgating before the game. (If you were out tailgating and you add your pictures to this Twitter thread, future readers will get to see your photos. So please add them!)
Now for the Truth Bombs:
*Check your name plate!
I do not know which Bomber player was also receiving the kick and almost knocked over Grant, but get out of the way! If there are two guys returning the ball, and your name is not “Grant,” unless Grant is nowhere near the ball, it is not your ball. The only reason you are back there is that Grant is so good that teams have chosen to kick away from him. That is the only instance you should be fielding that ball.
*How much real-estate do you need?
Talk about colliding! Is the end zone not big enough? It is 65 yards wide and 20 yards deep! That is 11,700 square feet! And you do not even have all the players in the end zone on that play. How many? Maybe five players from each side in the end zone. That is a total of ten players. That means each payer could have 1,700 square feet to themselves. That is bigger than my house! But since one of those players is a defender and close to a receiver, the receiver almost has double that space until there is another receiver. 3,400 square feet of real-estate to work with. However, Begelton and Henry somehow have not done that math and collided at the front of the end zone causing a ball to be dropped that should have been a touchdown.
*It is football – do not think too hard, just coach/play.
Here is another end zone blunder; two shots from the 2 yard line and you do what? You have to know the lead-up to really get this one. Calgary has the ball. It is 1st and 10 on the Winnipeg 32 yard line. Ka’Deem Carey takes a handoff and takes off for 27 yards before getting tackled by Rose on the Winnipeg 5 yard line. On the next play Carey gets another handoff and takes it to the 2 yard line before being tackled by Bighill. That makes it 2nd and goal. Hand off to Carey right?
WRONG! Calgary tosses the ball to Begelton in the end zone, but it is incomplete. 3rd and goal, Calgary is going for it. What do they do? They throw it again to Begelton, it again lands incomplete, and it is a turnover on downs. What are you doing Calgary? That ball gets handed off twice to Carey, and you live with those results. I really believe the Calgary coach outsmarted himself.
*Winnipeg is addicted to flying to the ball.
There were a couple of times that Winnipeg could have made an interception. During the game I said, “If they keep playing like that they are going to pick one off.” And sure enough they did. In a less than stellar evening, Kamar Jorden has a chance to make everyone forget about all the rest of the night, and his drops. Jorden actually has the ball in his hands in the end zone, but falls making the catch, the ball pops up and out, and Houston dives and catches the ball! Winnipeg could then run out the clock.
*How deep?
That is the question Bomber fans have to be asking about their team. In his debut game, Carlton Agudosi caught 6 of 7 passes (the one miss looked to be a bit over thrown) for 70 yards, and 2 fabulous touchdown catches! This guy was actually cut from training camp. He stuck around and was on the practice roster and comes off the practice roster having a standout game.
*More Dustin Nielson Please!
Man! If you have not heard this guy call a game you are missing out! He is entertaining and fun to listen to. You can call a game and have the production team drop tidbits in their ears, but it is the passion and excitement when this guy calls a game that makes it entertaining! Even when he is wrong, he is right!
*Victor Cu – President & CEO Edmonton Elks – Brings Much Enthusiasm, But It Is Misguided.
For those concerned about the word ‘bomb’ and its connotations with geopolitical events, contrary to the belief of some, the name ‘Bombers,’ has nothing to do with actual bombs.
Rather, the name was first used by Winnipeg Tribune reporter Vince Leah in 1936 who was referencing boxer Joe Louis known as the “Brown Bomber” for his heavy punches. Similarly, this segment is mean to be heavy hitting.
Apparently Victor Cu does not realize the history. Others have shot back in his defence with pictures of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers plane and Captain Blue.
Is Victor Cu blissfully unaware of the history or trying to bring excitement to the game? You decide. Either way, he is active and Twitter and follows many CFL fans including myself.
If you want to get in on the conversation and have others reading this article see your comments you can comment on either of these Twitter threads:
*The Turf Monster is alive and well, at IG Field.
When he was not dropping passes or colliding with his own player in the end zone, Begelton was getting caught by the Turf Monster. This is a monster that grabs unsuspecting player’s feet causing them to otherwise inexplicably fall to the ground.
Some rumors of its extinction had been floating around as it has not been seen lately. There was speculation that it was hiding out in the woods with the notorious Beer Snake. If I had to guess which infamous creature was going to show itself on a hot Friday night at IG Field my money would have been on the Beer Snake.
However, while the Beer Snake did not come out of hiding that evening the Turf Monster found a victim in Begelton. On a catch that he did make, Begelton literally stumbled into the end zone. Had the turf monster struck yards earlier, I do not think Begelton gets into the end zone.
What did I get right? What did you disagree with? Let me know in the comments.
Written by a Bomber fan, for the Bomber fans.
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