Barn Burning Battle of Doom: Number 2 Hoping to Finish in 1st Place
Mike Alexander
“Here’s hoping,” she said.
I came home last night with the weight of the world on my shoulders and spent a few minutes talking to my fiancée about this one. I felt like listening to an outsider perspective on our prospects for a Bomber victory today, the last regular season game of the year. She isn’t a fan of the Blue and Gold in the sense that she feels as anxious and uncertain as I do about the opening kickoff at 3pm today in Calgary. Maybe she is better off for it. I can’t really imagine having gone through life not caring about the last 17 weeks…17 weeks of some of the best football I’ve seen Winnipeg play in years. Along the way we have experienced those cliché-ridden staggering highs and a few of those teeth gnashing “D’oh!!” low spots as well, like last week when we watched the team shit the bed at home from our vantage point on the east side. And by the way, the East side rules, but that’s not important right now. Sure, it felt great to see Steven Jyles lying motionless on the field after helmet on helmet contact with Johnny Sears, a hit that cost the defensive back a one game suspension. But I would take a Bomber win against the pathetic Argos over seeing Steven Jyles turned into a convulsing taxidermied doormat any day of the week.
Here’s hoping.
She remembers the year that Ryan Dinwiddie took over for an injured Kevin Glenn as Winnipeg entered the 2007 Grey Cup without a hope in hell of walking out on top. There was a storyline there that is now banging off the walls again, its echo making its way through the air today here at the Ashburn Compound. What will the Bombers be able to accomplish against the Calgary Stampeders with the backup at the controls?
Brink has started in three games so far in his career. As of this morning, the situation is not as dire as it was back in ’07 on account of Brink having shown development this year. I’ve been glad to see him paying attention to the action on the field. As a result, he has been more than able to contribute to the positive. Like Toronto did last week, look for Brink to be playing for a spot on the 2012 roster this afternoon. He has shown that he remains poised under pressure which is huge. He has completed 62% of his passes for just over 800 years with 4 TD passes and the same amount of interceptions. He has been called in to finish games that Winnipeg starter Buck Pierce couldn’t finish on his own. Can he handle the pressure? Calgary is a tough team (also 10-7) and it will not be a walk in the park.
Not that Winnipeg particularly enjoys walks in parks. Winnipeg tends to trip over garbage cans when not getting attacked by hissing and blood thirsty geese when trying to enjoy a leisurely walk in the park, as horrible losses to Toronto and *ahem*, Saskatchewan will attest to. Can the offensive line give Alex the time needed to complete plays? Calgary pivot Drew Tate is 2-0 since replacing Henry Burris. It turns out that Bomber DB Jevon Johnson played with Tate at the University of Iowa and will be providing a few tips about his former team mate to the Winnipeg D. Hopefully Winnipeg will be able to take advantage of Johnson’s history with Tate. From the sounds of things, shutting him down fast will be a rule of thumb as Tate has shown that he has a strong throwing arm and the composure to make high impact plays for the Stamps.
The Bombers come into this game in worse shape than Christine, the possessed 1958 Plymouth Fury, who returned home to Darnell’s Garage late one night after murdering Arnie Cunningham’s bully, Buddy Repperton. The Bombers are a burned and busted up, rattling hulk of a beast. Key players are gone and we are entering McMahan Stadium which is a dark, frightening place where the Bombers go to receive a solid beating a couple of times a year. It’s been happening since 2002. We actually haven’t won there since then. So as you may understand, the Bombers are not a team that is resting in spite of securing a playoff game for the first time in years. You just know that those shit-kicking cowboys and oil barons are drinking premium single malt whiskey straight out of the bottle this morning as they load their pistols in hopes of back alley encounters with citizens of Winnipeg later on tonight after the final whistle has blown. It’s disgusting and horrible to contemplate. But this is the time that Winnipeg must rise to the occasion as the playoff picture finally comes into focus this weekend.
In spite of coming into this game the underdogs, there are some positives to speak of. Everyone’s new favorite, Chris Garrett averages 6 yards a carry and has had 2 100+ yard games. The Winnipeg defense leads the CFL with 54 sacks. Winnipeg is tied with Edmonton for most interceptions, with 24 picks, all of them a joy to witness. The D hangs on, but it will take an orchestrated effort from Brink and the O Line for Winnipeg to take this game.
A win today will secure Winnipeg 1st place in the east and a bye for the conference final, in which case Montreal would host the Hamilton Ti-Cats. In order for Montreal to claim 1st place, Winnipeg will need to lose this afternoon and then Montreal will have to defeat BC later on this evening.
The stakes are high. The BBQ awaits us. The ice is plentiful and the coolers are stacked. The house is ready to go. We are looking forward to a hard fought victory today at McMahan. We are going for 1st in the East and control of our destiny going into the playoffs.
LET’S GO BLUE!!
