Angry Bomber Fans

The Numbers Never Lie - Banjo Bowl

 vs

By Professor Kelly

 Hello Angry Bomber Fans! This week is the Banjo Bowl. Winnipeg will look to avenge their 27-7 loss to their bitter rivals the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Let’s recap the Labour Day game.

Buck Pierce was 20 for 28 with a completion percentage of 71.4, through for 209 yards, no touchdowns or interceptions. He ran 4 times for 19 yards and 1 lost fumble. Alex Brink replaced Pierce late in the game. He was 3 for 7 with a completion percentage of 42.9, through for 25 yards no touchdowns and 1 interception. He ran 2 times for 3 yards.

 Darian Durant was 13 for 21 with a completion percentage of 61.9, through for 232 yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. He ran 6 times for 39 yards.

 Fred Reid ran 14 times for 35 yards with an average of 4 yards per carry and no touchdowns. He also caught 2 passes for 21 yards.

Wes Cates ran 18 times for 45 with an average of 4 yards per carry and no touchdowns.

 The Bombers new receiver Kito Poblah caught 9 passes for 89 yards with an average of 9.9 yards per catch. His longest reception was 25 yards.

 Weston Dressler and Chris Getzlaf combined for 5 receptions, 103 yards receiving and 3 touchdowns. Chris Getzlaf had the longest reception of 38 yards.

 Bombers’ defence only recorded 1 sack by Merrill Johnson and 1 turnover which was a forced fumble by Pierre-Luc Labbé.

 Saskatchewan’s defence recorded 1 sack by Jerrell Freeman, 1 interception and one forced fumble by Jerrell Freeman.

 Bombers kicker Justin Palardy was 2 for 3 with an accuracy of 66.7%

 Chris Milo was 2 for 2 with an accuracy of 100%

 Bombers Punter Mike Renaud punted the ball 7 times for 271 with an average of 38.7 yards per punt. His longest punt was 60 yards.

 Chris Milo punted the ball 7 times for 289 yards with average of 41.3 yards per punt. His longest punt was 53 yards.

 The keys to success:

1)      The Bombers need to sack the quarterback more then just once!

2)      The Offence needs to score touchdowns.

3)      Punt the ball farther, Renuad’s average was 38 yards per kick.

Until next week, Professor Kelly is out.

The Numbers Never Lie

Our youngest writer, Professor Kelly, is back after getting lost in the bush and missing his deadline last game. We also noticed that the Sun has a game day feature called The Numbers Game, so we changed the name of his column so they didn’t sue the poor Professor.

by Professor Kelly

Hello Angry Bomber Fans! This week we will be looking at the stats for the Labour Day match up between your Winnipeg Blue Bombers (7-1) and the Saskatchewan Roughriders (1-7). The Bombers look to maintain the best record in the CFL. The Roughriders look to gain there second win of the season and to leave the basement of the CFL.

Let us start with the quarterbacks. For your Blue Bombers, Buck Pierce, he is 132 for 206 with a completion percentage of 64.1, 1804 passing yards, 187 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. For Saskatchewan, Darian Durant, he is 168 for 262 with a completion percentage of 64.1, 2040 passing yards, 208 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.

 For the running backs the Roughriders have Wes Cates. He has 217 rushing yards on 41 attempts with an average of 5.3 yards per carry and 3 touchdowns. Winnipeg has Fred Reid. He has 550 yards on 135 attempts with an average of 4.1 yards per carry and 2 touchdowns.

 For the receivers Saskatchewan is lead by Weston Dressler. He has 606 receiving yards with 44 catches and 3 touchdowns. The Blue Bombers receivers are lead by Terrence Edwards, with 513 receiving yards, 27 catches and 6 touchdowns.

 The Winnipeg defensive line is lead by Odell Willis with 14 tackles and 9 sacks. Saskatchewan is lead by Keith Shologan with 13 tackles and 2 sacks.

 The Blue Bombers secondary is lead by Jonathan Hefney with 40 tackles, 1 sack and 2 interceptions. The Roughriders are lead by James Patrick with 17 tackles and 2 interceptions.

 The Roughriders kicker is Eddie Johnson. He is 10 for 14 with an accuracy percentage of 71.4 and with 46 total points. For Winnipeg, Justin Palardy, he is 21 for 28 with an accuracy percentage of 75.0 and with 85 total points.

 The Bombers punter is Mike Renaud. He has punted the ball 69 times for 2 942 yards with an average of 42.6 yards and 4 singles. For the Roughriders, Eddie Johnson, he has punted the ball 41 times for 1 706 yards with an average of 41.6 and 3 singles.

Buck Pierce is 7^th in the league in passing yards. Darrian Durant is 5^th in the league in passing.

 Fred Reid is 2^nd in the league in rushing and Wes Cates is 10^th.

Terrence Edwards is 9^th in receiving and Weston Dressler is 3^rd.

Odell Willis is 1^st in the league for sacks and Keith Shologan is 24^th.

Jonathan Hefney is 6^th in interceptions and James Patrick is 7^th.

Justin Palardy is 1^st in points scored and Eddie Johnson is 8^th.

Mike Renaud is 4^th in punting average and Eddie Johnson is 6^th.

The Bombers are 3^rd in points for with 212 and Saskatchewan is in last with 165

The Bombers defence is 2^nd with 157 points against and Saskatchewan is in last with 253.

 These team never fail to entertain. Until next week, Professor Kelly is out.

5 Things the Bombers Need To Do

by Tony “Tee” Martin
 
1. Quick start - Sold out game. A season on the brink of disaster. Revenge from getting beat up badly by Riders at The Banjo Bowl last year or for the other five loses in a row the Blue have suffered at the hands of their banjo-pickin’ rivals. Any of these factors should fire up the home team. The Bombers need to come out of the gate fast, something they haven’t been able to do this season. They need to use home field advantage and show the fans they are serious about turning this season around. Jyles needs to gain his confidence and own the offence. While every win is important, nothing is more important than tomorrow. If the Blue lose, they are not only mathematically out of the playoffs, but they are going to have a hard time keeping the faithful happy. Losing six games in a row is unacceptable. If they continue to lose, something has to give.

2. Big game from Jyles and Reid - With Pierce out, Jyles is at the controls and has a shot at making his old team regret not sticking with him. He’s going to have to protect the football, make quick reads and spread the ball around. He’s also going to want to give Reid a chance to rumble for some serious yards. Reid will need to break 100 yards if the Blue have any hope at beating the Green Monster.
3. Secondary - The secondary did a decent job last week and the Blue will need a big game from guys like Ian Logan if they want to move to 3-7. They also need to stop the Riders dumping the ball for 5 yards and then running for another seven. It would be nice to see Jovon Johnson or someone in the secondary to run back an interception and take some pressure of Jyles.
4. Pressure on the QB - With the Blue & Gold’s Phillip Hunt leading the league with 8 sacks, he is going to be a key part of the puzzle tomorrow. Odell Willis is sixth in the league and needs to be in Durant’s face during the Banjo Bowl.
5. Convert second downs - Last game the Bombers only managed to convert a merger three second downs in 20 attempts. That is pathetic.The Blue & Gold are third worst in the league, with a 40.3% conversation rate. If they have any chance at winning tomorrow or improving the record in the second half of the season, they are going to have to rework the offence in second down situations. It just isn’t working and the 3-20 from last game proves it.

The Bombers are 30-12 since 1985 when playing to more than 29000 fans at home.

 
Considering the Bombers haven’t won since the Beer Snake was banned, hopefully some diehard fans will sacrifice themselves for the team and resurrect the massive beast and break the curse that has descended on Maroon’s Road.

Pop Goes the Season???

by H.F. Salisbury


I knew this was going to happen.  Really.  I said the Bombers season will be decided in the home at home Saskatchewan point of our schedule.  Yes I realize that it is the halfway mark of the season and there is plenty of football to go however the Labour Day Classic and follow up Banjo Bowl are significant for a number of reasons.  The obvious is that the Green Riders are our arch rival.  The Canadian Football version of Yankees/Red Sox if you will.  

That aside it is also the point where the Bombers with all their roster changes from last year will have played 8 games and should have gelled as a team.  At times we have shown a glimmer of excellence but for the most, part as of the mid way point of the season, we have proven time and time again that the Winnipeg Blue Bombers know how to self destruct as well (or better) than any other team in the CFL.  The reality of the situation is that we have a 2 and 6 record and are playing a team, that in recent years, know how to kill us on the field.  I would suggest that there is an above average chance we will have a 2 - 8 record after the Banjo Bowl.  The season at that point will officially be a bust. 

Doesn’t matter that Saskatchewan is on a bit of a slide.  They got beat by Edmonton (this year’s worst team in the CFL) by giving up 17 straight points last week and will be looking to destroy Winnipeg.  This is Saskatchewan’s way of proving to CFL fans that they are an elite team.  Pretty good motivation huh?  Seems this year that the teams we play usually are coming off a loss.  Funny that Winnipeg can find any motivation.  Of course I have an opinion why this is… 

The Bombers are really their own worst enemy.  Winnipeg has played lacklustre football this year because we don’t execute plays and lack intensity.  A football team will never play with intensity if they are not motivated.  Winnipeg’s problems can be summed up in four words - stupid penalties and turnovers.  Think about it.  Even when we put up a 500 offensive yards in a game, we take off a 100 yards in penalties, turn the ball over, and can’t sneak the ball in on third and goal.  I’m using round numbers but you remember the game.  That game against Hamilton is a perfect example of our season thus far.  

We really need a leader to step up.  Somebody to call players out when they drop, fumble, miss a tackle, etc.  We can beat Saskatchewan.  Heck we can do it twice in a row.  But we need to play smart, intense, smash-mouth football as Tony Tee would say.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful to beat the Riders twice in a row.  Our record would only be 4 - 6 but we would have some momentum.  I’m scared to use the word after how it was thrown around last year but dare I say the Bombers would have some swagger.  

Well it starts one game at a time.  The Labour Day Classic.  Pretty good story line.  Surely the Bombers can find motivation in this.  If not, that’s the way the bubble will burst for the Bombers.

Go Blue… please.