OTTAWA — The Ottawa Redblacks are looking to turn things around in the second half of the CFL season, and that starts with a solid outing against the Montreal Alouettes Saturday night.
The Redblacks (3-6) are coming off their third straight loss, a 44-31 defeat to Toronto, and know they need to be better against division rivals to stay in the running for a playoff spot.
"We control our own destiny, that’s what we talk about," Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce said. “We know we’ve got six games left against Eastern teams and at the end of the day those games are really going to dictate where we end up."
Ottawa has struggled to play a complete game from start to finish.
“We have to turn those close games into victories and that’s what we’re focusing on,” Dyce said. “We know it’s more a product of what we haven’t done than what somebody has done to us so we know when we lock into all three phases of play we can play with any team in this league.”
Ottawa quarterback Dustin Crum will make his sixth start as he continues to develop and show increased confidence.
The 24-year-old is more than willing to run the ball. Crum leads the league with 7.9 yards per carry, the most of any rusher who’s had a minimum of 50 carries.
Last week, the rookie showed he can also get things done in the air, going 21-for-26 on pass attempts for 292 yards and three touchdowns.
Ottawa will be counting on Crum to mix things up against the Alouettes (5-3), who are riding a three-game winning streak to sit second in the East.
Crum has played well, but sees room for improvement as the Redblacks look to end their losing streak.
"You look internally a little bit and try to correct mistakes you make and try and get better week in and week out and find the things you can do to get on the right side of it," Crum said. "We’ve done some things well defensively in these games that we’ve ended up losing and some things offensively in the ones we ended up losing so it’s kind of just putting it all together."
Crum was not under centre when Montreal beat Ottawa 19-12 to open the season.
Alouettes head coach Jason Maas says this is not the same Redblacks team they saw in early June.
“They’re more experienced,” Maas said. “That’s the bottom line. They’ve been in a lot of battles. They’ve been in just about every game they’ve played.”
Quarterback Caleb Evans will get another start for the Alouettes, as Cody Fajardo is listed as the third string while he recovers from a shoulder injury.
Evans will be a familiar face for many Redblacks, as the young pivot played the 2021 and 2022 seasons in Ottawa.
"Caleb is a dual (threat) quarterback, he can throw and he can run," said Redblacks defensive back Sherrod Baltimore. "He can extend plays. When everything goes wrong, he can make plays with his feet. We just need to cover the receivers when he’s moving his feet and keep a good pocket and just play as a good unit on defence and we’ll be fine."
Ottawa’s defence has been solid against the run, but they’re giving up a lot in the air, as was the case last week when Toronto’s Chad Kelly had 417 yards passing and four touchdowns.
“We know we all need to be better,” Baltimore said. "We’ve all got to make plays and we will. We’ve all got to be urgent.”
ALOUETTES (5-3) AT REDBLACKS (3-6)
Saturday, TD Place Stadium
JUST LIKE HOME: Montreal has won six of their last seven road games - their best stretch away from home in 20 years. Montreal is riding a seven-game winning streak at TD Place.
NEED TO BEAT DIVISION RIVALS: Ottawa has lost 14 consecutive home games to East Division rivals. Their last home win vs. an eastern club was Nov 2018 vs. Toronto.
DON’T LEAVE EARLY: Of their nine games, the Redblacks have had a league-high eight of them decided in the final three minutes. They are 2-2 in the four games decided by four points or less.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 18, 2023.
Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press
