Bert Faibish
CFL.ca
When you’ve already faced a team three times over the course of the regular season, there can be very few secrets.
There’s no doubt that each side will have some new wrinkles, but outside of a few plays here or there, both teams know what to expect of the other.
When talking about the Toronto Argonauts, two most obvious threats include running back Cory Boyd and receiver/return specialist Chad Owens.
“Owens can be a game-changer for those guys and the offence looks to him to give them solid field position,” said Hamilton’s leading special teams tackler Marc Beswick.
The challenge of containing a player like Owens is made even more difficult because of ability to score from anywhere on the field.
The cover team needs to maintain its focus and intensity throughout the whole game, because it only takes one mistake to spring the diminutive returner. No matter how many times you’ve stopped him, it only takes one play.
“We really have to make sure we stay honest with our assignments, trust our teammates and make the play when it comes to us,” said Beswick.
“One of the reasons we’ve been so successful against him is that everyone on the cover team has stepped up and made a play when they’ve needed to, we’ve really played as a unit,” he added.
The other component of Toronto’s offence that has made them so successful this season has been their dominant ground attack.
Cory Boyd rushed for an impressive 1,359 yards this season despite missing three games over the course of the year. The Ticats defence has been able to slow him during the regular season, however.
In Boyd’s games against the rest of the league, he averaged 99.8 yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry. In the three against Hamilton he averaged 53.6 yards per game and 4.2 yards per carry.
“Anytime you can take one component of an offence away and make them one dimensional, you’re going to increase your chances of winning,” said Ticats linebacker and leading tackler Jamall Johnson.
“Our defensive line has been physical and our linebackers and db’s have been coming downhill to the ball and playing physical football, which is what you need if you want to be successful,” said Johnson.
While the past is just that, Hamilton’s successes against Toronto gives them a solid confidence level coming into this do or die game.
