Ottawa’s defence proves its worth in dominant Eastern Final win

OTTAWA — Trevor Harris may be the one in the spotlight after Ottawa’s Eastern Final win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, especially after throwing for six touchdowns — a CFL Playoff record.

What shouldn’t be overshadowed, however, is the defensive front that was put up by Noel Thorpe and his defensive scheme, which contained Jeremiah Masoli and the Hamilton offence. As a result, the pressure put on Masoli paired up with the tight coverage lead to a pair of interceptions, which would aid in the REDBLACKS quickly lighting up the scoreboard at TD Place Stadium.

Of the three touchdowns Trevor Harris threw for in the first half, two would have Diontae Spencer on the receiving end. On both of those touchdowns, the REDBLACKS offence began their drives following interceptions thrown by Masoli.

RELATED:
» Through the Lens: Tiger-Cats at REDBLACKS Images

» View BoxScore: Ticats, REDBLACKS by the numbers
» Watch: Cioffi INT leads to speedy Spencer TD
» Trevor Harris sets new playoff touchdown record

 

“It was crazy ’cause I was just standing on the sideline thinking a turnover right here and we need to convert,” Spencer said following his team’s win. We had to kick the field goal the first time we got in the red zone, and after that it was just telling myself, telling my teammates that we got to get it in the end zone. It was tremendous that we could score off of all those turnovers.”

Rico Murray, who finished the game with six tackles, felt like the REDBLACKS had all of their defensive phases of the game working in unison.

“I feel like we were peaking in every way today,” Murray said. “I felt like special teams, we did a great job at just giving the ball back to our offence — not turning the ball over. On our cover teams, we did a great job at limiting their specialists in Frankie Williams, because he’s an explosive guy. I think we did a great job at managing that. And on defence, we went out there and made it tough for them. We limited all of the big plays and made them earn everything.”

As the offence fed off of the success that the defence was putting forth, Murray and the defence couldn’t help but be in awe of what Harris and the offence were piecing together.

“Trevor was phenomenal today, and the thing about Trevor is that he’s never satisfied with what it is he did last. He’s always trying to improve, so I can’t wait to see how he’s going to perform in the Grey Cup,” said Murray, speaking highly of his team’s quarterback.

As for Spencer’s outlook on the REDBLACKS success in winning the Eastern Final, it was quite obvious to sense that after a two-touchdown performance, along with punching their ticket to the Grey Cup, they’re not satisfied yet.

“We put a lot of hard work into this,” Spencer said. “For us to get to the Grey Cup, it’s exciting, but the journey’s not over.