STREAMING CFL PPV: Saskatchewan Roughriders @ Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Sept. 10, 23:00 CET (11 pm, 5 pm ET)
WINNIPEG — The Labour Day Weekend game between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers ending in thrilling fashion as Winnipeg kicker Marc Liegghio connected on a game winning 55-yard field goal to secure a 20-18 win for the Bombers.
Saskatchewan and Winnipeg will have a chance to go right back at one another as the pair of West Division rivals are set to square off in a Week 14 Labour Day rematch from IG Field.
In the meeting over Labour Day Weekend, special teams and the defence led the way for Winnipeg in their victory. Following the converted field goal from Liegghio, defensive back Nick Hallett sealed the game by seeking out a Cody Fajrdo pass for his first career interception.
With the win over Saskatchewan, the Bombers became the first team in the West Division to clinch a spot in the playoffs.
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In their win over Saskatchewan, Zach Collaros completed 15 passes, throwing for 214 yards and two touchdowns in an adversity driven performance that demonstrated exactly why Collaros is considered one of the best in the league.
Winnipeg receiver Nic Demski led the way in the performance and has had back-to-back games with at least 75 receiving yards. Over his past two starts the veteran Canadian has been one of the Bomber’s biggest offensive contributors, reeling in 13 of his 15 targets for 196 yards and two touchdowns.
Rookie receiver Dalton Schoen also continues to show signs of early stardom. In the win over the Riders Schoen caught his ninth touchdown pass, tying him with BC Lions receiver Dominique Rhymes for the league-lead. Schoen also boasts 767 receiving yards this season giving him the seventh most receiving yards through the first 13 weeks of play.
On the opposite side of the ball for the Bombers, defensive linemen Jackson Jeffcoat, Willie Jefferson and defensive back Donald Rutledge Jr. each had a sack, and the pressure of the Winnipeg front seven limited the time available in the pocket for the Rider pivot.
Jefferson relished the opportunity to play in front of a hostile crowd last week in Regina, and expects it the home-crowd in Winnipeg to supply much of the same when the Riders visit IG Field for the rematch.
“That environment was amazing,” Jefferson told BlueBombers.com. “The home team showed up, gave their ‘A’ game, and took it down to the end. So, when we come home, and they come to us next week it’s going to be the same thing.”
Providing ample time in the pocket and keeping Fajardo clean has been a point of concern all year long for the Riders offence, they have surrendered a league worst 44 sacks. Despite relentless pressure, Fajardo showed his ability to make the necessary plays as he managed to complete 71.9 per cent of his throws for 292 yards, while also rushing for a touchdown.
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS RUNNING BACK FRANKIE HICKSON HAS SURPASSED 100 OFFENSIVE YARDS IN CONSECUTIVE GAMES AS THE RIDERS LEADING RUNNING BACK (RIDERVILLE.COM)
With Jamal Morrow sidelined due to injury, the rushing duties have been primarily assigned to Frankie Hickson. Hickson has proven to be more than capable of producing offence for the Riders, the first-year back has seen 30 carries and has rushed for 214 yards in his last two starts, averaging 7.1 yards per carry.
In the passing game for Saskatchewan, Shaq Evans made an immediate impact in his first game back in the lineup, catching five passes for 88 yards. The ability for Evans to quickly integrate himself back into the offence will be critical to the success of the Riders passing game, and should help to ease some of the demand on receiver Kian Schaffer-Baker.
The Riders defence played admirably in their loss over the Labour Day Weekend. They limited the impressive Bombers offence to 20 points and 301 yards of offence, and defensive lineman Pete Robertson had his team leading ninth sack. No team has been better at getting to opposing quarterbacks than the Riders this season, their 34 sacks are the most through 13 weeks.
However, the Riders will need to be disciplined in coverage when Winnipeg puts the ball goes in the air. Saskatchewan is allowing the second most passing yards per game, surrendering an average of 278.5 passing yards.
Despite the recent play form his defence head coach Craig Dickenson knows that controlling costly penalty yardage will be crucial to the team’s success in Week 14. The Riders took 11 penalties for nearly 100 yards in the Labour Day matchup in Regina.
“They probably cost us the game,” Dickenson told riderville.com postgame. “They probably came at the worst times. That’s what happens, you have to just try and limit penalties as much as you can because they always come at the worst possible times. We’ll do our best to address it. We are who we are right now, we have to clean up our play. Each individual does. Hopefully that locker room takes a little bit of ownership on the stuff after the whistle.”
Winnipeg is in search of their 13th win of the season and can further distance themselves between the rest of the West Division standings, while a win for Saskatchewan could prove crucial as they sit just two points behind Calgary for third place.
AFI, Visaic and the CFL
American Football International is collaborating with Visaic and the Canadian Football League to present 2022 CFL games live. This is more than a livestream. This is a stream of the topflight TSN network television broadcast.
Watch the game live here PPV. Saskatchewan Roughriders @ Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Sept. 10, 23:00 CET (11 pm, 5 pm ET)
