O'Leary: The Argos finally get their shot at the Als
11/02/2024 07:59 PM
Sometimes you have to look between what’s said and under what’s glossed over to get a sense of a situation.
Fresh off of a comfortable win (that started with an uncomfortable first half) in the Eastern Semi-Final over the Ottawa REDBLACKS, the Toronto Argonauts didn’t have a lot to say about their next opponent.
“I don’t care who we’re playing, you want to get to the (Eastern) Final,” Argos head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said on Saturday evening, asked about the team that’s waiting for them one province to the east.
“Now, obviously it being Montreal is a little bit added motivation from the guys that were here last year. We just have to win this football game to get one of our goals done.”
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That’s far from a salacious quote, but it’s the juiciest thing that came out of the Argos’ post-game press conferences on Saturday; at least regarding their coming re-match with the Als, with a trip to the 111th Grey Cup on the line.
That’s just wrong.
There’s far too big of a redemption story in the making here. There are way too many members of that 2023 team on the roster and coaching staff that have spent a year wishing that they could have the 2023 Eastern Final back, to raise their heads from their pillows that morning and get one more chance to do it better, to get it right.
Saturday, Nov. 9 will be a new day but the Argos finally have their chance, no matter what they say.
“We know we’re going to get their best shot,” said Argos’ quarterback Chad Kelly, coming off of a game that saw him make 18-20 passes for 358 yards and four touchdowns.
“We’ve got to be ready for whatever they throw at us and just be ready to go.”
“It’s another chance,” added Argos linebacker Wynton McManis, raising the hopes of the word ‘redemption’ on the way next.
“Another chance to go 1-0.”
Asked about the biggest challenge that the Als present, McManis thought about Molson Stadium and quickly said, “the birds.”
He’s not wrong there — the presumably football-loving seagulls that loiter over the stadium on game days are an enigma — but again, there’s more there than that.
The Argos’ momentum has been percolating over the last third of the season, with them winning four of their final six regular season games and the offence coming into join the elite party that their special teams unit and defence have been a part of through their past 18 games.
The REDBLACKS felt it firsthand on Saturday. They held the offence to two first downs in the first quarter and dominated time of possession, holding the ball for 11:47 in the first quarter and 24:11 of the first half of the game. That’s usually the kind of stat that paves the path to a lopsided win. Instead, despite trailing 10-0 in the first quarter and having Dru Brown and the REDBLACKS repeatedly at the doorstep in the red zone, the Argos found a pair of quick strike touchdowns to begin chipping away at their opponents.
Kelly hit Makai Polk for a 70-yard touchdown after a Lewis Ward field goal. One play, 70-yards, one touchdown. It was a 13-10 game. After another Ward field goal, Kelly found DaVaris Daniels for a 40-yard TD pass. The count: two plays, 70 yards, tie game, with Lirim Hajrullahu giving the Argos their first lead of the day on the extra point.
Brown had a record-setting playoff debut, going 46-61 for 476 yards and three touchdowns, with a pair of game-sealing pick sixes thrown as his team was getting into desperation time. Minus the interceptions, those kind of numbers would usually suggest a win. The Argos’ defence bent all over BMO Field, but wouldn’t break.
“They’re well built, front to back,” Brown said of the Argos’ defence. “What they do is they wait for you to make a mistake. That’s when they’re able to pull away. They’ve got great players, well built. It’ll be interesting to see what they can do.”
Add that to a night of post-game understatements.
The day that the Argos have waited a year for is now less than a week away. The stage is different, in Montreal, but we’re in for a colossal battle in the Eastern Final. Kelly, who had sewn up the MOP award through the Argos’ 16-2 regular season, saw his playoff debut blow up in his face with a four interception performance. He showed this week that he can play in the playoffs. Now he gets to stare down the defence that ruined his season and has a chance to ruin theirs.
Amidst all of the 1-0 talk that the Argos have built their success on in the four years that Dinwiddie has been the team’s head coach, McManis said something that could echo through this coming week. If the Argos continue to play the way they have been, it could ring longer than that.
“Don’t ride the wave,” he said. “We are the wave.”
