Frankly Speaking: Rams Team in Transition
By Greg Urbanoski
The University of Regina Rams 31-7 win over the Simon Fraser Clan was not an aesthetic triumph by any stretch of the imagination…but the Rams will take it.
The win evened the Rams record at 2-2 and gave Rams fans an indication that the Teale Orban’s Air Force Offence of years past is giving way to a new offensive identity.
“We’ve gone to 2-2 and that’s positive,” said Rams Head Coach Frank McCrystal. “We’re in the hunt for a playoff spot and we’ve got a home game next weekend.”
The Rams got off to a quick start recovering a short kick-off to start the game and having Luke Derkson run for a 47 yard touchdown to start the scoring. McCrystal was asked if the Rams altered their game plan to reflect the 50 kilometre plus wind blowing through Mosaic Stadium.
“All of that is important,” said McCrystal. “But then we made some critical errors. We got stopped on a third and short that shouldn’t have happened. There are a bunch of subtle things that did and didn’t work.
“We had a lot of third down gambles and we were handing the ball off. We got stopped on one we should have snuck on. We were handing the ball off and it was a different scenario. We have to be better prepared for that and how they defend against it.”
McCrystal said a huge factor in the game was the ability to run the ball against the wind in the third quarter. McCrystal said Derkson is getting more comfortable in the Rams offense and showing the attributes that make for a complete back.
“In fairness it is hard to pass with or against the wind in Saskatchewan because the ball will sail on you or hang up depending on which way you are going,” said McCrystal.
“We still dropped some passes. We are trying to work hard to stay positive. We missed some key blocks again and these are things we have to work on. But we won the game, we are two and two and we’ll celebrate that, get our guys healthy and get ready for next week.”
The shift in the Rams offense from a passing attack to a ball control ground game has McCrystal thinking the Rams are still a work in progress as they establish what kind of team they want to be this season.
“This is a team finding itself,” said McCrystal. “It is almost grudgingly getting better. We keep hurting ourselves and grinding ourselves to a halt in different times and places but we are trying to get better.”
The University of Alberta Golden Bears is the next opponent for the Rams, but while they are in the bottom of the Canada West standings, the Bears have been very competitive against the Rams in previous matches.
“Again they won one game but we only won two,” said McCrystal. “Say what you want, everyone is good and everyone is capable in Canada West. If you miss a block or coverage, the other team can put the ball in the end zone.
“So we are going to have to be prepared and work hard when we play those guys next weekend.”
