When it comes to the Ottawa Redblacks, maybe the term should be “homefield disadvantage.”
A 17-3 defeat two weeks ago against Calgary made Ottawa 1-18 in its last 19 contests at TD Place. It has a chance to end that disturbing trend Friday night when it welcomes another struggling team, the Edmonton Elks, to town.
“No question, we have to be better,” wide receiver Nate Behar said. “Wanting to win for (our fans) is big for us. What’s been happening is beyond logic at this point. There’s not a single thing about playing in this stadium that’s not set up for us to be in the best mindset. We have to exorcise the demon.”
To do that, it might help if the Redblacks (1-7) could find any kind of rhythm on offense. In the loss to Calgary, they totaled 319 yards but hurt themselves with turnovers. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw for 186 yards but tossed a pair of interceptions and starter Caleb Evans, who was 10 of 21 for just 66 yards, added a pick.
While the numbers clearly looked better for Arbuckle, coach Paul LaPolice is going back to Evans to begin Friday’s game, saying that his teammates could have played better against Calgary.
Meanwhile, Edmonton (2-7) is looking to snap a three-game losing streak. The Elks led Saskatchewan by a point late in the fourth quarter Saturday, but gave up a pair of late touchdowns to absorb a 34-23 setback at home.
Quarterback Taylor Cornelius accounted for nearly 300 yards of total offense, throwing for 209 while running for 86 yards and two scores. But he also tossed a late interception that set up the Roughriders’ last touchdown.
Edmonton also hurt itself badly with a lack of discipline. It was flagged 12 times for 140 yards, including a pyramiding call that negated a Saskatchewan field goal, gave it a first down and led to the clinching score.
“Decision-making, penalties, that cost us the ballgame,” Elks coach Chris Jones said.
–Field Level Media
