Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Stamps take charge over Argonauts

Bo Levi Mitchell has provided his head coach with a pretty helpful bit of evidence that the right starting quarterback was handed the ball at the end of training camp.

Mitchell won the QB showdown with the Argos Ricky Ray on Saturday, with an impressive performance that propelled the Stamps to a convincing 34 to 15 victory over the Double Blue.

Among the highlights for the Stamps starter a gadget play (see video here)  that saw the Stamps use a direct snap to Jock Sanders, he in turn tossed the ball to Mitchell who hurled it down the field to Anthony Parker, a play that caught everyone but the Stamps by surprise, setting in motion the rest of a successful night for Calgary.

For those that may want to try the flea-flicker during their rec league football game, here's the nuts and bolts of the play.

Even more impressive for the Stamps, they dominated the Argonauts without the services of a string of first line players, the absence of John Cornish, Maurice Price and Nik Lewis but the thing of a line up sheet change more than anything else.

And while the Stamps offence moved the ball with authority, equally impressive was the shut down nature of the defensive squad which made Saturday night a most miserable experience for Ricky Ray.

The Argo offence could find no rhythm and no forward motion all night,  despite some solid numbers from Ray, who on the night completed 28 of 36 passes for 292 yards, though the majority of those yards were outside of the redzone.  It proved to be a night of frustration for the Argos as drives would stall leaving the Toronto output to the foot of Swayze Waters on the night, he accounted for all fifteen of the Argo points on the evening.

Defensively, the Argos struggled to hold the Stamps in check, Mitchell finding open receivers to the tune of 16 completions on 24 attempts for 4 touchdowns, the rushing game was distributed to four ball handles collectively taking the Stamps over the century mark with the run.

Calgary's play on both sides of the ball and on special teams highlighted the ability of coach Hufnagel to put the proper focus on the early season miscues that dogged some of the Stamps play, though in their first two games, the Stamps hold a 2-0 record, the key to their success a stingy defensive squad that has only surrendered 23 points on the year thus far.

With their second win of the year, the Stamps continue to nip at the heels of the front runners out of the gate with the Bombers and Esks holding 3-0 records, with their early season showdown set for Thursday night in Winnipeg.

The Stamps return to McMahon Stadium, playing host to the Tiger Cats, while the Argos will be in Ottawa Friday night for the debut of the RedBlacks new home in the nations capital.

Reviews of the Stamps victory can be found below:

Calgary Sun-- Calgary Stampeders get it done with big win over Toronto Argonauts
Calgary Herald-- Stamps sail to victory over Argos without Cornish, other stars
Toronto Sun-- Argos no match for Stampeders in CFL action
Toronto Star-- Argos routed by Stampeders 34-15
Canada.com-- Mitchell leads Calgary Stampeders past Toronto Argonauts

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