It was fun being healthy and getting a chance to play last week. The coolest part was that we got our first home win, so that made it pretty special. I didn’t think about it at the time but I started thinking about it on Monday.
For some reason, the game just started to be more fun as it went along, like maybe starting with the second half and I think it carried over into practice this week, too.
Things worked out with the shoulder last week and, God willing, hopefully it will keep on working the rest of the season. It was good to take a hit on that first play I was in there because, after that, it was like, “Phew.” It felt like so much weight fell right off my shoulders. It was cool.
Even when I was out, I was still trying to be a leader and to be involved — especially out here in practice and especially since I got to travel with the team while I was hurt. I felt like since they were giving me that opportunity, I wanted to take advantage of it in some way that was beneficial to the team. I just talked to Coach Dickie, I talked to Hank and the other quarterbacks.
I tried to make it a positive. The injury was such a negative and I just tried to turn it into a positive somehow, some way. I think it really helped.
At this point in the season, I think we’re on our way up. I say that from the standpoint that in each of our first five games, the difference was like five points or less. We have the ability to be a very explosive offence, we’ve just got to find our stride and I think we were really finding it in the second half of this last game.
You know, you’ve got to start somewhere and then you just build off of it and keep moving forward. Play for the next play. Don’t get down if something happens in the first quarter because there’s a lot of football left.
We can’t be worried about what the media is saying about us because I don’t care about any of that. All I’m worried about is taking care of my job and that’ll take care of everyone else.
We don’t need to get riled up about this and that. You take one play at a time and keep your head down and stay focused. Stay on track and concentrate on everything you’ve got to do.
No matter what Saskatchewan’s record is right now, there’s no way we’re going into this game with any complacency. We definitely don’t want to be 4-3 heading into the bye when we can be 5-2.
And to get a chance to get two games up on a division opponent, especially by getting two wins at their place, is so important. We know they’re going to be as hungry as hell because they haven’t won a home game so they’re going to be coming out firing. It’s our job to not only match it, but to put ourselves above their intensity and their speed. We got are studying in this week and now we’ve just got to come out blazing.
Drew Tate, #4
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