THE ETCH FACTOR

The obvious elephant in the room of the Rider/ Bomber matchup is..........             "ETCH IS BACK!"

Quote #1--"Player production is intimately related to the scheme employed by the team he plays for, and the chemistry within that team."

Quote #2-- "As mentioned here last time: to say that offenses won't be patient enough to run the ball consistently through any game is an observation. THAT STATEMENT IS NOT A PLAN."

Quote #3-- "Remember: No points for yards; No points for first downs; No points for time of possession; None for QB-rating, or percentages of any kind.  All yards are three-feet, but in the game of football, all yards are NOT equal."

For those who know what's what, the Cortez/ Etch matchup is BY FAR the most riveting aspect of the game and will surely have the most bearing on the win or lose.

That's it right there. The Uber Heavyweight tilt, thus far, of this 2014 season. 

Good fun having Etch back in business. The business of terrorizing O-Lines, O-line coaches and O.C.s. 

AND BUSINESS IS GOOD!

BC's OL got their Teletubbie asses reamed.

What does Cortez have planned? 

You can believe, ever since Etch's hire, George has spent an inordinate amount of time and energy reviewing, remembering, researching the past and since the season opener--- noting trends of the Etch D Version 2014.7.

No secret how Etch regards Cortez and thus revels in the opportunity to compete against the best.

Quotes from  RP.com Etch's & O's.

"Offensive coordinator George Cortez, along with Hufnagel (now that Trestman is in Chicago), are the top offensive minds in the league."..................

"The issue of two tight ends.

When the Stamps weren't being worn down and wornout by the Riders' two tight end, AND two tight end PLUS (enter receiver Chris Getzlaf) passing, and especially running game, Calgary was assisting by being very unsound defensively.

As Saskatchewan offensive line coach Doug Malone explained in a SportsCage interview much earlier in the season, two tight end formations kind of "thin-out" the defence.  What an understatement.

(Wonder if any of the Toronto-area media that back in Y2K tried to undo then Argo head coach John Huard's CFL career before it even got going, simply because of the mere prospect of two tight end offensive formations, now see Huard as a visionary of sorts?  Probably not.  They've accidentally-on-purpose forgotten.  "Ya but what I think...")

We know that the defensive technology being currently deployed in the CFL versus these formations is not sustainable.  That is, defensive success against plays deployed from this family of formations is in spite of the tactics executed, not because of them.  This includes both the Ticat and Rider units (a few of Stampeder RB Jon Cornish's second half big runs were from two tights.)

This "thin-out" affect occurs in both the passing game, and the running game.  And in this one, Saskatchewan used this kind of formation about 20- to 30% of the time!

Sheets carried 28 times for 177-yards (with a long of 30-yards) and one TD.  At times you saw him (or Jock Sanders) rip through the line, through a "thinned-out" space or seam.  But mostly he explored a crowded middle, only to bounce it out wide where the Calgary defence could not contain him because of over-compensating in the middle of the line.

The Riders have been more committed to these formations throughout the season, certainly in this West Final, than has Hamilton, however the Ticats do use them.

Talk about so-called X's & O's, if you're into such things.  This two tight end topic alone could keep us occupied throughout the winter!"................

"To further challenge the senses -- In the passing game -- isolation is the offence's friend, the defence's enemy."

Interesting, that in all of the media hub bub, little mention is made of the Etch factor. 

Here's a heads up to fans.... NOTICE the narratives TSN's "expert" analysts use to SELL their version of the Bomber D's scheme and or it's shortcomings.... but don't blindly BUY 'EM.

In the July 17 Bomber/Eskimo game QB Riley broke free from plays that should've been made to toll 90 plus yards. The EE running game and O was held in check considering the Bomber O production. Didn't stop "expert" colour man Duhhnigan after a 4th quarter QB scramble, "see there GOrd... run the ball... that's how you beat an Etcheverry defence".

Typically mute it, but if Suitor is tonight's "expert", might have to listen in.... just for the narrative's unintentional entertainment value.

Even Bomber alumni Brett McNeil added his 2 bits on July 6th’s sportcage…. “I’ve played and coached against coach Etcheverry, he’s got a very unique defence that’s completely fluid and ever changing, there are ways to beat him, if you move the pocket you’ve got a good chance to beat coach Etcheverry”.

Never so simple nor black and white. The action's always in the greys. 

You can believe Version 2014.7 is significantly evolved with updated, built in answers to the vast majority of current questions. 

More sophisticated in it’s simplicity-- a contradiction in terms? You got it! 

Welcome to---  nothing is black nor white. A half Grand Master chess match/ half black jack game/ half three card monte hustle. 

BUT... BUT... How can you have THREE halves? 

Exactly the sensation O-Linemen and their coaches experience when what they thought was solid footing, turns to quick sand in a rumbling earth quake.

See what happens. Should be good. If we have the jam, might detail it out later.