Week 3: Tokyo Drifters
This would be the Cavalry’s second game against the Drifters. With the first game only being decided by 2 points, another close match was assured. The defensive grudge match picked up where the last one left off, as the Drifters quickly punted. This was followed by future top draft pick Albert Ruschmann taking advantage of the infamously porous Calgary offensive line with an early sack on Uncle Rico. A short punt and an unnecessary roughness call on linebacker Chad Thunder set up the Drifters to take the lead with an early field goal. After a pair of punts later, the Cavalry began to establish a rhythm on offense, and once again careless penalties including an unnecessary roughness call proved to be pivotal for a defense giving up important yardage. The Cavalry were able to respond with a field goal of their own.
The Drifters began their next drive seemingly with a spark and a completed long pass, but the play was brought back due to a dirty block below the waist by Terry Yaki that could potentially result in a fine or suspension. The drive would soon stall, but it was clear that the Calgary offense was not going to take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. Before the next Drifters drive, the Calgary defense huddled together and stressed the importance of needing to make a big play. Immediately heavy pressure was put on quarterback Jackie Daytona, resulting in a sack by Crozier McCoy. The very next play, Daytona was forced to make an errant throw on the run that landed right in the hands of cornerback Mason Gillian, who returned it 22 yards for a touchdown. The sideline erupted – everyone knew how important a score like that would for these teams that found it so hard to score on each other.
The Drifters did respond with a decent drive, but disaster struck for them at Calgary’s 37 yard line. After a simple 5 yard run, fullback Milan Spriggs was infuriated by what he considered an uncalled facemask, and he proceeded to make an indecent gesture at the referee, incurring an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. When getting set for the next play, a referee stood behind center Richard Amundson to allow for substitutions to occur, and Amundson took this opportunity to enter his three point stance and fart on the referee. Gagging, the referee called another unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The Drifters were so completely thrown off by this series of events that they allowed a sack on the resulting play. Then, when lining up for third down, Tokyo was also called for illegal formation. This set up a 3rd and 51 for the Drifters to attempt to convert. Yes you read that right, fifty-one. Shockingly, their 52 yard play they dug out of the playbook didn’t work. The Cavalry would drive down and miss a field goal to end the half at a score of 10-3.
The Cavalry began the second half with a highly successful drive that stalled out in the redzone, earning themselves a 21 yard field goal. The Drifters responded with their own offensive success, finding themselves at Calgary’s 1 yard line for second and goal. That’s where Terry Yaki would become intimately acquainted with Crozier McCoy, who delivered a hit akin to Jadeveon Clowney’s hit vs Michigan in the 2013 Outback Bowl, both forcing and recovering Yaki’s ensuing fumble. Despite this, the Drifters would receive the ball again in favorable field position, eventually allowing them to make a field goal.
From here, the Drifters seemingly spotted holes in Calgary’s pass coverage. Midway through the 4th quarter, the Tokyo drove down the field and scored a touchdown, bringing Calgary’s lead down to just 3 points. However, Toyko would never see the ball again, as the Cavalry’s run game pounded away from time consuming first downs.
Final Score: 16-13, Calgary
Game 2: Amarillo Tumbleweeds
Amarillo had just come off an embarrassing loss to the Tiburon Landsharks, so many wondered if they would be coming out with an extra edge or if they were still feeling demoralized. It initially appeared to be the former, as they dominated time of possession in the first quarter with their run game, though they only achieved a field goal for their troubles. They received the ball in the beginning of the second quarter and it was more of the same. They earned yards at will, but they simply couldn’t make it into the endzone, opting instead for a second field goal.
Their settling would prove to be too safe of a decision. Calgary answered with a balanced attack, finding success both on the ground and in the air. A couple of penalties on Amarillo didn’t hurt either. Joseph Stamps was able to punch in a touchdown without much trouble with three minutes left in the half. Suddenly, the perceived powerhouse after Weeks 1 and 2 seemed awfully human. A solid defensive effort didn’t allow the Tumbleweeds to do much with the time left, and the half ended with a score of 7-6.
A pair of punts started the half. The Cavalry defense seemed to have figured out how to stuff any holes, forcing the Tumbleweeds to look to the air. After a sack by myself, Jimi DeSoto, quarterback Bill Brasky seemed uneasy in the pocket. Although having decent protection, Brasky proceeded to force a ball into tight double coverage, which was athletically intercepted by safety Bob Roberts at Amarillo’s 33 yard line. Two plays later, Uncle Rico completed a short pass to Adam Spencer, who would stiff arm his defender and scamper all the way for a touchdown. This quick turnover and score seemed to take all the energy out of the Tumbleweeds, as they had displayed embarrassing failures on both sides of the ball.
The Cavalry, although unable to crack Amarillo’s defense again, consistently put the Tumbleweeds in terrible field position. The time consuming drives that once seemed to be a strength were now a bane for Amarillo, as the Cavalry were happy to watch running plays deep in Amarillo’s half drain the clock away.
About midway through the fourth, Amarillo’s head coach gathered the team for an impassioned speech. This seemed to be effective, as once again the Tumbleweeds rolled towards the end zone. However, once again, the drive stalled, and the field goal unit was sent out. This was a shocking decision, as even if the field goal were made, the Tumbleweeds were still in a seriously precarious position. The field goal was then missed, completing the cornucopia of failure that Amarillo’s fans had become acutely aware of the last two games. They did receive the ball one more time, but the Cavalry had drained enough time off the clock for it to not be very meaningful, and the Tumbleweeds only barely crossed midfield before the clock struck zero.
Final Score: 14-6, Calgary
With that, Calgary finish 1st in the International Division, earning themselves a bye for the playoffs.
This would be the Cavalry’s second game against the Drifters. With the first game only being decided by 2 points, another close match was assured. The defensive grudge match picked up where the last one left off, as the Drifters quickly punted. This was followed by future top draft pick Albert Ruschmann taking advantage of the infamously porous Calgary offensive line with an early sack on Uncle Rico. A short punt and an unnecessary roughness call on linebacker Chad Thunder set up the Drifters to take the lead with an early field goal. After a pair of punts later, the Cavalry began to establish a rhythm on offense, and once again careless penalties including an unnecessary roughness call proved to be pivotal for a defense giving up important yardage. The Cavalry were able to respond with a field goal of their own.
The Drifters began their next drive seemingly with a spark and a completed long pass, but the play was brought back due to a dirty block below the waist by Terry Yaki that could potentially result in a fine or suspension. The drive would soon stall, but it was clear that the Calgary offense was not going to take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. Before the next Drifters drive, the Calgary defense huddled together and stressed the importance of needing to make a big play. Immediately heavy pressure was put on quarterback Jackie Daytona, resulting in a sack by Crozier McCoy. The very next play, Daytona was forced to make an errant throw on the run that landed right in the hands of cornerback Mason Gillian, who returned it 22 yards for a touchdown. The sideline erupted – everyone knew how important a score like that would for these teams that found it so hard to score on each other.
The Drifters did respond with a decent drive, but disaster struck for them at Calgary’s 37 yard line. After a simple 5 yard run, fullback Milan Spriggs was infuriated by what he considered an uncalled facemask, and he proceeded to make an indecent gesture at the referee, incurring an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. When getting set for the next play, a referee stood behind center Richard Amundson to allow for substitutions to occur, and Amundson took this opportunity to enter his three point stance and fart on the referee. Gagging, the referee called another unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The Drifters were so completely thrown off by this series of events that they allowed a sack on the resulting play. Then, when lining up for third down, Tokyo was also called for illegal formation. This set up a 3rd and 51 for the Drifters to attempt to convert. Yes you read that right, fifty-one. Shockingly, their 52 yard play they dug out of the playbook didn’t work. The Cavalry would drive down and miss a field goal to end the half at a score of 10-3.
The Cavalry began the second half with a highly successful drive that stalled out in the redzone, earning themselves a 21 yard field goal. The Drifters responded with their own offensive success, finding themselves at Calgary’s 1 yard line for second and goal. That’s where Terry Yaki would become intimately acquainted with Crozier McCoy, who delivered a hit akin to Jadeveon Clowney’s hit vs Michigan in the 2013 Outback Bowl, both forcing and recovering Yaki’s ensuing fumble. Despite this, the Drifters would receive the ball again in favorable field position, eventually allowing them to make a field goal.
From here, the Drifters seemingly spotted holes in Calgary’s pass coverage. Midway through the 4th quarter, the Tokyo drove down the field and scored a touchdown, bringing Calgary’s lead down to just 3 points. However, Toyko would never see the ball again, as the Cavalry’s run game pounded away from time consuming first downs.
Final Score: 16-13, Calgary
Game 2: Amarillo Tumbleweeds
Amarillo had just come off an embarrassing loss to the Tiburon Landsharks, so many wondered if they would be coming out with an extra edge or if they were still feeling demoralized. It initially appeared to be the former, as they dominated time of possession in the first quarter with their run game, though they only achieved a field goal for their troubles. They received the ball in the beginning of the second quarter and it was more of the same. They earned yards at will, but they simply couldn’t make it into the endzone, opting instead for a second field goal.
Their settling would prove to be too safe of a decision. Calgary answered with a balanced attack, finding success both on the ground and in the air. A couple of penalties on Amarillo didn’t hurt either. Joseph Stamps was able to punch in a touchdown without much trouble with three minutes left in the half. Suddenly, the perceived powerhouse after Weeks 1 and 2 seemed awfully human. A solid defensive effort didn’t allow the Tumbleweeds to do much with the time left, and the half ended with a score of 7-6.
A pair of punts started the half. The Cavalry defense seemed to have figured out how to stuff any holes, forcing the Tumbleweeds to look to the air. After a sack by myself, Jimi DeSoto, quarterback Bill Brasky seemed uneasy in the pocket. Although having decent protection, Brasky proceeded to force a ball into tight double coverage, which was athletically intercepted by safety Bob Roberts at Amarillo’s 33 yard line. Two plays later, Uncle Rico completed a short pass to Adam Spencer, who would stiff arm his defender and scamper all the way for a touchdown. This quick turnover and score seemed to take all the energy out of the Tumbleweeds, as they had displayed embarrassing failures on both sides of the ball.
The Cavalry, although unable to crack Amarillo’s defense again, consistently put the Tumbleweeds in terrible field position. The time consuming drives that once seemed to be a strength were now a bane for Amarillo, as the Cavalry were happy to watch running plays deep in Amarillo’s half drain the clock away.
About midway through the fourth, Amarillo’s head coach gathered the team for an impassioned speech. This seemed to be effective, as once again the Tumbleweeds rolled towards the end zone. However, once again, the drive stalled, and the field goal unit was sent out. This was a shocking decision, as even if the field goal were made, the Tumbleweeds were still in a seriously precarious position. The field goal was then missed, completing the cornucopia of failure that Amarillo’s fans had become acutely aware of the last two games. They did receive the ball one more time, but the Cavalry had drained enough time off the clock for it to not be very meaningful, and the Tumbleweeds only barely crossed midfield before the clock struck zero.
Final Score: 14-6, Calgary
With that, Calgary finish 1st in the International Division, earning themselves a bye for the playoffs.