Tigers Week 2 Report – ‘D’ Did it Again!

THE RICK RIVERS’ REPORT: 2021 VOL. 2 – September 27, 2021

Saturday’s encounter with the Holland College Hurricanes came at the Terry Fox Field in Cornwall, PEI. After an early afternoon drive, made even longer by a Covid check at the border, over the Confederation Bridge, the Dalhousie Tigers beat the Hurricanes, 35-0. It was another shutout, the second in the first two weeks of the season. The Seawolves, one week before, only penetrated the Dal end of the field once and so was the case for Holland, only getting to the Dal 52. Kudos to the black and gold players and coaches who had executed their game plan to near perfection. Take away three unnecessary roughness penalties and the effort would have been flawless.

Leading the Tiger “D” stats was veteran DB, Will Keneford with five tackles, teflon coverage and forced a fumble near center field. Riley Fitzgerald recovered the ball. Less than two minutes remained in the half and the black and gold culminated that drive as Dylan Waugh scored his second TD from 14 yards out. That gave the Tigers a 31-0 lead at the break.

Nate Whidden and Logan Hillier had three hits, while first game newcomer Josh Byron had five bone-jarring tackles. Liam Chisari made the highlights with 5 stops and a sack. Chisari would do just as well on the field without the very loud cheers from the sideline. Holland’s ground game was nearly non-existent, while QB Jake Richards’ made some good throws, most were no match for Dal’s LB’s and DB’s.

This week, Dalhousie’s offence again showed a good mix of run and pass. Waugh once more showed his versatility, running for 106 yards on 15 carries (2 TD’s) and three receptions for 37 yards, to lead the offence. On the Tiger’s second possession of the game, they drove 80 yards with Jason Watts scoring from six yards out. Passes from Chris Duplisea to Brody Boudreau (13 yards) and Waugh (28) set up the majors. Duplisea (11/20 – 164 yards – 2 TD’s – 0 INT) on the Tiger’s first set of downs in the second Q, just overthrew a wide-open corner route which would have been a sure 6 points. On the next play Okyay Kepenek came up short on a 37-yard FG. The first play on the black and gold’s next series, Duplisea made up for his earlier miss by hitting Kye Swansburg in stride for the TD. The half ended with a Kepenek 24-yard FG and Waugh’s 14-yard TD.

In the second half, Kepenek missed a 45-yard FG which scored one point and made a 43-yarder rounding out the game’s scoring at 35-0. He made all four of his converts. The AFL’s mercy rule kicked in after his last FG. This sees the clock run on straight time for the remainder of the game.

The play of the game did not come during regulation time but during game debriefing. Coach and joker Haggett (@250 lbs.) took a running leap at his kneeling players and landed in their midst. Early reports indicate no players were injured but coach is a little worried about how he might feel tomorrow after his act of frivolity. The laughter was uproarious!!! 

Coach Haggett’s parting words were, “Today’s effort is not good enough for next week’s opponent. We need a good week of practice!” Both Dalhousie and UNBF are 2-0 and the Red Bombers are the AFL defending champs. A Tiger shutout is unlikely, but a victory is the goal. GO TIGERS!