Rested Stampeders looking for better start at home against Redblacks

CALGARY – Fresh off a bye week, the rested Calgary Stampeders will look to avoid their chronic slow starts Saturday night when they host the Ottawa Redblacks.

The teams enter week 8 with matching 4-2 records. Ottawa sits first in the East while Edmonton’s win on Thursday moved the Eskimos two points up on the Stampeders in the West for top spot.

“We want to get better as a football team,” said Calgary coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “We’ve yet to play the type of game that we need to, to get where we want to.”

The Stamps are a perfect 4-0 at home although it hasn’t been pretty. The combined margin of victory has been only 10 points, and in all four games they’ve trailed by at least seven. They have yet to hold a first-quarter lead at McMahon Stadium.

“I think I actually start playing better once I’ve been sacked one time. I can’t let that be the case,” said Stamps quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. “I have to go out there and right from the get-go, run the ball early and go at somebody instead of out of bounds. If that’s what I’ve got to do, that’s what I’ve got to do. We’ve got to make sure we come out and take the hitting to them.”

As defending Grey Cup champions, wide receiver Marquay McDaniel says it’s time Calgary realizes opponents are coming in determined to knock them off.

“We have a target on our back. Teams are coming in here, amped up from the start to come after us,” said McDaniel. “We’ve got to be ready to take that punch, not get down 17 points and then go, ‘okay, now it’s time to go.’”

The Stampeders have not played in two weeks after a hectic stretch of four games in 20 days.

“I can’t wait to get back out there,” said Mitchell, who is coming off his first career back-to-back 300 yard passing games. “I love playing on that field so when you go a whole week and you’ve got to watch other teams play and you’re not out there. It gets you itching.”

Ottawa is looking to defeat Calgary for the second time in three weeks. The RedBlacks overcame an 11-point deficit to win 29-26 in overtime on July 24.

“Not to take anything away from them but as a whole, we felt like let one go,” said McDaniel. “When it’s a fresh loss like that, you still have that taste in your mouth, you definitely want to get back out there right away and play them again.”

To succeed against Ottawa’s defence, Hufnagel says his club needs to be dynamic when they have the football.

“It has to be a big play offence against these guys. It’s hard to just churn out the yards,” said Hufnagel.

Keith Shologan says his club will be ready.

“They’re going to come out swinging and they’re going to have a good game plan,” said the veteran defensive tackle. “You have to stop them at what they want to do and put them in second and longs and hopefully take advantage of that.”

In their second season, the RedBlacks have already doubled their win total from a year ago.

“We’re happy with where we’re at, but we know we have a long way to go to get to where we ultimately want to get to,” said former Stamp receiver Maurice Price, who is making his first trip back to Calgary.

Notes: Calgary DT Micah Johnson (knee) returns from the injury list and will start. He hasn’t played in nearly a full year, since being injured in game seven last season… Ottawa WR Chris Williams (knee), who ranks third in the CFL with 432 receiving yards, will not play. Marcus Henry will start instead.