Across the CFL: Why it is so troublesome for Redblacks to interrupt shedding behavior

For the Ottawa Redblacks to win a recreation earlier than making doubtful historical past, they will need to recover from a psychological hurdle.

A robust feeling of déjà vu can dominate a participant’s ideas when the losses begin to pile up.

Just hearken to former hard-hitting security Rob Hitchcock, who is aware of a factor or two concerning the highest of highs and lowest of lows from his days together with his hometown Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

“Once you lose two or three or four in a row, it’s really tough to get out of that jam,” Hitchcock, 55, mentioned over the cellphone this week whereas taking a break from his present job as a senior gross sales govt for Aquiform, a swimming pool and scorching tub distributor.

“As athletes, you’re not thinking you’re going to lose the game. But it always was in the back of our heads that you’re 0-7, 0-8, we’ve got a lead in the fourth quarter and it’s like, ‘Boy, here we go again.’ And it’s like, boom, we lose it again.”

Four years after successful the final Grey Cup captured by the Ticats in 1999, Hitchcock was a part of a Hamilton crew that also holds the document for having the worst end in an 18-game CFL season.

The 2003 Ticats went 1-17, avoiding a winless marketing campaign with an time beyond regulation victory over visiting Saskatchewan in Game 13 on a walk-off area purpose by legendary kicker Paul Osbaldiston on the previous Ivor Wynne Stadium.

The Redblacks are 0-11 this 12 months and have set a modern-day CFL document with a 17-game shedding streak relationship again to final season. Another likelihood to interrupt the drought comes Saturday in Toronto in opposition to the Argonauts — one 12 months and 5 days after the Redblacks’ most up-to-date victory — within the opening recreation of a uncommon CFL quadruple-header.

“I can see the body language on those guys. It doesn’t look healthy,” Hitchcock mentioned. “I don’t know them personally but I know what they’re going through. They’ve lost a couple games where they were in the lead as well this year, and just finding ways to lose is a really tough thing to go through in the locker room.”

The ’03 Ticats crew, with gamers like Hitchcock, Joe Montford, Danny McManus and Carl Coulter, had much more star energy than the revolving-door Redblacks this 12 months. Those Ticats had a special form of drawback — possession. The CFL stepped in to function the crew in August after earlier homeowners failed to satisfy participant payroll.

The ’26 Redblacks don’t have any such considerations. The Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group supplies very steady possession, albeit whereas struggling to discover a successful system with the franchise shedding video games and followers in bunches since 2019.

Player personnel is Ottawa’s drawback. Quarterback play has been dangerous since 2019, this 12 months’s offensive line is woeful, there may be subsequent to no dashing assault, and defence and particular groups are inconsistent, at finest.

With a first-year head coach in Ryan Dinwiddie and senior adviser Jim Popp lately introduced in to fill the opening created by the firing of vice-president of soccer operations Shawn Burke, the Redblacks have not been shy about making personnel modifications. That can create challenges for gamers within the locker room, nevertheless it additionally generally is a motivating issue.

“As players, when you lose that many in a row, you start looking at yourself in the mirror and say, ‘Hey, my job could be in jeopardy right now with a younger guy coming up if I’m not doing my job,'” Hitchcock, a two-time CFL all-star, mentioned. “… There’s going to some other guys or changes because changes are inevitable when you’re using that many games. You have to make change in any sport. We all took that pretty serious.”

Veteran coach Ron Lancaster and a bunch of gamers from that ’99 Grey Cup crew made ’03 much less of a nightmare than it might have been, Hitchcock mentioned. The Redblacks cannot probably have that very same bond.

“We still had our core of guys that won a Grey Cup. The group of guys really held us together,” mentioned Hitchcock, who’s second on the all-time checklist for tackles on the Ticats, behind Simoni Lawrence.

“If we didn’t have that bond, that culture in the room, it could have spiralled even worse. But how much worse can it get than 1-17?”

The reply, after all, is 0-18 — which might be the last word embarrassment for the Redblacks.

However, the Redblacks nonetheless ought to have a preventing likelihood in a couple of of their video games, together with two in opposition to the slumping Ticats (4-9), who seem like the second-worst crew within the league by a wholesome margin.

And despite the fact that the Argos are full marks for being 6-6 whereas taking part in 10 of their first 12 away from BMO Field, Saturday’s recreation could possibly be tough for Toronto, which is on a brief week after successful its conventional Labour Day recreation in Hamilton.

There’s additionally not a ton for Toronto to play for because the Argos seem destined to complete second within the East, barring some very stunning outcomes.

The Redblacks, in the meantime, had a bye week forward of Dinwiddie’s first recreation in Toronto as Ottawa head coach and basic supervisor. He left the Argos within the low season following a pair of Grey Cup wins.

Dinwiddie is on a private 16-game shedding streak after dropping his closing 5 video games as Argos coach. The one-year anniversary of his final win, Sept. 13, 2025, at BMO Field in opposition to Edmonton, is Sunday.

What does an elusive triumph really feel like for a winless crew?

“I remember the relief of it,” Hitchcock mentioned. “Just having that one win and going into that next week thinking there’s a bit of a chance here.”

Hitchcock hopes the Redblacks get to expertise one thing comparable quickly. He takes no pleasure in watching one other crew on a prolonged skid, including there’s “no way” he needs the Redblacks to go winless.

“You never want to see a team go through that,” he mentioned, “especially when you’ve done it yourself.”

Saturday will mark the CFL’s first quadruple-header since 1995, when the league was within the closing 12 months of its American experiment.

The final all-Canadian four-pack of video games on at some point was in 1992.

With the NFL off Saturday and the NHL not but began, it is smart for the CFL to present this sort of distinctive day a strive.

Ottawa Redblacks (0-11) at Toronto Argonauts (6-6), Saturday, 1 p.m. ET

The Redblacks simply are the league’s worst dashing crew and the Argonauts have allowed a league-low 18 passing touchdowns this season. The Redblacks are sticking with Jake Maier at QB for the twelfth recreation in a row.

Saskatchewan Roughriders (8-4) at Winnipeg Blue Bombers (6-6), Saturday, 4 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. CT

The annual Banjo Bowl follows final Sunday’s conventional Labour Day eve recreation, gained 32-26 by Saskatchewan in time beyond regulation after Winnipeg tied it with a landing on the ultimate play of regulation. The Roughriders swept this sequence final 12 months en path to a Grey Cup win in Winnipeg.

Calgary Stampeders (5-7) at Edmonton Elks (9-3), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. MT

The visiting Elks outscored the Stamps 24-3 within the fourth quarter on Labour Day to notch a shocking 38-28 win. The West-leading Elks can clinch their first playoff spot since 2019 with a win. The Grey Cup host Stamps desperately want a victory to remain near the West pack.

Montreal Alouettes (10-2) at B.C. Lions (6-6), Saturday, 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT

Another home-and-home sequence concludes after the league-leading Als gained 37-30 in Montreal final Friday. The Alouettes have not gained in Vancouver since 2015.