The Ottawa Redblacks will be looking into an exchange between head coach Bob Dyce and what is believed to be a fan on the sidelines during Thursday’s wild 22-22 tie with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Dyce has also called on the league to investigate the incident.
The exchange came at the end of the tie after an unprecedented series of events. The Roughriders had taken a 22-19 in the second overtime frame and appeared to win after recovering a Redblacks fumble. After some players had already left the field, the CFL command centre determined there was a roughing the passer penalty on the play, extending the game. The Redblacks returned and finished the game with a tie with a field goal.
Around the same time as the kick, Dyce heard comments from a fan that he felt were inappropriate and addressed him.
“I’m not going to let anybody talk to our players like that, and then he’s talking to me and I’m certainly not going to let him talk to myself like that,” said Dyce. “And so, I asked who he was and he didn’t answer.”
Ottawa improved to 5-2-1 on the season with the tie, which saw starting quarterback Dru Brown injured in the second quarter. Dustin Crum entered in relief, eventually leading the drive that ended the game in a tie.
“I was in the locker room so I thought it was over,” Crum said. “They came running in and told me they called roughing the passer, and that we’re playing.
“So I said, ‘Alright.’”
“Craziest ending I’ve ever been a part of,” Roughriders quarterback Shea Patterson added. “I liked how we stayed together to the last minute and just fought together as a family throughout the entire game.”
The Roughriders now have a 5-3-1 record to sit atop the West Division after earning the tie.