Unbeaten at home, Redblacks still betting underdogs

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Seems neither the Ottawa Redblacks nor their top receiver are getting the respect they deserve these days.

Before we get to Justin Hardy, let’s look at how his team is being perceived heading into Friday’s game against the Calgary Stampeders at TD Place.

At 4-2, the Redblacks have the fourth most wins in the Canadian Football League and sit second in the East Division while riding their first two-game winning streak in more than a year.

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They are also one of four teams league-wide to have a perfect 3-0 record at home.

The 3-3 Stampeders, who are indeed coming off an upset win over the B.C. Lions, are 0-3 on the road.

Teams playing in their own backyard are having all sorts of success.

They won all four games in Week 7 and have emerged victorious in 11 of the past 14.

Thus far in 2024, home teams are 19-9 for a .679 winning percentage that the league says is the highest in CFL history, just ahead of the .676 (45-21-2) mark home teams had in 1963.

And, yet, Ontario sportsbooks have Calgary as the favourite over Ottawa at -1.5.

How does that math add up?

“Maybe it’s because we haven’t won the past two years,” said receiver Jaelon Acklin, ignoring the two years before he arrived in 2022, which were also terrible seasons for Ottawa football. “We don’t really pay attention to that because anyone can say whatever. The only truth in the world is what people’s actions are.

“So they can rank us ninth, but by Week 18 it doesn’t matter what people are saying. It’s about the points you accumulate throughout the season and the wins and losses. So people can say whatever. Sports books can make whatever (line). At the end of the day, it’s who’s better from 7:30 to 10 p.m. (Friday). It’s who’s going to win.”

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Since he brought it up — and more definitive than the near pick ’em spread — are the Amsoil Power Rankings on the CFL website.

The Redblacks are No. 7.

The Stamps are No. 4.

Now, the last two Ottawa wins have come against 0-6 Edmonton, but doesn’t that mean the Elks were desperate to save their season, if not so much Chris Jones’ job as head coach?

Both the Redblacks and Stampers have defeated Hamilton, lost to Montreal and split with Winnipeg.

This could have to do with the fact Ottawa has squeaked out some close ones, but, while the Redblacks’ average margin of victory is 3.75 points, Calgary’s is only four.

“At the end of the day, what we focus on is stacking good days on good days,” Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce said. “We know who we are. What matters to me is what we think of ourselves. We know we’re a very good team. We know we continue to get better every day. That’s our plan and that’s our focus.

“It’s a long season, and everybody has a right to their opinion. It’s like a lot of things in life. You don’t necessarily worry about everybody else’s opinions, you worry about people that you love and you respect and what they think, and you go forward from there.”

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One thing for sure: Dyce loves Hardy.

Dyce made that point clear earlier this week, when asked is there was anything he wanted to get off his chest.

After a pause for thought, he set out to explain what his under-rated, 32-year-old veteran receiver means to the Redblacks’ offence.

“He’s the ultimate professional,” Dyce said. “As a coach you’re looking for consistency. You need to know what someone is bringing every single day. And that’s one of Justin’s greatest attributes. He’s professional in everything he does, whether it be in the building, out of the building, taking care of his body, knowing his assignments … Does everybody make errors? One hundred per cent. But you know exactly what you’re going to get out of Justin Hardy every day and that’s one of the things that coaches are always looking for.”

Heading into Week 8, Hardy was also the fourth-leading receiver in the CFL with 542 yards on 32 catches.

The top two — Justin McInnis and Alexander Hollins of the Lions — have played one more game than Hardy, who rarely if ever gets mentioned among the game’s top pass catchers by outside viewers.

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“He’s obviously very talented physically,” Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown said. “He’s really intellectual and smart. He’s crafty. A lot of times we don’t need to have conversations on certain things just because he typically does it right. But, if there’s ever miscommunication, we talk about it. He’s very easy to communicate with. He’s the whole package.”

Other than B.C. defensive tackle Christian Covington (102), is there a CFLer who has more than Hardy’s 73 NFL games played?

And he’s not up here just to collect a paycheque.

“I can be better,” Hardy said when asked if he was satisfied with his season to date. “I’m looking to outdo myself every day.”

That’s the type of leadership Hardy brings to the Redblacks, and he gets it honestly.

He remembers the receivers’ room in his first of five NFL seasons with the Atlanta Falcons including Julio Jones, Roddy White, Devin Hester and Eric Weems.

“A lot of those guys I still talk to,” said Hardy, whose high school coach is in Ottawa this week and is expected to take in Friday’s game. “They were the best to me, they took me under their wing and treated me like a little brother. So they laid all the knowledge they had on me. Now I’m returning the favour.

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“That’s just who I am,” he added. “Me being who I am just kind of shows leadership by example. Everything I’m doing I’m doing as example, so everybody can see exactly who I am, what I bring to the team and how I care about everybody we got here.”\

GOING DEEP

Dyce isn’t concerned that Redblacks players could be guilty of look ahead to next week’s bye. “This group has been fantastic at staying in the moment,” he said. “We know what our focus needs to be every single week. We talked about (the bye) and making sure you take care of your arrangements (earlier this week), so that we can keep our focus. I’m no different. I make sure I talk to my wife and let her know that this week is all focus, and when I get home, I get home. Until then, it’s all Redblacks” … The Stampeders have a league-low five sacks, but Brown says their defensive front seven has been a force since he’s been in the league. “The biggest thing is just us coming out and being physical and setting the tone, whether that’s in pass pro or running the ball,” he said. “I think how we do those things is going to be important for slowing them down” … While Bennett Williams will start at defensive back for the injured Tobias Harris, Adrian Frye is expected to get a fair share of the workload as his backup. Kalil Pimpleton will take Harris’ kick-return reps as DeVonte Dedmon misses his second game … Former Carleton Ravens defensive lineman Kene Onyeka comes off the injured list for his first game of the season for Ottawa.

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