Maas: Alouettes rivalry with Redblacks should be played up more
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As the 2024 CFL regular season winds down over the next two weeks, the Montreal Alouettes’ goal has been to stay focused on the bigger picture.
The team wrapped up first place in the East Division in September and will be waiting for either the Toronto Argonauts or Ottawa Redblacks as their opponents when they host the Eastern Final on Nov. 9.
Despite Montreal’s two remaining games not meaning anything in the standings, head coach Jason Maas believes the end of the regular season is crucial for his team if they want to have success in the playoffs.
“Our philosophy is that we don’t have any meaningless games,” Maas told TSN690 on Wednesday. “We all know there’s nothing you can do to take us away from [the East Final], we’re going to be there. What leads up to that is what is going to make us successful [in that game].”
The Alouettes are coming off a 19-12 win over the Redblacks on Thanksgiving Monday. The win was important to the team because it gives Montreal the season series sweep over Ottawa, which will only help their confidence if the two teams meet in the final.
Both Toronto and Ottawa are considered to be major rivals within the division, but Ottawa’s geographical proximity to Montreal helps make the series sweep even sweeter for Maas.
“It’s a great rivalry and it should be played up more,” said Maas. “They’re always fun and exciting games and we love to win them. They’re also an eastern opponent who was in second place at the time, so it’s one of those things where you to put doubt in their minds and gain confidence when you play games like that.”
Next up for the Alouettes are the BC Lions who are fighting for a home playoff game in the West Division. The Lions are coming off a massive 39-8 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday, leading the team to start Vernon Adams Jr. as starting quarterback ahead of star Canadian pivot Nathan Rourke.
Even though Montreal will be making a cross-country trip on short rest, combined with the fact that the game doesn’t mean much in the standings, Maas has no intention to rest his starters.
“I don’t look at our schedule like that, the guys that are going are playing,” said Maas. “This time of year, you have a limited roster, and we don’t have that many guys we can replace.
“We just schedule [the rest of the week] differently. We’re just going to practice once this week to get our plan in and travel. That’s all we can do because we want our guys to be physically up to the task and confident that they can be ready to play.”
Starting quarterback Cody Fajardo missed Monday’s victory as he travelled to Nevada to be with his wife for the birth of their second son last week. Backup Davis Alexander started on Monday and threw for 208 with a rushing touchdown to get his fifth win of the season as starter.
While Maas hasn’t announced a starter for Saturday’s game, his faith in Alexander’s abilities has only grown as the season has gone forward.
“Ever since I’ve been around him, he’s continued to get better and progress in our offence,” said Maas. “As competitive as our team is, he is right up at the forefront. He won’t give up on any play and attacks every single play like it’s his last.”