Saskatchewan Roughriders running back A.J. Ouellette was hoping for a triumphant return to the field against the B.C. Lions on Friday night.
And while things went well for the veteran ball carrier on a personal level, the triumphant part fell a touchdown short at B.C. Place.
The Riders put together a fourth quarter rally but were unable to complete the comeback, going on to a 31-24 defeat that saw Saskatchewan fall to 8-6 on the season.
Ouellette spoke to the Rider Broadcast Network’s Luc Mullinder after the contest and expressed a bit of disappointment with what felt could have been a far better showing.
“I should have had well over 100 yards, it felt like I left some yards out there,” he said. “The line played well, so I have to get the iPad loaded up and watch some film.”
Ouellette finished with 80 yards of total offence, getting 19 carries for 77 yards and having a single catch for three yards.
The contest was the first for the former 1,000-yard rusher since Week 8 against the Edmonton Eskimos, where he suffered a right knee injury, Ouellette nearly returned for the Labour Day Classic rematch, but ended up waiting through the bye week to play against the Lions. He played with a knee brace but still looked like his old self, especially on a handful of plays where he survived first contact and stiff-armed his way to extra yards.
So some wear and tear, but nothing he isn’t used to.
“I felt good, man,” he said. “It sucks that I sat for so long, the body's feeling good and still couldn't come through with the win.”
As for what he saw on the field with the running game, Ouellette admitted there were some situations where the team could have executed a more cohesive play.
“We have to correct some mistakes, there were some communication issues that I saw on the field,” Ouellette said. “It doesn't matter if we have the wrong call, if we're all running the wrong call, we're going to execute it well.”
Ouellette also touched on how the team will go about addressing any onfield issues they may have.
“For the majority of it, you need everybody thinking as one and that's the most important thing when it comes to a run game,” Ouellette said. “You get all five up front and the running back thinking as one, you're going to have a deadly run game.
“So luckily for me, during special teams, I can sit in with the o-line and kind of tell them what I'm thinking,” he added. “We got some things fixed out there, but we had some new plays that we haven't run in a game yet. So I'm excited to see what kind of adjustments we can do with them.”
Saskatchewan will now have a week off to prepare for a crucial Week 18 matchup with the Calgary Stampeders on Friday night at Mosaic Stadium.
