Ottawa Redblacks’ first win ‘great not just for the team, but the city and the owner’

Kierrie Johnson got a clean release at a critical moment, and gave Ottawa a release its football fans have not had in decades.

It was an oftentimes-chaotic opening night on the field — and off — for the Ottawa Redblacks, but the essence of the CFL is that everything can be vapourized by a big finish. For the Redblacks, for the sold-out TD Place stadium crowd of 24,326 and the once-was-lost generation(s) of fans in the nation's capital, the night was defined by Johnson's 43-yard catch over cornerback Jalil Carter in the final minute that set up Brett Maher's field goal that sealed an 18-17 win over the Toronto Argonauts. Who better to be a vessel for a city's renewed optimism about the CFL being back for good this time than a first-year slotback, whose dropped touchdown pass on a beautiful bomb from Henry Burris loomed large for much of the night?

"This feels great not just for the team, but the city and the owner, he put so much into this," Johnson said, referring to Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group president of sports Jeff Hunt. "We can actually celebrate. The last couple weeks we have been letting games slip away.

"We were messing up for a lot of the game and I knew I would have an opportunity coming my way — I didn't know when," the 26-year-old Johnson said. "It came at that time and I made sure by any means that I made the play. Hopefully we get momentum from this that will carry us for the rest of the season."

The game typified the CFL so far in 2014. Not enough touchdowns — one. Too many penalties — a combined 23 for 207 yards. Yet there was reason to watch to the end, with Maher's winning kick providing the fourth lead change of the fourth quarter.

The Redblacks (1-2) have a lot to clean up, as Burris being sacked five times on a night when his offence mustered a meagre 288 yards and was saved by Maher going 6-for-6 on field goals. Yet they banked a win. The coaches and players fed off the crowd's energy.

"We continue to do the things we're supposed to do as a team, this fanbase will come back," said Burris, who was 17-of-30 for 216 yards to fellow future Hall of Famer Ray's 21-of-37 for 298 with one TD and two interceptions. "We definitely have some winners in the stands. I know the people who didn't make it in for this game, they're going to be pushing to get in for the next game.

"This crowd was raucous tonight, they were loud and rambunctious," added Burris, whose offensive group has only one TD in 11 quarters since scoring on its first three drives in its opener. "They made it tough for those [Toronto] guys to operate communications-wise down the stretch."

The evening felt perfect, with fans from throughout the national capital region ferrying to the stadium via bicycles and shuttle buses. After one night, there is already a greater feeling of this franchise, under the Hunt-fronted OSEG group, having deeper roots than either the short-lived Renegades (2002-05) or the 1990s-vintage Rough Riders before they folded.

Russ Jackson's endorsement: 'It might be the Redblacks, but it's Ottawa football'

Ottawans do tend to be rational, need-to-see-proof types. They didn't have that with the two teams that left. With the CFL much, much flusher with national TV money than it was years ago, it's safer to buy in than it was when the two previous franchises were often on shaky ground.

"It's been a long time coming," quarterback emeritus Russ Jackson, the 77-year-old Hall of Famer who led the Rough Riders to Grey Cups in the 1960s, said prior to kickoff. "I don't know how many times I've said this but I would go to CFL functions and there would be banners up from every team and nothing from Ottawa. It was like it was thrown in a closet and no one cares.

"With the the Renegades, it never had the security and continuity that you have with this ownership group," Jackson added. "To guys like myself [Rough Riders alumni], that's important.

"It might be the Redblacks, but it's Ottawa football."

The Renegades were greeted with enthusiasm by the public when they hit the field in 2002. Poor results on the field and the inability and/or unwillingness to modernize the stadium was a turn-off. That has changed.

"This time, it feels like there's an importance to it, with the renovation and everything that's gone into getting the team back," said Laura Tanner, a 32-year-old civil servant who grew up attending Riders and Renegades game with her father, Don.

"It feels like the whole city is behind it. The players are a lot more visible in the community and on social media.

"It feels like it can be a winner."

The climb back started in earnest in 2008 when the city was granted a conditional franchise. Hunt, at the time, emphasized the need to revitalize the Lansdowne Park, saying, "We have 15,000 fans who will sit on tacks to watch the CFL, but that's not enough."

One could view the result as the Redblacks nearly beating themselves vs. the depleted Argos, who were missing veteran receivers Jason Barnes, Andre Durie, Chad Owens. After Swayze Waters drilled the 46-yard field goal for a 17-15 Toronto lead with 1:33 left, Burris' group got the last word.

A 40-yard throw on a second-and-10 often sends a chill down every wannabe offensive coordinator's spine. Yet with 1:07 left, Burris espied Johnson lined up 1-on-1 with Carter and aired it out down the left sideline. Johnson won the jump ball. Three plays later, Maher booted the winning points.

"I saw the technique he was playing and I just knew Henry had faith in me to make that play," said Johnson, who had a game-high 91 yards on six catches. "When he threw it I thought I have to be sure I make this play because I let one go through my hands earlier in the game."

"I relaxed up — everyone saw it," Johnson said of his earlier drop. "It was on my mind the whole game."

One win, and a sloppy one at that, does not a Grey Cup contender make. It's only one win. It is, regardless, a weight off the Redblacks' shoulders. They led at halftime in road losses at Winnipeg and Edmonton.

"We talked about being the guys who step up and make the plays in the fourth quarter," Redblacks coach Rick Campbell said. "We were that team tonight.

"It's fun, it's exciting for our whole franchise," the rookie head coach added. "The fans were awesome. Down on the field, the energy was really good. It was really a big deal."

There's reason to believe, on and off the field.

"We just need to stop the inconsistent play, that's what holding us back right now," Burris said. "We got the potential."

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.