Dyce: Crum to start against Bombers, extent of Masoli injury still unknown

Ottawa Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce could not provide an update on the status of injured quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who left Saturday's loss to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the second quarter with a non-contact injury.

Dyce did confirm that the 34-year-old sustained a lower-body injury and said that if Masoli was unable to start, backup Dustin Crum would start on Saturday against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

“He’s got a lower-body injury. We’re getting everything taken care of and we’ll have an answer on that later today or tomorrow,” Dyce told TSN 1200 on Monday morning.

“If Jeremiah is unavailable we’ll start Dustin Crum at quarterback. Dustin stepped in and played reasonably well. He did a lot of good things, 91 yards rushing and completed 67 per cent of passes. He did a lot of good stuff for a guy who stepped in when he didn’t anticipate getting into the game.”

Crum entered in relief of Masoli in the 21-13 loss to the Ticats, completing 14-of-21 passes for 149 yards and six rushing attempts for 91 yards and a touchdown. The 24-year-old out of Kent State will make the first start of his CFL career on Saturday, the Redblacks' fourth different starter in five games, and Dyce says the team is excited for the rookie to show off his dual-threat ability.

“We’re excited to see Dustin with a full week’s practice and the opportunity to go out and start. He’s a very smart young man…very analytical,” said Dyce. “The guys really rallied around him. He can bring a multifaceted attack. It’s our job as coaches to make sure we tailor an offence to help him find success.

“We just want Dustin to go out there and be the quarterback we know he is. We’re excited for this opportunity to see him in this situation.”

While Crum ignited the offence against the Tiger-Cats, he also threw a pair of crucial second-half interceptions, including one in the third quarter resulting in a Ticats touchdown. However, Crum also came just short of scoring what could have been the game-tying touchdown when he was tackled at the two-yard line by the Tiger-Cats' Chris Edwards at the end of a 19-yard rush. Dyce says the team will work on limiting turnovers but is happy with the team's showing following Masoli’s injury.

“What I love about these guys is their resiliency. They could have folded in that situation but these guys kept fighting and came two yards short of tying it with the two-point convert. Defensively they continued to play strong and put us in situations where we could have won the game,” said Dyce.

“We have to continue to work on the turnover battle. Obviously, Dustin is a younger guy in there but we can’t afford to turn over the ball. We’ll work on that as a staff and ensure that’s not a challenge this week versus Winnipeg."

The Reblacks will look to improve on their 1-3 record as they host the 4-1 Bombers at TD Place this Saturday.