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Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Kevin Glenn was intercepted three times in the fourth quarter and rookie kicker Alexis Serna had an untimely fumble that led to an Argos touchdown as Toronto opened the CFL season for both clubs with a 23-16 triumph …
Original post by CFL
This is the time of the year when the quality of the backup and practice roster players the player personnel staff have assembled, can prove to be critical. Especially so when injuries hit your best players at the same time.
It’s the biggest game of the year so far and we likely will have Fred Reid replacing Charlie Roberts, Doug Brown may be out with a freak eye injury, and Juran Bolden who was going to give the defence some attitude has been out for two games already. Punter Rob Pikula has another so called freak injury in practice this week and he is gone. Next thing you know we’ll see Dinwoodie playing quarterback. The personnel staff can take a bow if the team puts out a top performance on Saturday.
If they don’t however, speaking as a fan, I don’t see that we can blame injuries. Teams are supposed to be built with solid depth (read: more than one quarterback too) and with character people who can dig a little deeper when the money games start.
Go Fred. You’ve got a lot of folks talking about your talent. Protect the ball like it’s a live duck!
By the way, what really is wrong with Bolden that doesn’t allow him to play, and what actually happened to Pikula? When are the traditional media in this town going to start asking some tougher questions about what is going on behind the scenes with this team or are we just too small a town for actual reporting to work. Here’s hoping the dangerous Dominique Dorsey, and a Bomber this spring, doesn’t break one against us on special teams this week.
Original post by CFL
The Blue Bombers go head-to-head with the Argonauts on Saturday the 27 at Toronto. Matt Dunigan, former Bomber and Argo and now TSN analyst, said on TSN on a clip aired this past Saturday that he felt that the Argos had the best of the match-up. He gave the Argo the edge on defence and on special teams and the Bombers the edge on offence. Statistically you have to agree with Dunigan. The intangibles of course are who will come up with a game exceeding recent performances. The Bombers will need their “A game” for all 3 phases…which is not something we’ve seen for a while.
The prize is enormous. A home playoff date for the Eastern Finals with an excellent shot at the Grey Cup as a result. If that doesn’t motivate the team and coaches or we don’t play our best, then it’s time to make more changes.
Toronto Star - However, having amazingly climbed out of that abyss, the Argos begin preparations today for Saturday afternoon’s game at the Rogers Centre where a victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers would lift them into first place in the East Division. The …
Original post by CFL
Original post by CFL
Not only do the fans and coaches have to call the players on their play sometimes, and fans and players the coaches. That’s the fishbowl they choose to live in. We have had for many years the other group of people who live in the fishbowl. The Swami’s. The football “expert”, a writer or a former player usually, sometimes a monkey, who gets right out on the limb and makes predictions. For what real benefit other than getting the fans amped up, I don’t know.
Occasionally you find someone who can predict more wins than losses at a level that makes them worth following. And with that, I want to give a shout out to Mitch Zalnasky, of the CJOB radio broadcast team, (and former CFL and NFL player, I should say, who obviously kept his feet on the ground and his head in the game) as reported by the Winnipeg Free Press, see bottom of post, who I happened to notice is 47-25 in predictions, at the top of his group. That’s a nice 65% record in pretty wild year in the league. Mitch has got the Bombers. I’m in too. I’m off to check Chris Schultz’s record Has anyone topped Mitch around the league. Oooh, just saw Shutzie’s record. 54%.
The Winnipeg Free Press Online Edition
ED TAIT’S PLAYOFF PRIMEREAST SEMIFINAL
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (9-9) at TORONTO ARGONAUTS (10-8)
When: Sunday, noon TV: CBC/RDS Radio: CJOB
Totalodds.com line: The Argonauts are favoured by 3.5 points.
Streaks: Wpg.: 1L; Tor.: 2L
Last 10: Wpg.: 4-6; Tor.: 7-3
The storyline: An intriguing matchup featuring two clubs that, despite their recent woes, carry a lot of bravado into the postseason. The Bombers are two wins away from playing in a Grey Cup game in their own backyard but need both QB Kevin Glenn and DT Doug Brown on the field in order to compete. Interestingly, this will be the first time this season both teams will have their No. 1 guns in action: the Argos were without Damon Allen for losses to Winnipeg earlier this season while Toronto’s win here in August came with Mike Quinn at the Bomber controls.
Head to head: The Bombers won the season series 2-1 with a 16-9 victory on June 23rd, a 24-17 win on July 8 before losing 18-15 on Aug. 25.
Home field advantage/disadvantage: Winnipeg was 5-4 on the road this season; the Argos were 5-4 at home.Ed Tait picks: Winnipeg: We like what we’ve seen over the last month or so and figure QB Kevin Glenn can tough out his ankle injury.
Randy Turner picks: Toronto: Too many question marks around Kevin Glenn’s health, and way too many question marks around his possible replacements.
Chris Cariou picks: Winnipeg: The Bombers will have Kevin Glenn, the Argos are struggling offensively and the Blue were one of the league’s top teams on the road.
Bob Irving picks: Winnipeg: The Bombers match up well against the Argos and Winnipeg’s secondary will play a killer game after being slighted in the all-star voting.
Mitch Zalnasky picks: Winnipeg: The team that wins the field position battle wins the game; Westwood out kicks Prefontaine, Winnipeg moves on to Montreal.WEST SEMIFINAL
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (9-9) at CALGARY STAMPEDERS (10-8)
When: Sunday, 3 p.m. TV: CBC/RDS Radio: CJOB
Vegas line: The Stampeders are favoured by 7 points.
Streaks: Saskatchewan: 1L; Calgary: 1L.
Last 10: Sask.: 6-4; Cal.: 6-4.
The storyline: A juicy battle pitting two clubs who have teased over the past few years, but haven’t got it done in November. And the loser can expect a whole lot of finger pointing. Rider boss Danny Barrett, rumour has it, needs a long November run to keep his job while the Stamps — despite all their promise over the past two years — have under-achieved. Both teams can pound the ball effectively and feature mobile pivots, so this could come down to which defence handles that challenge best.
Head to head: Calgary won the season series 2-1, with a 53-36 victory on July 8 and a 23-7 decision on August 5th while the Riders won 19-9 back on July 29.
Home field advantage/disadvantage: Saskatchewan was 3-6 on the road; the Stamps an impressive 8-1 at McMahon Stadium.Ed Tait picks: Calgary: They’re cocky, brash and loud… and they’re talented enough to knock off the Riders.
Randy Turner picks: Calgary: Sorry, Rider Nation, but the Stamps, although unpredictable, have more firepower on offence.
Chris Cariou picks: Calgary: A virtual saw-off, but Joffrey Reynolds and the absence of Gainer the Gopher give the Stamps the edge.
Bob Irving picks: Calgary: Stamps need a big game out of Henry Burris, and they’ll get it.
Mitch Zalnasky picks: Danny Barrett coaches his last game as a Rider; Gainer Gopher gets stomped by Reynolds and Burris.Last week/year: Mitch Zalnasky: 2-1/47-25; Randy Turner: 1-2/44-28; Bob Irving: 1-2/41-31; Chris Cariou: 1-2/40-32; Ed Tait: 1-2/34-38.
Who are the CFL’s to 50 Players? Great promotion leading up to the Grey Cup in Winnipeg in mid November, especially for anyone who has any kind of history with the CFL. That’s a reference to us, “the old guys”.
Top 50 CFL Players (video vignettes here)
For Winnipeg, it’s supporters have desperately wanted their team to be in the Cup game at home. The team has been up and down all year, and ticket sales in this mostly homer town have shown it. Recently fans have been thinking this might just happen as the team seemed to be finding itself again. We now see again the importance of the recruiting staff, and backup personnel.
This was a bad situation waiting to happen and wasn’t addressed well all year. We didn’t get the help from the Great Playmaker in the sky who oversees this because that’s what it seemed we were depending on.
With Kevin Glenn’s injury, and without adequate reserves who can play at at least, 75% of the starter’s ability, we can only hope that maybe this week, our prayers will be answered, and Glenn will heal magically, or we’ll win a defensive struggle with an interception, and stick primarily to our running game and short flares.
Did I send you a tape of my work at Bomber Fantasy Camp this year?
Spergon Wynn was really polished for a first game of the season performance against Hamilton. This is the player who couldn’t get any higher than fourth on our depth chart. Is this a Kent Austin makeover (he who did not want the Bomber head coach job), or was this ability always there and we just didn’t give him a real chance here? And he’s going to be leading the Argos when they take on Winnipeg next week. Does he have two great performances in a row in him? Oh and then there’s Ricky! He’s arrived. Good thing Hamilton looks only about average. They are the team it looks now that we will need to finish ahead of to make the playoffs. The CBC bench mikes work very well, don’t they. We know what got Brown mad for sure.
Here’s one for those of you who liked him better as a Dolphin
Argonauts throw stonesback at Joe’s glass house
| Quote: |
| Toronto Argonauts co-owner David Cynamon said Joe Theismann’s criticism of the CFL team’s signing of Ricky Williams was thoughtless, considering the drug history of the ESPN commentator’s son.Theismann told a Toronto radio station earlier this week that Williams, who signed with the Argos on Sunday after being suspended by the NFL for the entire 2006 season following a fourth positive drug test, is an addict who needs help.
Theismann’s son, Joe, pleaded guilty in 2002 to a felony charge of dealing cocaine and a misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. He was fined and received a 10-year suspended prison term, plus five years of probation. “It’s really a delicate subject for him to attack someone if he has that in his own family,” Cynamon said. “If I was his son and he’s calling (Williams) a drug addict and he should quit and he’s a loser, I’d be shattered. This thing is really bothersome.” Theismann, a former NFL quarterback who began his pro career with the Argonauts in 1971, called the organization “classless” for signing Williams and said he was “embarrassed to have worn that A on my helmet.” “For him to come out and say he was embarrassed to wear the logo … that is a real slap in the face,” Cynamon said. “I was shattered. (Co-owner Howard Sokolowki), Keith (Pelley, the team’s president) and me are not bad people. We don’t deserve treatment like that.” |
Interesting Story, I agree with the Argos.
It sounds like Joe needs to clean up his own mess before he attacks the Argos.
Sounds like he also didn’t manage his son’s situation well.
Maybe Joe’s stance is one of the reasons his son took the path he did. Ever think of that one Joe? I’m sure your intentions were good, but maybe it’s time you tried to help your son out.
link to story here:
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060602/SPORTS/606020481/1002/SPORTS
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