10 THINGS FOR CAPITAL AUTO GLASS
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| Photo: Riderville.com |
1 – FIRST AND FOREMOST: Hats off to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. They came into Mosaic Stadium for Sunday’s CFL Western Semifinal and were the hungrier team, walking away with a 23-18 victory. It was a formidable match-up for the Riders, who saw their season end despite a brilliant 12-6 campaign. The Blue Bombers will be a tough out the rest of the way, but the opponents get better each round. Much respect for the Blue.
2 – ZACH ATTACK: It seemed, unfortunately, the outcome of this game was decided when TSN announced the night before that Zach Collaros wouldn’t even be in uniform on Sunday. That’s unfortunate on so many levels. However even the Vegas oddsmakers could see it, shifting the Riders from 3-point favourites to 2-point underdogs once they learned of Dave Naylor’s report.
3 – NAYSAYERS: To me, what’s most disappointing about the way the season ended is that Collaros didn’t have a chance to stuff it down the throat of those who said he couldn’t regain his 2015 form, and is made of glass. Chris Jones rolled the dice by acquiring Collaros and unfortunately – after taking a season full of pulverizing hits – Zach wasn’t available when it mattered most. But you want a coach who will take risks because playing it safe never won anybody anything.
4 – AIR CANADA: The Rider Nation is anxious because the only QB the team has under contract going into 2019 is back-up David Watford, but they are advised to relax. 6 of 9 CFL teams are in the same boat including Edmonton, Calgary and BC. A whopping 69% of voters in a Twitter poll said they didn’t want to see Brandon Bridge back in Green & White next season. However I voted “yes”. The team has 3 years invested in him, he’s a good person, and I don’t give up on people.
5 – QB CAROUSEL: In his weekly appearance on 620 CKRM’s SportsCage, TSN’s Chris Schultz called the upcoming QB Lottery “fascinating” and if possible, that’s an understatement. Atop every team’s wishlist is 2017 CFL MVP Mike Reilly but not everybody’s going to be able to sign him. You’d think Montreal’s Johnny Manziel might be made available via trade but a whopping 64% of poll respondents in Saskatchewan gave the thumbs-down to that idea. Would you?
6 – NO MAAS: Last week the Edmonton Eskimos announced they are retaining the services of Head Coach Jason Maas despite the fact they missed the playoffs at 9-9 in a year where Edmonton is hosting the Grey Cup. Imagine if the Riders had missed the playoffs in 2013 when we hosted! They would’ve cleaned house. However the popular notion of why Esks GM Brock Sunderland kept Maas is that he believes that’s the best way to keep pending FA Mike Reilly. Time will tell if the scheme worked.
7 – ARGOS: Who’da thunk that Duron Carter would outlast Marc Trestman in Toronto? And who’da thunk Toronto would fire their Head Coach less than a calendar year after winning a Grey Cup? You’d think winning a championship would buy a CFL coach at least one season (i.e. the clock doesn’t start ticking until after Year 1). A popular question out there is: does Trestman coach in the CFL again?
8 – CFL HQ: After a Year 1 love-in, CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie must be getting used to being the bad guy in Year 2. In the past few weeks he’s had to answer for “missed calls” by the referees (shouldn’t the Director of Officiating be speaking on that?), and now coaches are upset over the enforcement of a salary cap on football operations. Another popular question right now is: Is the CFL headed in the right direction? I want to believe that it is because I’m a huge fan of Randy Ambrosie.
9 – DIV FINALS: It’s Hamilton at Ottawa in the East and Winnipeg at Calgary in the West. If I have a rooting interest, it’s the Tiger-Cats and our old friend Eric Tillman, who’s their GM. Saskatchewan has fierce rivalries against the other 3 teams in the Final Four! No matter who emerges, it’s going to make for a heckuva 106th Grey Cup in Edmonton and the SportsCage will be there live, broadcasting from Radio Row in the Shaw Convention Centre.
10 – RANDOM THOUGHTS: A labour impasse has caused the cancellation of Friday night’s Saskatchewan Rush preseason game in Saskatoon. However I’m told to expect some good news perhaps as early as today. A strike in the NLL would suck for us Rush fans. … Why is the Hockey Hall of Fame induction ceremony televised on TSN but not the Canadian Football Hall of Fame induction? … Two thumbs up from the Monday Morning Goalie for the movie Bohemian Rhapsody, chronicling the history of the iconic band Queen. However the Bradley Cooper/Lady Gaga flick A Star Is Born is better by a smidge. If you can, check them both out.
Y’er welcome,
RP
@rodpedersen
