THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. FAJARDO’S CREW ABOUT CAMERADERIE, NOT STATS: It turns out the Manny Show was no less important to the Saskatchewan Roughriders than some NFL castoff, after all. Three weeks after interrupting their improbable first place run by benching one of the more popular players in the locker room, Emmanuel Arceneaux, the Riders realized they should’ve kept a good thing going. Saturday night’s win over Edmonton raised the stock of Arceneaux, who had been sat down for a player who scoffed at the suggestion of coming to Regina only a couple of months earlier. Just because you got an NFL tryout doesn’t mean you’re better than the next man up, here. Jordan Williams-Lambert is learning that the hard way.   

2. TOLD YA SO: For all the times I get it wrong with these predictions, I just had to gloat about the time I got it right. When predicting the Riders would finish first in this space a week ago, I just knew the Blue Bombers were due to beat Calgary and there was no way the Roughriders would dare let Jason Maas and his consistently under-achieving Eskimos get in the way of their first 13-win season in nearly 50 years. There’s still work to be done, but it’s hard to imagine the Esks stealing one out of Regina in the cold on Saturday. To me, it’s a done deal.

3. ZACH FITS WPG BETTER THAN SASKATCHEWAN: He always looked like he had seen a ghost every time you saw him when he was here. Zach Collaros appeared to be overwhelmed by the attention, expectations and hype surrounding his time quarterbacking Canada’s Team. Now he’s had time to heal and time to get out of the fishbowl of Regina. He looked more confident in that win over Calgary Friday night than he ever did wearing green and white. Blue Bomber fans who had written their season off have new hope and they should.

4. ANDREW HARRIS ALL-TIME CDN RUSHER: Asterisk all over that one. He might have better stats than all the rest of the Canadian running backs but they didn’t all get caught doping, like he did, either. Drug-testing wasn’t around when the great ‘China Clipper’ Normie Kwong ran the ball but Normie didn’t mysteriously find the fountain of youth in his 30’s the way Harris did, either.

5. HERITAGE CLASSIC: Made the last-minute decision to bundle up and check it out. Glad I did. The event was terrific. The game? Meh. Not so much. The Roughrider game was far more entertaining and it should remind all of us how great a product we have with the CFL and how lucky we are to have that instead of the overhyped stuff the NHL keeps pushing out.

6. TO ALL YOU SOCIALIST LIBERALS: Time for this equalization formula with Ottawa to change drastically or be scrapped all together. Quebec’s premier has even campaigned on a platform to wean that province off these welfare payments from western Canada. This threatens to break up the country and no one should feel bad for Ottawa being sent that message in the election. Equalization was never meant for one side to constantly subsidize the other.

7. TO ALL YOU CONSERVATIVES: The great Peter Lougheed once said “I’m a Canadian before I’m an Albertan”. Everyone has a right to their own view but you western separatists don’t speak for all of us and you sure don’t speak for me.

8. ATLANTIC SCHOONER STADIUM VOTE: Sounds like city council in Halifax will decide in December whether this thing is a go or not. It’s up to them to decide if this adds to their quality of life or not. But if they’re trying to decide if building a football stadium is a money maker or not, then they’re idiots. It’s not. Football stadiums don’t make money. Period. They can decide if it’s worth their tax dollars to have a pro sports team as a source of pride. For most of us, it would be a no-brainer and the CFL would be much better off with Halifax but I’m not holding my breath on this one.

9. WCBL LOSES YORKTON AND MELVILLE: Glad to see the Western Canadian Baseball League get on with it and the Medicine Hat Mavericks join the Regina Red Sox in the East Division but sad to lose these great cities from our league. I really hope they just merge one day and build a new park in Yorkton so they can operate like a quality organization. The WCBL isn’t bush-league and if the city of Yorkton doesn’t want to pony up the way Swift Current and Weyburn have, that’s their call.

10.ARGOS FINALLY GET IT: Argo radio broadcaster Mike Hogan tweeted out photos of 100 new Canadians in their first ever ARRRRGGGOOS chant before their first ever Argos game on the weekend. This is EXACTLY what the CFL needs to focus on in order to make that brand relevant again in Toronto. The Argos, MLSE and Commissioner Randy Ambrosie should be taking the next step to cross-promote with Toronto FC and partner with Cricket Canada and Bay Street corporations to get new Canadians hooked on Canadian football. That, and not Argo wins or losses, is what will ultimately save the Canadian Football League.

(Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendanhowardmc)

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Jesse
Jesse
5 years ago

Agree with the winter classic assessment. Game was pretty bland til the last 5 mins. Was a cool experience but was super annoyed it took us almost a half hour to get through our gate. Missed the flyover and puck drop. That same gate on Rider game day takes 2 minutes.

Rod
Rod
5 years ago

C’mon man – Politics? On a sports blog?

L F
L F
5 years ago

I don’t live in AB or SK but if separation was imminent and they had an independent method of getting their resources to market, I’d be buying a home before the vote so my family wouldn’t have to go through immigration. I’m a Canadian first, but if I had to choose which provinces to exclude from my home nation, it sure wouldn’t be AB or SK. We all know it will never happen in our lifetime so it isn’t worth lobbying regardless of how strongly we feel about it.

RogerT
RogerT
5 years ago

Your gloating about predicting a first place finish for the Riders with two games to play?
Before the season, “the Riders can’t compete in a division driven with QB’s Bo, Mike, Trevor and Matt.”
After the Banjo Bowl, “the Riders likely won’t make the playoffs and will only do so as a crossover team.”

Isn’t every player in the CFL a sort of NFL cast off?

Sonny
Sonny
5 years ago
Reply to  RogerT

Brendan must be getting a jacked physique from moving the goalposts every week.

Ted
Ted
5 years ago

So now its lets drive Jordan Williams Lambert out of town campaign led by the above pictured goof !

Travis
Travis
5 years ago
Reply to  Ted

No kidding. This McGuire is such a loser. He’s been against JWL for a while now. What did he do to you? The guy shows a commitment to the team by signing for longer than the rest of 2019 and u act like he thinks he’s too cool to be here.

Also u have been bashing this team all year so don’t try to act like u predicted anything. Your a bum with no sports knowledge. Stop writing please.

SeeSeeRider
SeeSeeRider
5 years ago

2. Have to agree, Rod, predicting a Rider win over an Edmonton squad without Harris, Collins, Ellingson, Gable, the entire front 4 on DL & Dean not starting & who’ve been missing their starting CB’s for most of the year is not a stretch. But it was close until Maas threw in his 3rd string QB who has taken hardly any snaps & he gift wrapped an INT to seal the game. 3. Zach will head back to Toronto. It’s been an open secret for years. His significant other works in the TO area, his family is out East. He… Read more »