MontrealAlouettes.com
CFL.ca Staff
VERO BEACH, FL — With mini-camp officially in the books, there is plenty of optimism surrounding the Montreal Alouettes, especially on the offensive side of the ball.
Equipped with a crowded receiving corps, and Troy Smith having a full CFL mini-camp under his belt, the Als’ offence has the potential to perhaps surprise a few onlookers in 2014.
Entering his first season with Montreal, Head Coach Tom Higgins sees a lot of positives from Smith, regardless if he’s only been able to see him in person for a few days.
“I can tell you that he commands the locker room. He’s very well respected, just to see his presence in the locker room and meeting room is something not many people get a chance to see,” said Higgins.
Not only does Higgins see great leadership off the football field, but he sees ample amount of potential on it.
“On the practice field he has the ability to be better than he was. Obviously he never really had a mini-camp or training camp last year or a system put into place that’s conducive to what things he does extremely well,” Higgins mentioned.
“I look forward to him having an outstanding year.”
One of the emerging targets in the Alouettes camp is Brandon London. For most of the team’s mini-camp in Florida, London made positive impressions on the coaching staff, as he made spectacular grabs over defending defensive backs on numerous occasions.
Even though the 28 year-old Richmond, VA native only played 10 games in 2013, he was not satisfied with his play.
“I didn’t live up to, not only my expectations, but my teammates’ expectations (last season),” said London.
This led to London being extra motivated during the off-season to get better and live up to his high promise for the 2014 campaign.
“When we broke Montreal last season and I went back to L.A., I went straight to work. Working out hard, running routes and doing different things just to get my body right and make that sure I would be 100 per cent healthy,” revealed London. “Now I just can’t wait for the season to start.”
With files from MontrealAlouettes.com
