BlueBombers.com
TORONTO — It’s not June yet but the sign of a new CFL season has arrived as training camps kick off across the country. Days after some rookies and quarterbacks reported, nine teams will hit the field on Sunday with their entire squad intact.
With training camp season comes hope and optimism over what’s to come. It’s been six months since the Grey Cup was won and every team gets a fresh start — zeroes beside their name in the standings.
In saying that, fans can expect a busy few weeks between now and the start of the regular season on June 22.
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Go east to west and you’ll be hard pressed to find a team that isn’t buzzing over new additions to the roster. In many stops, players are suiting up in their new colours for the first time.
In Montreal, Darian Durant wearing Alouettes colours will be an odd sight for Riders fans after 11 seasons in Green and White. Durant has started on every opening day for the Riders since 2009.
If you find that odd, imagine CFL training camp without Henry Burris. Sunday marks the first time in 14 years that camp has opened without Smilin’ Hank’s presence. Trevor Harris will hold the torch and will also have some familiar targets to throw the football to in former Argos teammates Diontae Spencer, Kenny Shaw and Tori Gurley.
Harris and the REDBLACKS are looking to defend last November’s title in the same year they host the 105th Grey Cup, meaning the pressure is on in the nation’s capital.
Head west to the Ontario capital and the Argos’ ship has charted a new course in 2017 under the guidance of Jim Popp and Marc Trestman. The former Alouettes’ duo won two Grey Cups in Montreal and will lean on a new infusion of talent that includes S.J. Green, Marcus Ball and Cleyon Laing.
Not to be outdone, the rival Ticats have assembled what could be the CFL’s strongest secondary. Re-signing Emanuel Davis was a nice move for Kent Austin’s club while the addition of Abdul Kanneh gives new defensive coordinator Jeff Reinebold arguably the best tandem of halfbacks in the country.
Emanuel Davis (pictured) and Abdul Kanneh form a dynamic duo in the Ticats’ secondary (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
In the highly-competitive West Division, meanwhile, the temperature continues trending upward. And it starts in Winnipeg where the No. 1 draft pick now resides in defensive tackle Faith Ekakitie. The Iowa graduate joins two more additions in Drake Nevis and Tristan Okpalaugo on a revamped and barely recognizable Bomber D-line.
A lot has changed in a year for Mike O’Shea and Kyle Walters, who have put themselves on solid ground following a breakthrough season in the Manitoba capital — this year they’ll look to take another step forward.
One province over, the honeymoon period has ended for Chris Jones and the Riders. The head coach and general manager has enjoyed another off-season to stockpile talent, adding the likes of Duron Carter, Bakari Grant and Chad Owens. But the biggest question for the Riders is at quarterback, where the competition will be intense between Kevin Glenn, Vince Young and Brandon Bridge, among others.
In Calgary, redemption is on the mind of Bo Levi Mitchell and company, who have had to deal all off-season with the pain of dropping the single largest upset in Grey Cup history. Most of the Stampeders’ roster remains intact as Head Coach Dave Dickenson looks to build on a memorable rookie season that saw his club go 15-2-1.
After a scorching season for their offence, the Eskimos shifted the focus to their defence this off-season, adding three proven veterans in Cory Greenwood, Euclid Cummings and, recently, Forrest Hightower. The Esks will be without Derel Walker on offence but Mike Reilly is confident that unit can pick up exactly where it left off.
And finally, in BC, the Lions have some holes to fill on defence — including that left by Adam Bighill. But one of the CFL’s fastest receivers in Chris Williams arrives with plenty of fanfare, even if his surgically-repaired knee needs more time to heal. The Lions’ offence was already one of the most exciting, big-play units around, even before landing the services of Williams.
While his timeline is unclear, there’s plenty of excitement surrounding new BC Lion Chris Williams (BCLions.com)
Training Camp need to know:
Teams are permitted to participate in training camp with 75 roster players in addition to 2017 CFL Draft picks; two additional national non-counters; and underclass national quarterbacks ineligible to sign a contract or play in a pre-season game as part of the QB Internship program, among others … The CFL Pre-Season schedule kicks off on June 6 when the BC Lions visit the Calgary Stampeders … The first major cut-down day has been removed, leaving one final cut-down day — June 17 — when all CFL teams must reduce their rosters to 46 active players (excluding six-game injured list and those transferred to the one-game injured list) by 10:00 p.m.
