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Hello, Ricky Ray. Our hearts leapt into our throats, each and every one of us who loves this league and who have for years appreciated not just your on-field play but also your class, humility and friendliness. Our hearts leapt into our throats and stayed there until we heard the promising news, on Sunday, that you could feel your toes and fingers and that you were concussion free. Now, we hope for a full and fast recovery and whether you ever fling another football is immaterial, really. Just get well, Ricky.
Here are this week’s takeaways.
1. THE OTTAWA REDBLACKS: WE GOT YOUR MESSAGE, DID YOU GET OURS?
Prior to the start of the season, seventy-three media members were asked to predict a Grey Cup winner and every team except the REDBLACKS got at least one vote. Only five voters said they’d win the East, a full fifty votes behind the Toronto Argonauts. Upon further review and after seeing Ottawa pummel the Roughriders on Thursday night, a certain amount of respect has been commanded. Offence formidable by both land and air?
Check. Defensive coordinator Noel Thorpe’s fancy new Ottawa defence dominant? Checkity-check-check-check.
The Ottawa REDBLACKS didn’t score a prom date in pre-season polls.
However, their inaugural 2018 performance was akin to them arriving at their high school reunion by landing their private helicopter on the gymnasium roof and walking in with a supermodel on each arm, asking “how do you like me now?”
2. I THINK CHRIS STREVELER’S FANTASY FOOTBALL SALARY WILL BE GOING UP
Did Mike O’Shea actually say quarterback Chris Streveler wasn’t really a rookie anymore because he’d played one game? Knowing O’Shea, it was said with the dry wit that the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ head coach has been known to occasionally display, with the slightest of smiles creasing his face.
However, he might be on to something.
The 23-year-old appeared to agree with that on Friday night, as he looked calm and cool and controlled in Winnipeg’s 56-10 demolition of the Montreal Alouettes. While some will say that the Montreal defence was no great shakes on this night – and that may be true – Streveler displayed some veteran-like decision-making to take advantage, along with some elite ball placement and scrambling abilities. And then after the game, when he was asked to talk about his performance, he showed his ‘aw, shucks, it weren’t nothin, ma’am’ humility when he shrugged it off and said “Darvin (Adams) had a great touchdown pass today too.”
I half expected him to end the interview early, donning a Mountie hat and saying “now if you’ll excuse me, my night is not over as I have a puppy to save from an abandoned well.”
3. I THINK MERCER TIMMIS’ FANTASY FOOTBALL SALARY WILL BE GOING UP
A funny thing happened on the way to the Hamilton Ticats featuring Alex Green as their top tailback and then bringing ex-Eskimo John White in as injury insurance for Green: A third-year Canadian running back may have stolen the job.
University of Calgary grad Mercer Timmis had an incredible night in Hamilton’s win over Edmonton, piling up 133 rushing yards on seventeen carries (Timmis had eight total carries over his first two seasons) and two touchdowns, including a stupendous 44-yard, breakaway romp in the fourth quarter, helping the Ticats salt things away in a 38-21 win.
Timmis showed flashes in pre-season and in Hamilton’s first game of the regular season but in this game he displayed some tantalizing abilities that make you wonder if the ‘Cats don’t have the next Jerome Messam, or Jon Cornish in their midst. If they start getting him the ball through the air, who knows? We might be able to upgrade that to the next Andrew Harris.
As is the case with Streveler, we wait for a little more in the way of Timmis’ body of work before we can truly judge. But the early signs are that we may be seeing the dawning of the next great Canadian running back.
4. THE CALGARY STAMPEDERS APPEAR TO HAVE GOTTEN THAT OUT OF THEIR SYSTEM
What’s that old saying?
“Revenge is a dish best served up on a platter in the home of the team that ripped a championship from your hands the previous autumn and after they bring the Grey Cup out to midfield to wild applause and show off the championship banner that you really figured would be flying at your own house and they give out way cool replica Grey Cup rings to 6,000 fans and you spend the week leading up to the meal having everyone remind you that you should’ve eaten it while it was still fresh from the oven last November and then you proceed to gorge yourself on every last morsel, leaving only cornbread crumbs and stripped bones for your host and then you wipe your mouth on their shirt.”
I think that’s how it goes. No utensils necessary. Just grab it all with your bare hands.
5. DEJA VU IS A PLACE IN SOUTHERN ONTARIO
Remember the beginning of last year, when most everybody thought the Hamilton Ticats were poised to have a dynamite season? And they got upset in their opener? And then lost badly, again, in their second game?
Most of us were mystified that a team with Hamilton’s depth of talent and veteran leadership could look so positively out of sorts and their was some expectation – on my part, at least – that they’d shake that off sooner rather than later, rebounding to find form after a puzzling start.
Here we are again in 2018 and the Toronto Argonauts are the team of expectations, coming out of the gate in dismal fashion. Part of Hamilton’s nightmare first half of the 2017 season included being sand-blasted by Calgary. The Ticats eventually did turn things around but that didn’t come until the second half of the season, too late to salvage a playoff spot.
The Argos have some work to do as they’d like to ensure the script is not the same for them in 2018.
AND FINALLY…
If Diontae Spencer and Duron Carter were paired up in Amazing Race, I think I’d watch that.
