Cauz: Is Tre Ford an agent of change?

Matthew Cauz

CFL.ca

@mcauz56

When it comes to last week’s 24-10 win by the Edmonton Elks over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats I couldn’t help but think about the simplistic expression used by real estate agents to describe the three most important things when it comes to property: “Location, location, location.”

This has been a tough season so far for Edmonton, culminating with last week’s departure of president and CEO Victor Cui. Of all the teams in action in Week 11, none needed a win more than the Elks and they got it in a game where they never trailed. Their nine-game losing streak to start the year is finally off the books and the team can focus on the big one, that 22-game dark cloud that has been hanging over Commonwealth Stadium for far too long.

Continuing with the theme of location, just as important as the win itself was the location of Tre Ford last week at Tim Hortons Field. The former Hec Creighton winner was right in the middle of all the action throwing two first half touchdowns, putting up 174 passing yards and 60 more on the ground.

Statistically, you can look at Ford’s numbers in various ways. His actual passing yardage won’t blow you away but the team, fuelled by seven sacks from their defence did not need him to go full Michael Reilly and the fact that he was clean from a turnover perspective should not be ignored.

One group who did not ignore what the Elks starting quarterback did was the good people at Pro Football Focus (PFF). This deep-dive, granular breakdown group of football intelligentsia ranked the pride of the Waterloo Warriors as the CFL’s top performer for Week 10. I was impressed with Ford for the majority of the evening so it’s always comforting knowing a group of people far smarter than me also agrees.

I remember asking a couple football people about a decade ago why we had not seen Canadian quarterbacks coming out of U SPORTS programs starting in the CFL. The one consistent answer I got back was lack of arm strength. Fans of U SPORTS football have seen plenty of passers with the smarts, accuracy and size needed to compete for a CFL roster spot, but the one hurdle was not enough gunpowder in the cannon.

That is not the case for Ford, who has shown he can throw guys open, is not afraid to attack deep and yes, can even complete the dreaded deep out passes across the field.

So many times in that first half last week, Ford’s throws would reach their destination well before a defender could disrupt the pass, a sign of a strong arm. His second touchdown to Steven Dunbar Jr. you can watch back and attribute to blown coverage as Dunbar was wide open in the end zone. That result was also due to a scrambling quarterback causing disruption in the Tiger-Cats’ secondary and a laser of a pass that didn’t allow any defensive back to close in on the former Tabbie receiver.

I know in the world of precise measurements and crowded analytics departments we are often reticent to talk about the eye test, but from what I’ve seen in his first two starts, Ford has the kind of upper body strength needed to beat any defence with his arm. Speaking of his strength, I bet every Elks fan was impressed with Ford for not only standing strong in the face of a well-timed safety blitz on his first touchdown strike to Dunbar but also just shrugging off the hit after releasing the ball.

If I can go bigger picture for a moment, I’m just excited to see if Ford’s success can have a trickle-down effect in U SPORTS football. Let’s normalize Canadians being developed for professional action north of the border from Regina to McMaster to St. Francis. I understand I am getting way ahead of myself and two impressive starts do not equate the beginning of a tectonic change in how we grow quarterbacks in this country, but it is a start and one that I hope grassroots football is paying attention to.

Getting off my soap box and focusing on Sunday night, who isn’t excited to see what Ford can do against an Ottawa REDBLACKS’ pass defence that is last in touchdowns allowed and has been giving up a high number of big plays?

I for one would not be opposed to an anything-you-can-do, I-can-do-better battle between Ford and Dustin Crum. What is the CFL record for most combined rushing yards from opposing quarterbacks in one game? Also, my message to Elks head coach Chris Jones, who I imagine is currently deciding which shade of black to wear: can we please have more trick plays involving defensive end/tight end A.C. Leonard? If you saw his 45-yard catch and run on second-and-short last week and didn’t notice the jersey number, you would have assumed that individual running down field was a young Nik Lewis. It was great to see the embattled Taylor Cornelius play a big part in Edmonton’s first win of the year as well.

In the end, last week was just a single regular season win for Edmonton but it came at just the right time for a franchise needing a W and for a young quarterback looking to make his mark on the league. Tre Ford has made Edmonton a must watch destination and the work of players like Kevin Brown, Jake Ceresna and Nyles Morgan have given a fanbase hope that this home losing streak — that we all are tired of talking about — will finally come to an end.

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