Stamps all too familiar with heavy hitter Hebert
OTTAWA Kyries Hebert isn’t backing down from being Public Enemy No. 1 in Calgary.
Instead, when he was asked about that distinction on Wednesday in Ottawa, the Ottawa Redblacks linebacker decided to take a shot at former Stampeders running back Jon Cornish.
Hebert, with the Alouettes at the time, was fined in 2014 after delivering a brutal hit to Cornish’s head that left the Stamps great with a serious concussion.
On June 28, Hebert again took a head shot at a member of the Stampeders, this time earning a one-game suspension for going high on receiver DaVaris Daniels.
That prompted a since deleted tweet from Cornish calling for the Redblacks to release Hebert, who brought it up Wednesday when asked about the perception of him as a dirty player among Calgarians.
“It’s not something I care about, no,” Hebert said. “I saw Cornish had a tweet but it was kind of soft, which is how I always treated him on the field. ”
In addition to his hits on Cornish and Daniels, Hebert has faced disciplinary action from the CFL for helmet-to-helmet hits on former Toronto Argonauts quarterback Cody Fajardo and current teammate Brendan Gillanders.
After the hit on Daniels, it wasn’t just Stampeders who were calling Hebert dirty.
It was Cornish, though, who drew the ire of Hebert.
“(Hebert) forfeited his right to be in this league,” Cornish wrote. “It’s time for us to all stand up for one another and state we will not accept this behaviour. Please join me in asking the (Redblacks) to release Kyrie Hebert.”
On Wednesday, Hebert chose to defend his record while accepting that his hit on Daniels was illegal.
“There’s a way to do things and that wasn’t the way, so make adjustments,” Hebert said. “I have over 800 career tackles, I’ve been in trouble five times, maybe. So the ratio’s not like it’s an every play incident (or) occurrence.”
If Hebert was trying to provoke the Stampeders, they chose not to respond Wednesday when they arrived in Ottawa.
“We don’t really get into that type of talk,” said Stamps defensive tackle Micah Johnson. “We all know what it was, he knows what it is. The league handled it how they felt they should have handled it.”
NOT FEELING ANYTHING
Yes, the Stampeders know the last time they played at TD Place Stadium, their 2017 season ended in the most frustrating way possible. But no, they’re not feeling any type of way about it.
“I know what happened here,” said Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. “But we’re looking to go out and play a great football game.”
NOTES
With right tackle Spencer Wilson unable to play Thursday, the Stampeders had to make a ratio move and put American Justin Renfrow on the offensive line. That means they’ll be starting with two Canadian receivers, as Juwan Brescacin will get the call at slotback and Lemar Durant will be playing wide receiver ... That’s not why Eric Rogers is out of the lineup, though, obviously. Rogers suffered a small setback as he recovers from a knee injury. He won’t be out long ... The Stampeders moved OL Quinn Smith to the practice roster this week, but that was largely to accommodate Renfrow and Romar Morris, both of whom were added to the active roster ... The Stamps also dropped Folarin Orimolade to the practice roster to accommodate the return of Cordarro Law after a minor injury.