BAD TO THE B-O-N-E
Few Esks will go the distance
It’s called the B-O-N-E Grinder Club.
“It’s the first 46 guys up,” head coach Jason Maas said of the team the Eskimos took to Vancouver to open the regular season. “If they stay up until the end of the year, they get something at the end of the year for it.”
It’s becoming an exceptionally exclusive club.
“Yeah, it’s a small club now,” said quarterback Mike Reilly.
“After six games, we had 23 guys left of the 46 who made the roster to start the season,” said B-O-N-E Grinder Club official scorer Maas. “That’s unheard of. We had 19 guys last year finish all 18 games. So that means only five more guys can go down. We’re close to that number already and it’s only seven games into the season.”
Maas made the comment on his ‘Coaches Show’ on 630 CHED before the Eskimos’ 7-0 winning streak was halted Friday in Winnipeg. The injury streak, however, didn’t stop. It’s become the Last Man Standing Club.
With the Eskimos about to hit the halfway mark of the schedule against the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Friday’s ninth game of the season, it’s already a short list of players who are still alive, if that’s the right word, to win B-O-N-E Grinder Club prizes.
Indeed, if Vidal Hazelton, Korey Jones and Brandyn Thompson, who all were hurt and unable to finish the game in Winnipeg, join the injured list and don’t play Friday, that will match last year’s count of 19 to make it through the year healthy right there.
Mike Reilly. Odell Willis. Kenny Ladler. Matt O’Donnell. Euclid Cummings. James Franklin. Calvin McCarty. Corey Watson. Chris Getzlaf. Christophe Mulumba-Tshimanga. David Beard. Chris Edwards. Kwaku Boateng. Natey Adjei. Josh Woodman. Danny O’Brien. Pascal Lochard. Jordan Hoover. Alexander Dupuis.
That’s it.
“We started it last year, and it’s tough to make it through a full 18-game season. It’s become something we take a lot of pride in being available for your team,” said Reilly.
It’s tough to make it through a full 18-game season. It’s become something we take a lot of pride in being available for your team.
“A lot of guys are gone from that list, but there are a few left. Guys still left take a lot of pride in it. I’ve been a starter for five years now, and last year was only the second season I made it through. I know better than most it’s a challenge to make it to the end.”
So what are the prizes involved here?
“Last year, it was a nice backpack with the logo on it, a couple of shirts and things like that,” said Reilly. “Guys are proud of it. They wear those shirts all the time around our building, and they carry their play books in those backpacks. The guys who missed out on it last year were pretty jealous of not being part of that group.”
So will the prizes get better because so few are needed?
“Might be a trip to Hawaii this year because of the extra funds available,” said the quarterback.
B-O-N-E, says Maas, has nothing to do with broken bones. It’s an acronym for “Brotherhood Of Nasty Eskimos” that dates back to before his time here as a player. There are rules involved. “We start the year with the guys who are on the 46-man roster. If you stay on the 46 for all 18 games, you get to become a B-O-N-E Grinder,” said Maas. “I wanted to recognize the guys who are capable of doing that. You’re looked upon as being fortunate, but also a guy who did a lot of right things. I’m a big proponent of staying healthy. I’m trying to promote that and have some toughness on our football team.”
Maas said the team is into it. “It’s listed right above where they get drinks every day, so they get to see who is still up there,” he said. “There are certainly not as many guys who were up there at the start of the year.”
John Chick will make it 70 players who have dressed for at least one game this season when he plays Friday.
“We’ve blown the budget for jerseys,” said 47-year veteran equipment man Dwayne Mandrusiak. “This is unquestionably a record. I’ve never seen anything like it, and we’ve only played eight games.”
New general manager Brock Sunderland has been busy.
“I’m not bored,” the son of a career NFL scout said with a laugh. “I’ve never seen anything like it. I’ve been around pro football my whole life. I’ve never seen this.
“The credit goes to the coaches and the players. The coaches have done a tremendous job getting guys ready to go and the players have done an incredible job of dialing in and being focused when it’s been time to produce. They deserve all the credit.”
And prizes, if they survive the season as B-O-N-E Crusher Club members.