MATEAS KNOWS HE HAS BIG SHOES TO FILL

Should Jon Gott’s streak of 66 consecutive starts for the Ottawa Redblacks come to an end Sunday in Montreal, his replacement has no illusions of his role.

Hulking 309-pound Alex Mateas, the former Merivale Marauder and Ottawa Sooner, not to mention University of Connecticut Huskie, knows he will only be minding the position, so much so that he doesn’t even want any mention of him replacing Gott at centre against the Alouettes without mention of how much Gott has taught him.

Mateas, the Redblacks’ No. 1 pick in 2015, realizes his move from left guard to the middle will only be temporary if indeed Gott can’t answer the bell, which off Thursday’s practice would appear more and more likely.

“I grew up playing centre so I feel great about going in there,” said Mateas, who started his final 24 games at UConn at centre. “When I came to this league, I just wanted to learn as much as I could about playing, whether it was guard, tackle or centre.

“The centre position is fantastic and I have learned so much from Jon and (line coach Bryan) Chiu. I know I have big shoes to fill.”

And if Gott is placed on injured reserve Saturday — and head coach Rick Campbell was leaning toward that — the trickle-down effect is rookie Evan Johnson, the club’s first round pick this year, makes his first pro start at the spot vacated by Mateas.

While Gott is no old man, not by offensive linemen standards, the line will take on a far more youthful appearance in his absence. Gott turns 32 in October, while Mateas is 26 and Johnson just 23, and not nearly ready to compete beard-wise with his mentor.

“It’s big. It’s exciting,” said the Saskatchewan native. “The thing I find at pro is that the D-linemen have maybe two or three moves where in college they didn’t have that many.

“But I’m having a lot of fun and learning a lot. The adjustments are all about the strength and speed up here.”