THEY SAID IT
Wednesday marked Tino Sunseri’s first official practice as the No. 1 quarterback with the Saskatchewan Roughriders after Darian Durant was sidelined for remainder of the season with a torn tendon in his right elbow. Here’s what some Riders and followers of the CFL had to say about Sunseri: “Tino is Tino and he has always been a confident individual. He still throws the ball as well as he did. The biggest thing will be how he prepares knowing that he’s going to go in. We’ve had faith in Tino and that’s why he has (been the backup). I’m excited to see him in this role.’’ — Riders head coach Corey Chamblin “Tino is very confident and rightfully so. He has all of the tools. He’s very smart and he has been waiting for his moment. I think he’s excited about that and everyone else is feeding off of that.’’
— Wide receiver Rob Bagg “It’s borderline cocky, but he’s made to be a quarterback. I think he will be fine. Darian is so tough and durable in everything he brings mentally. When you see him go off the field like he did, you knew that there was going to be a problem. Tino is very strong mentally and that’s a big part of being a quarterback.’’ — General manager Brendan Taman “We are friends and we have each other’s backs. We’re in it for one thing and that’s to win. That’s all that matters. Whoever is playing, that’s the coaches’ decision. We’ll back each other and be the most prepared that we can be on game day.’’ — Backup quarterback Seth Doege “I can’t think of a situation better for a quarterback to come into as a backup than with a team that can run the ball basically at will. He’s going to have an extra guy in the box most times who’s dedicated to the run, so that frees his reads up downfield a little bit. I think he’s coming into a good situation and I think he’s going to do a really good job.” — Defensive end Ricky Foley “That second half he played in B.C., that’s a tough place to go and play and win a game. I thought he played with great poise for a guy as young as he is as far as experience goes. He didn’t light it up and he didn’t give it one of those (Jeff) Garcia-type moments where he threw (six) touchdowns when he got a chance to play. But he won. I think about the throw he made to Rob Bagg on that corner route when they were deep in their own end late in the game. Second-and-long and he had to get it out of there and get the chains moved and keep the football and he threw that nice ball to Bagg. That sort of gives you a glimpse of what he’s capable of in a real pressure situation against a good opponent in the West — on the road as well. That’s what potential is.”