Tough western wall to climb for Ticats
Alberta looms in front of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats like a root canal looms in front of a dental patient. It could turn out OK, but it’s definitely going to mess with the nerve endings.
Friday morning, the Ticats take off for Calgary, where they were beaten by just 59 points last year.
After opening the 2018 CFL schedule against the Stampeders Saturday night, they’ll stay in the city to practice for most of the following week before heading up to Edmonton for a Friday nighter with the Eskimos.
Whole chapters of criminal law have been written around less-threatening possibilities.
The Tiger-Cats haven’t won their opening two games since the first season (2004) of the Bob Young era. Don’t bet the mortgage, or even your kid’s allowance, on this season being the exception. There’s always the chance — that’s why they actually play the games — but a 1-1 split would be highly satisfactory and extend the tailwind from last season’s second half.
If it’s 0-and-2? Well, then, here we go again. The Tiger-Cats have lost the first two games of the season in nine of the last 13 seasons. Yes, they’ve often rebounded to make the playoffs, and twice the Grey Cup game. But players will tell you, and often do, that it puts way too much pressure on the third and ensuing games. Always trying to claw back to .500 is an emotional drain.
As head coach June Jones implied Monday, part of the Ticat defence is still a work in progress. And they’re about to engage, arguably, the CFL’s most surgical offences, directed by scalpel-wielders Bo Levi Mitchell, and six days later, Mike Reilly.
Jones calls Calgary the best team in the league and says that he’d have liked to see his starters play a bit more often during the two pre-season games.
But, he had a team — read defence, mostly — to reshape, which meant looking at newcomers as often, and as long, as possible.
That defence will be fronted by elite linebackers Simoni Lawrence and Larry Dean, all-star defensive lineman Ted Laurent and end-with-a-bullet Adrian Tracy, plus a promising rotation of other linemen.
It’s imperative for that bunch to bring heavy pressure and tight in-the-box coverage, because in the back six, (the secondary, plus SAM linebacker), there’s been substantial change. And you can’t help feeling that, outside of safety Courtney Stephen and field-side halfback Richard Leonard, there are still auditions going on.
When you’re coming off a 6-12 Head coach June Jones would like to have seen starters play more.
season — despite the 6-4 charge to the finish — change isn’t necessarily bad. It’s usually badly necessary. But, like any unit, it takes time to establish cohesion in a secondary.
Jones has been, justifiably, most concerned about SAM linebacker. He likes returnee Mariel Cooper there, but Cooper has missed time with injury, and former cornerback Don Unamba stepped up nicely. Unamba, in turn, was injured in Montreal, but Jones still expects to start him there Saturday night.
Abdul Kanneh, who played SAM last year, but was at corner most of this camp, was traded to Toronto. And newcomer DBs DaQuan Page, Joel Ross and Dwayne Thomas were cut Sunday, while Jaleel Wadood, 21, out of UCLA is on the practice roster.
First-year Internationals John Green (25), Frankie Williams (25), Randall Evans (26) and Jumal Rolle (28) have so far survived the SAM-secondary cuts, as have Canadian rookies Jackson Bennett and Nicholas Parisotto.
“We just liked all the young guys back there,” Jones said in reference to the Kanneh deal. “We like the culture those young guys bring. They’re hungry.”
If you’re looking for an educated guess, Stephen and Leonard will be joined in the secondary by Rolle and Evans at the corners, with sophomore Cariel Brooks, who played corner and SAM last year, at the boundary halfback spot. They’ll be busy in Alberta.
NOTES: Jones says there isn’t a special play package designed for
Johnny Manziel: “At this point, no.” ... There are 55 players on the active roster, and only 46 can be there Thursday ... QB Vernon
Adams Jr. is still with the team. Jones said last week the Cats had trade talks with Montreal and Edmonton, but didn’t work out ... WR Terrence Toliver, out since opening night 2017, won’t return for “two to three weeks.”