Buono says he’s not thinking of end of Hall of Fame career yet
There’s no sense of finality yet for Wally Buono.
The 2018 season will be the last of Buono’s Hall of Fame career, but the B.C. Lions’ venerable head coach says that fact hasn’t sunk in yet.
“No because there’s way too much to do and focus on,” Buono said. “If I stop focusing then I shouldn’t be here because I’m already gone.
“If this was us going into the Grey Cup in Edmonton and it was going to be my last game, yes, I would be lying if I didn’t say there was probably some emotional attachment. But it’s too early in the process.”
B.C. kicks off Buono’s final campaign hosting the Montreal Alouettes as the Lions look to atone for a miserable 2017 season. The Canadian Football League club missed the playoffs after posting a 7-11 record.
“To me it’s Week 1, we missed the playoffs last year, we hurt the organization, we’ve got to do a whole lot better than we did,” Buono said. “Say what you want, we won our two (exhibition) games.
“Professional football is about winning games. Winning always makes you feel better and more positive about yourself and always gives you, I think, momentum. This is what we want. We’re healthy, the guys are starting to buy into (GM Ed Hervey’s) and my philosophy and approach, and part of that is they see the success we’re having.”
The regular season begins Thursday night with the Edmonton Eskimos visiting the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Toronto Argonauts begin their Grey Cup defence the following night in Regina against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Calgary Stampeders host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday while the Ottawa Redblacks will play their season opener June 21 at home to Saskatchewan. For many players, training camp is a necessary evil and grind. But not for Buono.
“I love training camp, it’s pure football,” he said. “I’m not going to miss it until maybe next June and my wife says, ‘Don’t worry about it, we’re going to keep you really busy so you won’t be missing anything.’”
Buono, 68, has won more games than any CFL head coach (273 and counting) and captured a total of seven Grey Cup titles as a player (two) and head coach (five). He remains the Lion’s vice-president of football operations but stepped down as GM in November 2017 after 15 seasons in that job.
Jonathan Jennings begins his third season as B.C.’s starting quarterback with a new offensive co-ordinator in Jarious Jackson. The unit struggled with consistency during the exhibition season while the Lions’ defence registered three TDs in the two pre-season games.
But Buono said that’s not surprising, given many of the starters on defence played for defensive co-ordinator Mark Washington last year.
“The offence is new, so for the quarterbacks it’s always a harder transition,” Buono said. “Jonathan has a good grasp but right now it’s not second nature.
“They (Lions quarterbacks) still have to think about it.”
B.C. was the only West Division club to post a sub .500 record last year. Buono has been in the division since 1987 and can’t remember the last time a team finished first with less than 12 or 13 wins.
That makes starting the season strong important.
“Getting off to a good start is wins you have in your bank account,” he said.
Here’s a look at other 2018 storylines:
• JOHNNY FOOTBALL: Johnny Manziel made headlines last month when he signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Jeremiah Masoli is bona fide starter, but if Hamilton falters coming out of the gate there could be calls for a quarterback change. Manziel, a six-foot, 210-pound Texan, was 21 of 32 passing for 168 yards and a TD with 29 yards rushing on six carries in Hamilton’s two exhibition games but did show flashes of brilliance, especially when using his mobility to extend plays.
• THE TRESTMAN EFFECT: The Toronto Argonauts captured last year’s CFL title in their first season with Marc Trestman on the sidelines. They enter the season looking to become the first back-to-back Grey Cup champions since the Montreal Alouettes, who won in 2009 and 2010 with Trestman calling the shots.
• SHERMAN ON THE SIDELINES: The Mike Sherman era in Montreal officially kicks off Saturday night when the Alouettes visit the B.C. Lions. He takes over an Alouettes squad that lost its last 11 regular-season games in ’17 en route to a leagueworst 3-15 record and missed the CFL playoffs for a third straight year.
• BOMBER DOWN: Rookie Chris Streveler will start at quarterback Thursday night when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Edmonton Eskimos. The six-footone, 211-pound Streveler replaces veteran Matt Nichols, who’s out four to six weeks with a knee injury suffered last week in training camp. Streveler played in both of Winnipeg’s exhibition games, completing 13 of 19 passes for 184 yards and two TDs with an interceptions. The Bombers also have quarterbacks Alex Ross and Bryan Bennett on their roster.
• QB CONTROVERSY?: Head coach/GM Chris Jones still hasn’t said whether Zach Collaros or Canadian Brandon Bridge will be the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ starter when they host the Toronto Argonauts on Friday night. Collaros was the frontrunner for the CFL’s outstanding player award before suffering a season-ending knee injury in 2015. But he’s struggled since returning, tying the league record for most consecutive losses by a starter at 12. Bridge, of Mississauga, was effective coming off the bench last year for the Riders. Stay tuned.
• DYNAMIC DUO: Winnipeg running back Andrew Harris came close to becoming the first player in CFL history to register 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season. The Winnipeg native led the league in rushing (1,035 yards) and catches (105) while adding 857 receiving yards. Toronto running back James Wilder Jr. was the top rookie in 2017 with 872 yards rushing and 51 catches for 533 yards as a parttime starter.
• RECEIVERS GONE: Mike Reilly was the CFL’s outstanding player last year after passing for a league-high 5,830 yards. But the Edmonton Eskimos quarterback will be minus Brandon Zylstra (Minnesota, NFL) and Adarius Bowman (Winnipeg) this year. Derel Walker, the league’s top rookie in 2015, will anchor the receiving corps after registering 198 catches for 2,699 yards and 16 TDs his first two CFL seasons.