DRESS REHEARSAL
Stamps butt helmets in mock game at Mcmahon
Acouple of relatives got paid for dribbling balls. Another made a living chucking balls.
And Joe West, forging his own professional identity, plans to keep catching balls.
West looked good in Sunday’s mock game at McMahon Stadium — pulling down one pass for big yards and a likely touchdown — in his bid to crack the Calgary Stampeders’ roster.
“I had a great time,” said the 28-year-old. “It was a pretty good day.”
Meaning, for now, he’ll leave other pursuits to the rest of the his clan — an uncle and a cousin, Mark West and Doug West, performed in the National Basketball Association; his older brother, Tracy Thorpe, pitched in the systems of the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners.
“There’s a little bit of talent in my family. We’re all just having fun.”
Although West, cackling, claims he has plenty to offer on the court.
“Yeah, I can play some hoops,” said the six-foot-one receiver. “I’m pretty good. Ex-McDonald’s All-American — and I brag about it. So me and the guys are going to get on the court and I’m going to take them to school. We all have our own hidden talents and abilities.
“But right now? I’m here to be a Stampeder and help them win, so that’s what I’m going to do.”
The annual pre-pre-season scrimmage, a gusty affair on Day 8 of training camp, had been overseen by head coach and general manager John Hufnagel, who followed a set script of play calls and time-clock scenarios.
“It was a worthwhile day,” reported the Stamps boss. “We have a long way to go to become the football team we want to become. We need to play with more skill, that’s one thing. We had opportunities that we didn’t capitalize on, offensively. Defensively, they did some nice things out there. Got a turnover or two.”
As the session dragged on, the sides went without trench-work, due to the small number of healthy offensive linemen. Only eight on the premises.
But nearly everyone got a look-see, including go-to passers Drew Tate and Kevin Glenn.
“They did OK,” said Hufnagel. “Kevin threw some nice balls in tight throwing lanes, but he also had one intercepted, which we definitely don’t like. But I thought for the first time out, to get the rust off, they did some good things.”
Glenn — who came to Calgary from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the off-season swap for ol’ what’shis-face — turns 33 on Tuesday. So this month isn’t about avoiding the axe. It’s about getting acquainted with a new attack.
“A lot of people run the same concepts — whether it’s here, NFL, college,” said Glenn. “My biggest thing is learning the terminology.”
Hence, the usefulness of Sunday’s simulation.
“It was kind of live ammo, not tackling to the ground, but you get the officials out there, you get the pass interference, the offsides, illegal procedures, all that stuff,” said Glenn. “It helps guys to understand the game-type atmosphere, especially for the rookies.”
For West — who has toiled on the NFL practice rosters of the Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints, St. Louis Rams — the trek to Calgary was anything but direct.
Told great things about the Stamps — and the Canadian Football League — by Ken-Yon Rambo and Quincy Butler, he attended a tryout in Dallas. He did well enough to be invited to a mini-camp in Florida. He did well enough to get invited here. Now there’s one more test. “I’m new to this and I’m learning every day,” he said. “I’ve got to keep on working, keep on getting better, and understand what they want you to do.”
Not surprisingly, he was tickled by his pass-and-run play with Glenn, which arrived early in the session.
“I ran a little crossing route and I caught it in the hole,” said West. “It was right on point. Kevin is a great quarterback. Put it right on the number. Can’t ask for nothing more than that.”
And West is convinced that par- ticular combination — No. 15 to No. 71 — would pay off nicely in a real game, too.
“Oh yes, it’s a touchdown — and a celebration,” he said, grinning. “We’re having a party in the end zone.”
West is trying not to make much of one recent development — fellow receiver Maurice Price being hobbled by injury. But surely, that creaks open the door?
Perhaps. But this is one confident dude anyway.
“I’ll be here,” predicted West. “I’ll be a Stampeder and we’re going to get wins. We’re going to the Grey Cup — that 100th Cup is ours.”