West picks right time to be healthy
There is perhaps no Calgary Stampeder more impatient to get onto the field in the Western Final on Sunday than Joe West.
In his second season with the CFL club and having gone through a hellish year with shoulder problems, he couldn’t have picked a more opportune time to be healthy.
“I’ve looked forward to this game so bad for the whole season,” admitted the 29-year-old receiver. “Going from last season, watching the Grey Cup — I didn’t get to play in it — I’m motivated. My teammates do a good job every day in practice and in the game. That’s what we do. We feed off each other and as long as I’ve got my teammates, the sky’s the limit.”
West suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out of nine games; upon his return to action, he reinjured his wing and is now coming back for a second time. He, among others, profited hugely from the bye week.
“That was really beneficial for me because I was able to get out there and run and get my wind back up,” he explained. “I got to do some extra things with the quarterbacks, work on timing and let them understand that I’m going to be here and just know you can throw me that ball.”
Sinopoli ready for action
They say that playoffs are a new season and for Brad Sinopoli, who missed the final two regular season games with a concussion, that is no cliché.
“I’m feeling great,” the 25-year-old receiver summed up. “No problems now, so it’s behind me.”
He, too, spoke about the benefits of having another week to get healthier.
“It was perfect, not only for the head, but for the legs, too, and the body. Just recoup and it feels like the season is just starting again.”
A concussion is a nasty thing and it takes some players longer (see Dimitri Tsoumpas) than others to fully heal. Si- nopoli was on the more fortunate end.
“It’s just day by day really,” he related. “You start doing little things first, and then you step it up the next day. Eventually you know you can go full go.”
He will be counted upon on Sunday, particularly with the absence of Marquay McDaniel, as he had been a consistent contributor before he got hurt.
“We don’t know exactly who’s going to play where; everyone’s just learning the game plan and we’ll just go from there,” Sinopoli said. “There’s no pressure. It is tough losing a guy like Marquay, but at the same time I have confidence in everyone else and everyone else has confidence in everyone else that we’ll plug guys in and they’ll figure it out and we’ll get it done on game day.”
All eyes on the weather
There’s a lot of talk about the weather for the weekend and all fingers and toes are definitely crossed that the predicted snow and cold don’t occur.
“The only day I’m concerned about wind is game day,” said head coach/GM John Hufnagel. “You talk about cold weather, it’s the week leading up to the game because it’s very hard to keep these men out for an hour and 45 minutes and expect them to have full attention when it’s minus-20 degrees. As far as how wind affects a game, it almost cuts the game in half. When you have the wind, you have to make hay. When you don’t have the wind, you have to hold on.”
Last but not least …
Speaking of Tsoumpas, the right guard was on the field on Tuesday, wearing a helmet and going through some light hitting, which has to be a welcome sign for the team. He has been on the injured list since Week 7 … Fellow offensive lineman Stanley Bryant, who has missed the last two games with a leg injury, was also back on the field.