Redblacks receive rings on Friday, then it’s on to new challenges
As the Ottawa Redblacks head into three days of rookie camp, in advance of full training camp which begins Sunday, coach Rick Campbell doesn’t want to dwell on the Grey Cup championship his team won six months ago.
It’s all about the now and the future, not the glories of the recent past.
So after the players are presented with their Grey Cup rings Friday night at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, it’ll be full steam ahead.
“That’ll be a special day, it’ll be a big event,” Campbell said on Tuesday. “All the guys will have flown into town by then. I remember the last time I got a ring and it was pretty special. We purposely scheduled it before training camp so that it’s truly put to bed. We’re always going to be proud of the 2016 season and the Grey Cup championship, but it’s obviously important when we hit the football field with the whole team on Sunday that all eyes are looking forward to 2017.
“It’s a reset. I would say that whether we won or lost (the Grey Cup). You have to come back and be ready to do it all over again. It’s up to us as players and coaches and the whole staff here is to build our own personality. Every team takes its own personality. It’s on us to make the most of this 2017 version of the Redblacks. Our biggest worry is becoming a good football team.”
The majority of the Redblacks won’t be on the TD Place football field Wednesday afternoon.
It’s just rookies, with a few new faces added since last month’s mini-camp, and the team’s quarterbacks.
“The coaches are tired of being in their offices and I know the players are ready to get back at it,” Campbell said. “It’s going to be fun. I’m excited to see the rookies out here again. We have another three days with the rookies — we had mini-camp with them, now we have the rookie camp. We want to get these guys up to speed with the veteran guys so they have a legitimate chance at a roster spot.”
Soon enough, there will be positional battles — with a number of holes to fill following the loss of several veteran starters.
“Some guys will have to step up because we lost some players — that’s part of pro football and free agency these days,” Campbell said. “There will be a handful of new guys who our fans will get to know. We’ll be counting on them to help us out this year. I think our overall depth is even better than it was.
“We’re still not that old, we’re only going into Year 4. You keep acquiring players, whether it’s through free agency or the draft, you can see our Canadian depth keeps growing. We have to prove it on game days, but we’re very hopeful we’re better because we have more overall depth. When injuries happen, you need players who can step in. We signed some free agents — we have some CFL veteran guys, which makes a big difference. Then you mix in some guys who are new to the CFL and we go from there.”
CAMPING OUT
The Redblacks will begin rookie camp with a Wednesday practice (3:30-5:20 p.m.) at TD Place. Thursday and Friday practices are 8:30-10:20 a.m. The team will be off Saturday, with full training camp beginning Sunday morning (8:30 a.m. to noon).
Campbell hopes the players hit the ground running — with pre-season games here vs. Hamilton on June 8 and in Montreal on June 15. The regular season begins June 23 at home vs. Calgary — a Grey Cup rematch.