Calgary quarterback Mitchell headlines CFL all-star picks
TORONTO — Bo Levi Mitchell added to his growing list of accolades Tuesday when the Canadian Football League named him the quarterback for the league’s 2018 all-star team.
The Calgary Stampeders pivot, who also won most outstanding player and Grey Cup MVP honours this season, headlines a roster that includes eight Canadians and 11 first-time
CFL all-stars.
Mitchell had a CFL-high and career-best 35 touchdown passes in 2018 to lead Calgary to the league’s best regular-season record at 13-5.
He then passed for 253 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in the Stampeders’ 27-16 win against the Ottawa Redblacks in the Grey Cup. It was the Stampeders’ second Grey Cup win in five years.
Mitchell is one of three Stampeders on the all-star team, along with defensive tackle Micah Johnson and linebacker Alex Singleton.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, B.C. Lions and Hamilton TigerCats each sent five players to the all-star team, followed by the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Redblacks with four each and Edmonton with a single player.
The Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes had no allstars in a year both teams struggled heavily and finished well out of playoff contention.
Winnipeg running back Andrew Harris and Ottawa kicker Lewis Ward and receiver Brad Sinopoli lead a contingent of national players that includes Singleton, Winnipeg centre Matthias Goossen and safety Taylor Loffler, Hamilton offensive guard Brandon Revenberg and Saskatchewan offensive guard Brendon LaBatte.
Sinopoli, from Peterborough,
Ont., was named most outstanding Canadian this season after reeling in 116 catches — a singleseason record for a Canadian — for 1,376 yards with four touchdowns. He beat out Harris, who led the league with 1,390 rushing yards for his hometown
Bombers.
Ward, from Kingston, Ont., was named top rookie this season after booting 51-of-52 field goals
(league-record 98.1 per cent), including a pro football-record 48 in a row that will carry over into 2019.
LaBatte, from Weyburn, Sask., was named to the all-star team for a sixth time. Winnipeg linebacker Adam Bighill, the ’18 defensive player of the year, and Saskatchewan pass rusher Charleston Hughes each earned a fifth all-star nod.