Ray’s comeback comes at critical time for slumping Argonauts
The stakes are high for Ricky Ray’s first start of the season on Friday night.
The Toronto Argonauts need a positive jolt after two crushing defeats with Trevor Harris at the controls and head coach Scott Milanovich trusts in Ray to stabilize this emotional, inexperienced team.
“Ricky has just a quiet, calm confidence about him that I think can be felt,” Milanovich said Thursday.
“I expect him to play well. It was a good week of practice and I’ve got to remind myself that he hasn’t played much, but he has a history of coming back off injuries and long delays and playing well quickly so that’s what we’re looking for.”
Ray will start his first game in almost a year against the B.C. Lions at the Rogers Centre (7 p.m., TSN).
His longest previous absence was in 2013 when he missed six straight games. In his first game back, he completed 26 of 34 passes for 303 yards and two touchdowns in a 24-18 loss to Hamilton.
Not only will Ray have cobwebs, but he just turned 36, which will focus the spotlight on him even more.
The two-time East Division most outstanding player will be a free agent after the season, so you can bet other CFL teams are watching his comeback with great interest. Harris is also a free agent after the season but, at 29, he is thought to have more of a future here than Ray.
Last week, in just over a quarter of action after replacing Harris, Ray completed 12 of 15 passes for 107 yards.
“I’ll be a little more nervous tomor- row before the game, which is normal,” Ray said. “You’re going to face adversity throughout the game. You’re going to be a little bit down and then you’re going to do some good things.”
If Ray stumbles in his debut, there’s no guarantee he will be behind centre next week to close out the regular season against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
It will be interesting to see if Ray can re-establish a connection with veteran slotback Chad Owens. Milanovich has compared their chemistry to that of Anthony Calvillo and Ben Cahoon.
This season, Owens has been mostly silent as Harris has developed more of a chemistry with three huge rookie receivers in Vidal Hazelton, Kevin Elliott and Tori Gurley.
Gurley will sit out this game even though he leads the CFL with 10 touchdown receptions. Milanovich benched him for undisclosed sideline behaviour.
Pencilled in to replace him is former NFL receiver Phil Bates, who has a 2014 Super Bowl ring with the Seattle Seahawks.
Bates has been on the practice roster for several weeks and didn’t know who Ray was when he arrived. He soon started hearing the stories from teammates.
“When I first got here I was, like, who’s the older guy?” Bates said. “They were like that’s Ricky Ray, that’s the legend. I’m like what? The way he carries himself is so humble and so quiet.”
A win could go a long way in securing a home playoff game for the Argos (9-7). In the Lions (6-10), the Argos are facing a team fighting for their playoff lives and who believe in upstart Jonathon Jennings, who has thrown 13 TD passes in five starts.