Lulay shows old flash in unflashy loss
Lions’ QB enjoys strong half in pre-season tilt against Eskimos
Before leaving training camp in Kamloops, quarterback Travis Lulay declared himself “beyond thrilled” at his progress from shoulder rehab.
“I’m ready to resume the role (as starter) that’s been most natural to me,” he said.
After losing Friday’s pre-season contest to the Edmonton Eskimos 18-13, coaches and fans of the B.C. Lions might join him in a salvation chorus. Hallelujah. He’s healed.
Flashbacks to 2011, when Lulay was the Canadian Football League’s most outstanding player, perhaps registered with some of the 6,117 who made the hopeful trek to UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium.
Granted, the game was a non-counter. Yet, as a measuring stick, with the Lions still two weeks away from a meaningful game — July 4 in Ottawa — it might be time to tone down the Lulay Watch.
The CFL’s most closely monitored quarterback went five-forfive on his initial pass attempts, tossed a 22-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Arceneaux to put the Lions ahead 7-0 and finished his 30 minutes of work with 121 yards on eight-of-13 passing.
While Lulay left the game with his team trailing, 14- 10, his industry could have produced more, had rookie kicker Richie Leone not shanked a 37-yard field goal attempt and scotched another from 44 yards away.
The durability issue — foremost in everybody’s mind — got a severe test near the end of the second quarter when the Esks’ Willie Jefferson took down Lulay hard and earned an unnecessary roughing penalty. It led to a third field goal attempt by Leone, who was successful from 27 yards out.
Anthony Fera, the man competing with Leone for Paul McCallum’s former job, booted a 49-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to get a leg up on his rival.
Lulay has been taking collision avoidance instruction from head coach Jeff Tedford and looks to have taken the lessons to heart. Early in the game, he was on the point of placing his body against the fast-moving mass of 245pound Eskimos lineman Marcus Howard, after Andrew Harris reversed his field on a running play. Lulay squared up as if to initiate contact — and here one tended to close one’s eyes and wait for the horrific impact. But Lulay pulled back. It probably was a fake, but Howard bought it. The old Lulay might have made the attempt.
Another time, sprinting to the sideline, the quarterback slid feet first to avoid another hit, signalling that he’s no longer a desirable target for pulverization.
Rookie QB Jon Jennings, who played the first half of last Friday’s 20-6 loss in Calgary, a game in which Lulay didn’t dress, started the second half and threw an interception to Marte Sears. The Esks, however, couldn’t convert the turnover into a score, when Keynan Parker picked off rookie James Franklin’s pass in the end zone.
Earlier, Franklin threw a 25-yard touchdown to Kenny Stafford for Edmonton’s only major.
Grant Shaw was successful on three of seven field goal attempts for the Eskimos, from 48 and 41 yards (twice). He was off the mark on attempts from 28, 37, 23 and 45 yards.