Optimistic Argonauts look to right the ship
Veterans seeking fresh start, writes Frank Zicarelli.
TORONTO Excitement, anticipation, trepidation. There are so many emotions circulating with these new-look Toronto Argonauts that it’s virtually impossible to put a finger on the precise temperature.
What’s known is the Argos will open their season Saturday afternoon against visiting Hamilton before embarking on a gruelling schedule that sees the team play seven straight against West Division foes.
By the time the Argos play Montreal on Aug. 25 in Moncton, N.B. — a home date for Toronto, it should be noted — the team could find itself behind the proverbial 8-ball or in the mix for top spot in the East.
There’s no bigger game in football than the next one, but Saturday’s opener does have added significance for a variety of reasons.
The Argos are athletic, deeper, much better coached. They have a lot of reasons to be optimistic.
“We’re starting our journey,” veteran Abdul Kanneh said. “Sometimes the journey starts well, sometimes the journey doesn’t start well. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.
“This will be a good test to see where we’re at, the first challenge of the season, and it’s the only challenge we’re focused on.”
On the depth chart, Kanneh is listed at an outside linebacker, one of the most pivotal positions on defence.
He’s being asked by new Argos head coach Corey Chamblin to revert to all-star form from Ottawa.
So good was Kanneh that the Ticats identified him as their free agent target before the 2017 season.
Kanneh didn’t pan out in black and gold, and ultimately was traded to the Argos for a lateround draft choice on the eve of the 2018 season.
Whether one cares to depict players such as Kanneh as a reclamation project or simply refer to it as a new lease on football life, he isn’t the only one associated with the Argos who is determined to turn the page.
In all three phases of the game to the coaching ranks, the Argos are dotted with players looking to regain their footing in the CFL.
Chamblin, whose defence was chiefly responsible for Toronto’s Grey Cup win two years ago, is back in the saddle after a stint with the University of Arkansas.
James Franklin starts at quarterback, the poster child for all that went wrong during last year’s wretched season that saw the Argos go winless on the road.
There’s Derel Walker, an elite receiver who is coming off a knee injury.
Running back James Wilder Jr. is fresh off a disappointing season marred by injury and poor coaching.
For offensive co-ordinator Jacques Chapdelaine, Saturday’s unveiling is his first time back on the field since his dismissal in Montreal as head coach two years ago.
Toss in the pre-game ceremony, when former Grey Cup-winning QB Ricky Ray will be honoured, and what promises to be ideal weather, and it should be quite the occasion.