Its the last weekend without football. Rider rookie camp begins Wednesday with main camp on the weekend. WE MADE IT!!!
Much of the talk around town today surrounds Gary Etcheverry. I was at the eye doctor yesterday getting a regular check-up when I got the message that Etch had left. Yes, I can see where one would think Etch is abandoning the club and that losing his spot as defensive co-ordinator ticked him off to the point that he no longer wanted to be there. However, Sportsnet's Arash Madani was on the Sportscage yesterday and he said in speaking to Etcheverry there was no ill will and that he simply got a business offer that to him meant more than coaching football and that he got along great with both Greg Marshall and Richie Hall. I find the situation very similar to Scott Schultz' retirement. He didn't want it to happen, but when the opportunity came up, he took it. Schultzie was playing great football at the time and all you have to do was ask Ken Miller to verify it.
Besides, if Etcheverry didn't like the role he was going to be in, do you think he would have stayed for this long?
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I think Rod put it best on his blog. It must be football season because people are bitchin. The latest bitchfest is the new Rider marketing campaign--theRiderOath.ca. Many fans don't like it for whatever reason. OK geniuses, what would your marketing idea be? It amazes me how some that root so religiously for this franchise can bitch and complain so easily when the team is winning. Why do they have to find something to complain about? Enjoy the ride! As for those who are critical of president and CEO Jim Hopson. If it wasn't for Jim's efforts, this football team would be nowhere close to what it is both on and off the field. It all starts at the top and what Hopson did to help get this team to a championship in 2007 and what he has done since is simply remarkable. Some people really need to take a step back as far as I'm concerned and others really need to give their head a shake.
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Adriano Belli got a TV job with Sportsnet this week. Good for Adriano, but I think Scott Schultz would be twice the analyst that Belli is/will be. Belli is a name in the GTA though and we all know that region needs something to market the game so Belli will do the trick. Who will be the first Sportsnet personality that he lays a big smooch on?
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I had to laugh yesterday because I heard Rod Pedersen, Chris Schultz and Jamie Nye all refer to Ken Miller as coach yesterday. I only laugh because I say the same thing when I see Miller. I can't speak for Chris or Jamie, but as Rod said on the Cage yesterday and I agree with him 110 percent, "He'll always be Coach to me". YUP!
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What the hell got into the Kootenay Ice? They hammered Owen Sound last night! They will try to take out Mississauga tonight to get a date into the final against Saint John.
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Game 7 tonight between the Bruins and Lightning. Who ya got? I don't think there is any doubt Dwayne Roloson will start for Tampa and I'm surprised that there has been so much talk about this. Will Tampa win? I don't think they will, but they're not going to quit and Boston will have to play 60 minutes and then some.
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Be careful Canucks fans, Rob Vanstone picked Vancouver to win the Stanley Cup in his weekly "Robservations" yesterday. The only person I trust less with predictions is that dude who said the world was going to end last weekend.
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I love the choice of Don Hay to coach our national junior team at the tournament in Alberta next year. Its time to get that title back after not having it for two years.
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The cost of having flowers delivered in this town ain't cheap. YIKES!
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The Jays are slowly starting to slip away in the American League East. Yes, they aren't far back of the division leaders, but they need some kind of a pick-up. I wonder if GM Alex Anthopoulos wishes he hadn't made the Shawn Marcum deal. I haven't heard anything lately about Dustin McGowan. Is he done?
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Some in baseball thinks there needs to be a change on plays at the plate after San Francisco's Buster Posey was run over Wednesday resulting in a broken leg. Some think there needs to be a rule put into place ending these car wrecks at the plate for the good of the catcher. Did anyone ask Buck Martinez what he thinks of the idea? Did anyone ask him if there should be a rule change years ago when he suffered a similiar injury. The thing was on that play if you remember, Martinez actually tagged two men out at the plate. For what its worth, I say you don't change a thing.
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ESPN's Colin Cowherd (one of the best, if not the best sports talk guy out there) said on his program this week that the biggest problem in sports is alcohol sold at the stadium. I don't know if its the biggest problem, but its one that's not going away. The beer companies invest way too much in the respective leagues for stadiums to go dry.
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Good for the Miami Heat if they win the NBA championship, but in my eyes, it won't loft the legacy of Lebron James any. Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, etc. etc, etc didn't leave their team to go elsewhere to win a championship. They did it with the team they went to and Lebron didn't. He had to run away from Cleveland to get his. You can blame the Cavs management all you want, but I don't think the Lakers, Celtics and Bulls were that good when Jordan, Magic and Bird were brought in and I can't remember what the state of the Lakers was when Kobe was drafted.
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New CKRM program director Grant Biebrick was seen patrolling the halls of the Harvard headquarters last week wearing a Matt Hasselbeck jersey. In meeting Grant, it seemed like he was a good guy and the fact he is a Seahawks fan only enhanced that until he informed me yesterday he's a Flames fan. I guess you can't have it all!
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Has someone really come out and said the new NHL team in Winnipeg WON"T be called the Jets. I can't imagine them not being the Jets.
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Drinking & driving is extremely dangerous. Last night, I stuck my arm out of the window to indicate I'm turning right & someone stole my beer.
ITS A JOKE!!!!!!
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Have a good Friday!!!
12 comments:
Miller was the guest speaker at the RCMP Officer's Regimental Dinner last night. We all called him coach as well.
Partially true regarding Kobe - he was drafted by the Hornets and traded shortly after for Vlade Divac.
I think he will be "Coach" Miller to many in the Rider Nation.
Grant
From their first two games to their last two, Kootenay looks completely different. I wonder if their eyes were a little too big when they got there and they needed a couple of days to calm down.
Kobe was drafted by the Hornets? I didn't know that. He never played for them though.
I totally agree with you about all the complainers. Good grief, enough is enough!
I'd rather have Etch than Richie!!
Well said on Hoppy. The man knows his stuff and yet some of tje "fans" that post on the message boards think otherwise. They'd really have something to moan about if he wasn't here. It just proves message boarders that post under nicknames are irrelevant.
Colin
How many people remember when Ron Lancaster joined the CBC after his coaching stint in Regina? After a Rider game, he was interviewing Rider RB Lester Brown. Guess what Lester called him? Of course it was "Coach"!!
Personally, I find the Rider Oath to be a splendid marketting campaign. For the dissenters...come up with something better or keep the yap shut!!
Can't disagree on what you're saying about Lebron. Add me to the list that didn't know Kobe was drafted by New Orleans.
Glenn
Etch > Hall Not looking forward to our second and longs this year. Prove me wrong Ritchie
Does anyone actually think Etch would of come out and said "I left because I don't like Hall's defensive schemes"? If you think he left for other interests you better go back to writing poems under the rainbow.
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