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Thursday, June 13, 2013

This And That

 
 
 
 
 
 
It has arrived! The start of the 2013 season unofficially begins tonight in Edmonton as the Riders take on the Eskimos in a game you will hear on the Rider Radio Network starting with Michael Ball and "Roughriders Gameday" at 430.  As excited as I am to get the 2013 season underway, I will be headed to the Manitoba capital as I am off to UFC 161 which should be  an adventure in itself.  The question I have is do I wear my Riders jersey to the event or should I wear my Canada baseball jersey. I gotta represent the /=S=/ do I not and its not at a baseball, hockey or basketball game and it is Winnipeg.
 
As one who hasn't been in Winnipeg for years, where does one go for "fun"?
 
It was great to hear that former Riders fullback Chris Szarka will be joining our team on "Rider Radio" this year as he will sit alongside Michael Ball for the post-game shows when the team is on the road if not more. Zark knows his football much like Matt Dominguez and Scott Schultz so I can't wait to hear what he has to say.
 
A lot of people have asked me what role I will be playing on the broadcasts this season and if I'll be back on the sidelines. Lets  just say I'll be popping in here and popping in there in a variety of roles throughout the season. I'm that utility guy coming off the bench. That's fine with me.
 
One reason for yours truly to be interested in the Stanley Cup final. I'm in the top 5 in the Leader-Post playoff draft. I don't know if I can catch the leader since we basically have the same guys left, but who knows!
 
There is talk in the  U-S about the NHL gaining a foothold with some solid TV ratings. Did you know that on the Saturday night when the Hawks won the West by beating L-A that NBC beat out FOX which was carrying a MLB game. Does that say more for hockey or less for baseball?
 
Nothing against Jim Hughson, but if I can watch Mike Emrick, that's what I'm doing. There aren't any better play-by-play guys at hockey than Emrick and Chris Cuthbert.
 
Harry Neale is going to get recognized by the Hockey Hall of Fame for his work as a broadcaster. Harry became famous working alongside Bob Cole for so many years. This just makes me ask why Bob Cole isn't getting the recognition first. Say what you will about Bob, and I have been just as critical at times, but the man is a broadcasting icon and Hockey Night in Canada wouldn't have been the same without him. Let's remember Bob is no spring chicken either. Putting Neale in before Cole is a mistake in my mind----maybe they should go in together.
 
Part of me really wants to see Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia paired up together at the US Open.
 
Did anyone notice that the Blue Jays put out the starting threesome of "Johnson", "Dickey" and "Wang" this week?
 
Riders question: What do you do with the receivers that are in camp.  Taj Smith has been amazing from what I've heard, Kierrie Johnson has been tremendous, rookie Alex Anthony has shown he belongs, Jordan Sisco seems to have his head on straight and is impressing the coaches and then you have guys like Greg Carr, Weston Dressler, Geroy Simon and Chris Getzlaf.  Someone with talent is going to go and I would think it might be Carr.  His height is an advantage, but he doesn't have the versatility that Johnson has. I can see Anthony on the practice roster and Sisco perhaps ending up there too. Oh yeah, I forgot about Rob Bagg! I don't envy the coaching staff when it comes to making that decision,
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There was a lot of debate about the Kory Sheets story this week. I don't condone what the Rider running back did in any fashion, but he admitted what he had done and did what he had to to get the charges dropped thus I don't think there is the story there that some seemed to think. However, the Riders are absolutely right when they say he is on strike two. One more screw-up and he --and likely his football career--are over.
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The voice of the Eskimos Morley Scott tweeted on Thursday that the Eskimos practiced their entrance onto the field. ??????  Are the Riders going to practice to "bring em out, bring em out". Somehow I doubt it.
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If you are a wrestling fan and you haven't seen "The Rise and Fall of WCW", I would recommend it. Its a good watch. Its on Netflix right now.
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I was told this week that there might be one or two closed practices a week for the Riders. How on earth will Murray McCormick survive without writing about the wasps?
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Fuddruckers in Saskatoon should take a count as to how much of their business comes from Regina. It seems that everyone I know that went to training camp went to Fudds at some point whether they were there for a day or longer. Anytime I see someone who goes to Saskatoon, they say they were at Fudds. Oh yeah, when I went to the Memorial Cup final, guess where my entourage went before we hit the highway back to Regina. It only begs the question....why doesn't Regina have a Fuddruckers?????
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That's all I got. Time to pack for Winnipeg. I'll be taking photos so you'll get a sampling of them in "Something to Mitch About".
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Go Riders!
 
 
 
 


10 comments:

Gored said...

Great comment on the Blue Jay's starters! We had Fudds but it closed down. Used to like the fact that they used ground roasts so you could get your burger medium or medium-rare.

Anonymous said...

Can't wait for another season to start. Looking forward to hearing what Szarka has to say. GO RIDERS!!

Mike

Keith said...

Mitch,
Do you know on which day and time there will be a first opportunity for fans in Regina to head over to Mosaic and see the Rider's practice next week?

Anonymous said...

Of course you wear the jersey--especially if you can get camera time. What's the matter with you! Have a good trip. I'll be watching.


Kyle

Anonymous said...

Have you seen the no-class comment posted by your former employer on RP's blog today? I can't believe how slimy those guys are!

Mitchell Blair said...

Keith:
They have a practice set for Monday, but I don't know what time. Watch Riderville. com.

As for the other comment about Rod's blog...

no comment!

Anonymous said...

I don't mind Jim Hughson, it's Glenn Healy and Craig Simpson I can't stand. I switched over to NBC once I realized they were showing the game. I probably won't go back. I do like Pierre Maguire and I know there's a lot that don't.

Bob cole should be in well before Harry neale, but Pat Burns should be in as well and should have been before he died.

I think about fuddruckers in regina everytime I drive by that building on albert.

Did you know Saskatoon has the only fuddruckers in canada?

Have a good weekend Mitch! Go Bruins!

Anonymous said...

Hi Mitchell,
There are a ton of things to do in the Peg. For starters you can go and "Polka Up a Storm" Sat afternoon at 141 Legion on Selkirk Ave and at night do the same at the Norwood Legion on Marion Street,very close to DNTN.. Enjoy.. Make sure you don't "Polka Till U Puke " LOL.. Polka bill from the Peg!

Anonymous said...

Mitch - fun places ??? serious ???

Anonymous said...

Mitch: if u can keep weasle39 and ewensbruins off your back, you win $100 Co-Op Gift Card. Pretty Good !