Who Is The COTY

We find out over three months after the Stampeders hoisted the Grey Cup just who the 2009 coach of the year is in the CFL today. I don’t know why the CFL does this now and not on awards night during Grey Cup week and with all the focus being on the NHL trade deadline, this award won’t get much ink but that’s just me talking. The finalists are John Hufnagel, Marc Trestman and Ken Miller. I have said it before and I will say it again. When you look at everything Miller did with the 2008 Riders considering the lineup or lack of one that he had to field most weeks because of injury and to get this team to a 2nd place finish in the West is one that should not be ignored. His team didn’t get to the Grey Cup but that doesn’t matter. The job Kenny did in year 1 –a year where no one thought the Riders could even come close to repeating in 2007 because guys like Kerry Joseph, Fred Perry and Reggie Hunt were gone was absolutely remarkable. He should win and he has my vote. Sadly though, one would have to expect the honour to go to Hufnagel.

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Matt Hasselbeck has a receiver to throw to. My Seahawks have gone out and signed free agent receiver T-J Houshmandzadeh(I won’t be getting that name on the back of my Seattle jersey). The man whose name has been immortalized in the NFL.com fantasy football ad leaves the Bengals and the shadow of Ocho Cinco to come to the Pacific Northwest where he can hopefully help get Seattle back into the upper echelon. No question Seattle was lacking when it came to pass-catchers and he will help immensely. At least he should.
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Don Cherry’s quotes on Alex Ovechkin Saturday night has them talking in the U-S. ESPN’s Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption both brought the matter up with Chicago newspaper columnist Jay Mariotti saying Cherry is a guy known for his outlandish suit jackets and he is the one criticizing Alex the Gr8 for his outlandish behaviour. Can’t argue with Jay on that one. By the way, I love “Around the Horn” almost as much as I love “PTI”. Maybe TSN should turn “The Reporters” into an “Around the Horn” type show. Imagine it now, Vanstone, the Globe’s Matt Sekeres, Steve Simmons of Sun Media and maybe the voice of the Eskimos Bryan Hall yapping on the big topics of the day. Get Jay Onrait to host it. That would be outstanding TV. Instead we get Motorweek or something else. I love TSN but some of their programs do make me shake my head.
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I love this story from CNN’s Peter King. He describes how the New York Jets signed free agent linebacker Bart Scott.

Free agency began Friday morning, a second after midnight, and Scott's agent, Harold Lewis, told him he might be getting a call or two in the wee hours of the morning. At 12:15, at the same time he heard his dogs barking wildly outside his Owings Mills, Md., home, Scott's cell phone rang. "Man, come get these damn dogs!'' Jets secondary coach Dennis Thurman said into the phone.
Thurman was outside in the driveway with two other unannounced visitors -- Rex Ryan and defensive coordinator Mike Pettine. Scott knew them from their days on the Baltimore Ravens' coaching staff, and he absolutely could not believe they were sitting in his driveway, about to get attacked by his security dogs if they ventured out of the car. After Scott secured the dogs ("I'm just glad Mater and McQueen didn't take a bite out of those guys,'' Scott said Sunday night. "I'd have had to spend a chunk of my signing bonus for stitches.'') Ryan walked into the house, looked at Scott and said: "We want you. We're here for you. We're not leaving without you.'' There was a plane coming at 8 in the morning to take Scott to the Jets' facility in Florham Park, N.J., and Ryan told him he had to be on it.
"Talk about taking it back old-school!'' Scott said. "I was getting recruited! They were recruiting me big-time! Can you see the precedent they're setting? Remember Jerry McGuire? You're going to have players asking their coaches now, 'Why don't we have that kind of relationship?'

Great story!!
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I wonder if the Nashville Predators have seen a rash of young men going to their games lately. I would think there would be some in Music City USA heading to the rink after seeing this ad….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBB7Bd-w3NM

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading!