Players To Watch

When the Riders and Eskimos hit the field at Commonwealth tonight, there will be a few guys to watch as their performances could be the difference between a win and a loss. Here are some of them.

CAMERON MARSHALL -  Did the Bombers find a way to get past the Edmonton defense last week. Andrew Harris had a monster game against an Edmonton defense that is healthier this week as some have returned from injury.  Marshall is no Harris, but if the Riders can use him in the same way running and catching the football, they could have similar success.

JOHN CHICK -  Edmonton has another 97 in its midst.  I don't think this 97 will be as adored by the Edmonton sports fans as the other guy, but he can certainly have Eskimo fans feeling good about him if he can have an impact in his first game with his new team.

MIKE REILLY -  The guy has a great hat collection and he is arguably the MOP to this point of the season. How does the Rider D stop him. If they can't, it is going to be a long night.

CHRISTION JONES -  The Riders haven't really had a kick returner since Chris Jones came on board, but they may have one now. Jones has looked good in his short stint as a Rider and may be the reason why Chad Owens still isn't on the field. A couple of big returns by him would make it easier for the offence.

VERNON ADAMS JR.  -  He makes his first appearance in a Riders uniform.  Chris Jones has said he will run the short yardage offense. I have a feeling if Adams is in there, there will be at least one instance where he won't be taking the ball and plunging straight ahead.  Look for the Riders to try and catch the Eskimos off guard at least once.

Enjoy the game

Depth Charts For Friday's Riders-Eskimos Game

 

This and That

--Here we go!  The Riders and Eskimos meet at Commonwealth tonight in a contest that Rider Nation is anticipating.  Can they put in a decent road performance? Can they compete with the first place Eskimos? Will we see another effort like what we saw in Calgary and BC?

The win against BC was fantastic, and take nothing away from Chris Jones' crew for that effort.  That effort will be forgotten quickly though if Mike Reilly and company molly-wop the green-and-white.  We have seen the good in this team, and we have seen the bad.  If we see the bad tonight, some will check out and their anger will rise.  That is understandable.   While it should have been done a couple of weeks ago, it is time for the '17 Riders to show us what they are.  If they are on the bottom end of a lop-sided score, they may have already done that and we were just too blind or optimistic to see.

--Remind me not to get in a fantasy football draft with the league this guy is in.  This re-defines outstanding.  The poor S-O-B is even wearing a Falcons hat. I hope he's not a fan because that would mean it wasn't a good year for this poor soul.  A good catch from one Reid Pedersen ( the good Pedersen kid)  on his daily travels.

--Who the h-e double hockeysticks does Trent Richardson think he is?  He made it very obvious he wanted to use the Riders and the CFL as a stepping stone back to the NFL. Perhaps Mr. Richardson should have had a chat with Ricky Williams to see what life is like in the CFL.  He obviously thought the CFL was a league he could just dance through even though he hasn't played in how long. The guy couldn't get it done on the small NFL field, so I doubt he could get it done on the bigger CFL field. At least Vince Young said all the right things when he was here.

--Congrats to Nik Lewis! You can hate him all you want Rider Nation, and many of you do, but you have to respect him for what he has done.  The next closest active player to Lewis is Weston Dressler. He has a long ways to go and Lewis isn't hanging up the helmet anytime soon.  Like Kevin Glenn, the next stop for big Nik is the Canadian Football Hall of Fame!

--Give Winnipeg credit as they snuck another victory away, but when they start playing the Western teams we will see what type of squad they are.  The record says to buy them, but I just can't. Are you?

--My campaign to "Remove the Rouge" took a hit Thursday night at the end of the Bombers-Alouettes game.  SIGHHH!! 

--Kent Austin firing himself is admirable, but I don't think it changes a lot. Something major has to be done. Austin has two years left on his contract, so I don't think Bob Young wants to let him go.  He may have no choice. How did it get this bad there?

--Want my thoughts on "the fight"?  I could care less about Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor. Does anyone think McGregor even has a chance in this one? If there were MMA rules, the feisty little Irishman may stand a chance, but this is boxing which is something he has never done.  I'm not wasting my time or my money on this one. If you are, have fun wherever and however you're watching. If McGregor comes out and says I want you again in an MMA match, don't be surprised.

--Many were getting a hold of me Monday morning when it was announced the WWE was returning to Regina in a couple of months with the "RAW" brand being highlighted.  It's great to have WWE come back to the Brandt Centre because it has been too long. Part of that is because of you though because you haven't bought tickets.  Let's make sure that doesn't happen this time so that they will return.  I would be there in a heartbeat, but I will be in Edmonton that night calling the Rams-Alberta game in the afternoon while sitting down at Rogers Place to watch the Senators and Oilers that night.  If it weren't for that, I would be in there though, and there is no doubt about that. C'mon Regina, get your tickets for this one and have some fun.

--The Saskatoon Blades are going back to their Pac-Man look. I approve, but I would love it if the Killer Zamboni logo returned. Oh yes, I would!

Eskimos Not Changing Their Name

The Edmonton Eskimos have had to defend more than their top spot in the Canadian Football League standings this year.
With their first 7-0 start to a season since 1961 dominating much of the early headlines in 2017, the national spotlight has been focused squarely on the club.
And whenever it’s shining brightest on the Eskimos’ on-field exploits, the team’s nickname also seems to get brought into public conversation.
The latest instance saw Inuk singer Tanya Tagaq, from Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, take to social media to post: “What a glorious message would be sent to our country if the Edmonton Eskimos changed their name. It would set a new precedent of respect.”

It comes on the heels of Edmonton’s 2015 Grey Cup run, when Natan Obed, president of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, an organization that represents 60,000 Canadian Inuit, said the Eskimos name should be changed and called it “derogatory.”
While the ITK declined requests for an interview with Obed for this story, Eskimos president and chief executive officer Len Rhodes said he has met with Obed on three different occasions since, both in Edmonton and in Ottawa.

“We agreed to keep an ongoing dialogue and we continue to do so,” Rhodes said. “Our meetings have been very respectful, and it has allowed us to share our respective points of view.

“Our plan is to listen to what the community is saying. We encourage people to have a dialogue and we hope that it is a respectful conversation, regardless of what one’s opinion is.”

What that plan doesn’t include is changing the Eskimos’ name.


“We are proud of our team’s heritage,” Rhodes said. “We always use our name within an aura of respect for all members of our community. We do not believe that we do anything in a derogatory fashion as it relates to our name.

“We always keep it in a positive context. However, Natan Obed tells us that in his eyes, the name itself is derogatory. Obviously, these are two different perspectives.”
A name change would be no small decision.

“We have had our name since our inception,” Rhodes said of the current club, founded in 1949, whose roots and name date back to the turn of the last century. “There is a lot of history and tradition that comes with it.

“It is associated with one of the most successful franchises in all of pro sports.”

At the same time, the club doesn’t shy away from joining the conversation.

“We receive feedback on many topics in any given year,” Rhodes said. “In terms of this topic, perhaps half a dozen per year, as far as formal feedback is concerned. However, the feedback is not all one-sided.

“We get opinions that range wildly. I assure you one thing and that is there is not a consensus on topics such as this one. We welcome all feedback on all topics. That’s the beauty about living in a democratic society. As long as people feel they can share their opinions on a matter, it is a healthy situation.”

(Edmonton Journal)

Kent Austin Steps Down As Ti-Cats Coach

Kent Austin, Vice President of Football Operations of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, announced Thursday that June Jones has been appointed Head Coach of the football club. Jones joined the Tiger-Cats earlier this month as Assistant Head Coach on August 2.

“June and I have established a great relationship, and I feel comfortable and very confident with him handling the on-field product moving forward,” said Austin. “This organization, its’ fans and partners deserve a championship calibre team and we fully expect to work together to return us to that level.”

In over four seasons at the helm in Hamilton, Austin has led the Tiger-Cats to two East Division titles, three Eastern Final appearances, and Grey Cup games in 2013 and 2014. The team also finished top-two in the East in four consecutive seasons (2013-16) under Austin, marking only the second time (1998-2001) the Tiger-Cats had done so since the 1960’s.

Jones has served as a head coach for over 20 years in his career, including stints in the NCAA at Southern Methodist University (2008-14) and the University of Hawaii (1999-2007), and in the National Football League with the San Diego Chargers (Interim – 1998) and Atlanta Falcons (1994-96).

Rams Crush Calgary in Canada West Pre-Season Football

(Regina Rams/Instagram)

The Regina Rams went to Medicine Hat on Wednesday night and left with a 39-3 victory over the Calgary Dinos.

Regina quarterback Noah Picton did not play for long, but backups Tyler Vieira and Seb Britton had nice nights.

Vieira was 9 of 13 passing during his time in the game while Britton threw three touchdown passes---two of them to former Sheldon Williams Spartans receiver Zach Shalley.

The Rams will now get ready for what is a huge game to start the schedule.

Steve Bryce's crew will tangle with the UBC Thunderbirds at Mosaic Stadium Friday, September 1 in a 7 o'clock start. 

Cougars WBB Team Finds Some Euros

University of Regina women's basketball head coach Dave Taylor announced Tuesday the commitments of four players for the 2017-18 season, including European talents Carolina Goncalves and Bilge Topaloglu and local high school products Lauryn Prokop and Faith Reid.

Topaloglu and Prokop will immediately add to the team's depth at post, while Goncalves is a perimeter player that Taylor expects to play major minutes right away. Reid, also a guard, is expected to redshirt the upcoming season.

"This class is significant because it addresses two of our big needs moving forward – size in the post and a perimeter scorer to replace Katie Polischuk," Taylor said. "This year's class combined with the group we brought in last year set the program up to remain at an elite level for the next number of years. In my 12 years as head coach, these past two years and the year we brought in Charlotte (Kot) and Katie (Polischuk) are the best three recruiting classes we've had in my time here."

Despite only turning 20 in June, Goncalves already has four seasons of experience at the highest level of professional women's basketball in Portugal. She played the past two years with Quinta dos Lombos in the Liga Feminina, and for two years before that with Sport Alges Dafundo. Goncalves has amassed a wealth of international experience over the past five seasons, representing Portugal at the U16 level in 2013, at the U18 level in 2014 and 2015, and at the U20 level in 2016 and 2017. She was named a tournament second-team all-star by eurobasket.com after averaging 14.4 points per game at the FIBA U20 Women's European Championship in 2016, and hit the scoresheet even more in the 2017 edition of that tournament with an average of 20 points per game in seven contests for Portugal.

"Carolina is a tremendously skilled perimeter player and I expect that she'll transition into a critical role immediately for us," Taylor said. "Her ability to play in a pick-and-roll offence suits us perfectly, and she has the ability to be a scoring threat at this level."

Topaloglu (pictured) is a 6-4 post from Istanbul, Turkey but holds dual citizenship with Switzerland and represents the Swiss Confederation internationally. A product of the Fenerbahçe SK club program, Topaloglu played for Fenerbahçe's junior team last year before suffering a season-ending injury in April. Topaloglu has twice donned a Switzerland uniform, playing in the FIBA Women's European Championship at the U16 level in 2014 and at the U18 level in 2015.

"Bilge adds size in the post for us and with her experience internationally and in the Turkish professional system, we expect she'll bring a high skill level to our team," Taylor said. "Once she's fully recovered from her injury, we expect her to be able to give us another post presence. With her and Lauryn (Prokop) coming in this year and Angela (Bongomin) back from last year, we're going to be set at the five for the next number of years."

Prokop will become the program's first player from Saskatoon since joining Canada West in 2001. She played a major role for Team Saskatchewan in four consecutive summers, playing at the U15 level in 2013 and 2014 and at the U17 level in 2015 and 2016. She was named a first-team all-star and won a gold medal with Saskatchewan at the 2014 U15 National Championship in Edmonton, and won a bronze medal at nationals in both seasons with the U17 team. Prokop is also a champion at the high school level, leading St. Joseph to a provincial 5A title in 2016.

"Lauryn is a perfect fit for our style of play and I'm thrilled to have her join our program," Taylor said. "She's a true low-post player and is also an excellent passer. I have had the opportunity to coach Lauryn and her high basketball IQ, skill set, and compete factor set her apart. She's been someone I've targeted over the past two years and will impact our team right away."

Reid hails from Warman, Sask. and also played her high school ball in Saskatoon, winning a provincial 5A title in 2017 with powerhouse Holy Cross High School. She's extremely familiar with Prokop, having played with her on provincial teams in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Reid was part of the team that won the 2014 U15 National Championship, and took bronze medals in 2015 and 2016 at the U17 level. Taylor anticipates that Reid will redshirt the upcoming season.

"Faith is just an outstanding individual with a great work ethic," Taylor said. "I had the opportunity to coach her on a club team and came away so impressed. She will help elevate our team in practices and will be a great representative of the program. With her work ethic and talent, I'm excited to see how she develops."

The Cougars, who will host the 2018 U SPORTS Women's Basketball Championship at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport, will kick off the 2017-18 season with an exhibition game against Lakeland College on Sept. 23. They'll also host Windsor, Saskatchewan, and Brandon at the Cougar Classic non-conference tournament which begins on Oct. 12, and will play a home game against NCAA Div. II opposition Minot State on Oct. 28 before Canada West play begins on the road at Manitoba on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4.

(U of R Athletics)