CFL Season Preview: Setting The Stage For 2009
18/06/2009 05:11
It seems like only yesterday that CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon was presenting the Grey Cup to the Calgary Stampeders at a jam-packed Olympic Stadium in Montreal.
Yet, here we are on the eve of another CFL season, that magical time of year when every team is undefeated with dreams that this could be the year.
Three new head coaches will make their CFL debuts this year, secure in the knowledge that last year's Grey Cup teams were led by rookie head coaches. Calgary's John Hufnagel and Montreal's Marc Trestman silenced all the critics that put a premium on experience as they led their teams to the ultimate game.
After years as the defensive architect in Regina, Richie Hall finally gets his chance as a head coach with the Edmonton Eskimos. With Ricky Ray at quarterback, free agent signing Jesse Lumsden at running back and Hall's proven defensive scheme, there is reason for optimism in the City of Champions.
Mike Kelly returns from Edmonton to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, where he has completely dismantled a team that disappointed many last year. Coming off a Grey Cup loss in 2007, much was expected but little was delivered last season. As a result, the Bombers offensive coordinator from 1992-96 was brought back to make changes and, needless to say, program sales should be brisk as Winnipeg fans get to know all the new faces.
And Bart Andrus heads north from the Tennessee Titans with great expectations in Toronto. Last season was a nightmare for the Argonauts as head coach Rich Stubler created a quarterback controversy and the defence got old real quick. But Andrus has been compared to Trestman, which bodes well in the Ontario capital.
SWIVEL HIPS SAYS:
For more of TSN’s pre-season preview of the CFL, click here.