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FINALLY, after months of cramming and study, Gary Crowton will get a sense of what he has to work with when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers suit up for their annual mini camp next week.

The new offensive co-ordinator, introduced to the Canadian brand of football for the first time this spring, has been dutifully dissecting film since joining the Winnipeg coaching staff in January. He's gone over every Bombers game from last season, taking notes on what schemes would work in his style of offence and what plays could be tweaked from his playbook to adapt within the CFL game.

The mini camp is Crowton's first opportunity to actually "coach" Bomber players.

"They won't all be here, but there will be a lot of guys on offence," he said Wednesday. "I think we'll have six receivers, all the quarterbacks, and a couple (of running) backs. It will be good for me. In a way, it will be a starting point or a new beginning, just to finally get a chance to work together.

"The biggest thing for me might just being able to look at the talent and evaluate some of the guys we have. Putting in the system at this point isn't far up on my list yet."

Interestingly, Crowton has yet to sit down with the quarterbacks to discuss the new offence. He's met briefly with starter Buck Pierce and backup Alex Brink, but two months after taking the OC job serious discussions with the pivots regarding the new playbook have not taken place.

Crowton admits there is an urgency to get that process started, but the preparation to get to that point has taken a little longer than expected.

"I'm just trying to get everything put in place so that we're all on the same page," he said. "There's still a learning curve for me in the CFL."

The 54-year-old says there are a lot of similarities between his playbook and the Bombers offence in 2011, the one designed by head coach Paul LaPolice. When asked what the No. 1 issue with the Winnipeg attack was last season, the longtime NCAA coach said he saw a unit fixated on big strikes down the field -- a characteristic which eventually led to inconsistency through prolonged stretches of games.

"Too many two-and-outs," he noted. "We want to control things a bit better."

So what does Crowton have in mind for the Bombers in 2012?

"I like a little bit of movement, to help the O-line a little bit," he said, believing the Bomber quarterbacks can be successful in his offence.

"We'll probably do little more sprint out than (the club) did last year, just to change the launch point. Not a lot, but a little bit more."

"Naked bootlegs -- rolling the quarterback out against the flow -- they did a good job; we'll continue with that. I'd like to do a little more play-action. Hopefully our run game will be good enough so it can be effective."

Crowton also wants to "quicken up" the pace a bit, too, so he's looking at a version of a hurry-up offence to help get the players in a rhythm.

Bombers mini camp opens Wednesday and runs through Friday, April 27. The camp was originally scheduled at the Winnipeg Indoor Soccer Complex, but the early spring has coaches contemplating holding the workouts at Canad Inns Stadium.

-- NEW RULES IN EFFECT: The CFL board of governors unanimously approved video review of all scoring plays for the 2012 season. Under the new guidelines, replay officials at the command centre in Toronto will look at all touchdowns, field goals, converts, singles and safety touches.

The CFL rules committee proposed the rule change at the CFL congress earlier this off-season. The NFL employed a similar rule last season.

The board of governors also approved two new rule changes regarding lost helmets during live action. From the league release:

-- If a ball carrier's helmet comes off, the play shall be blown dead immediately. The line of scrimmage for the next play will be where the player's helmet came off.

-- If a non-ball carrier's helmet comes off, that player can no longer participate in the play. If he does, the player will be penalized 10 yards for illegal participation. If a player hits an opposing player who isn't participating because he lost his helmet, he will be penalized 15 yards for unnecessary roughness.

-- ODELL UPDATE: The agent for Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive end Odell Willis told a Regina radio station Wednesday that he expects the former Bombers star's legal troubles to be cleared up before the start of training camp.

Agent Jerry Marlatt to News Talk 980: "Odell deeply regrets placing himself and the club in a negative light. He will appear in court in Atlanta on May 18 and expects resolution of his case at that time. He will report to training camp in June with his teammates and is looking forward to a successful 2012 campaign."

Willis was charged with driving under the influence April 9 in Atlanta.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition April 19, 2012 C1