Bombers plan to stay hot heading into fall football

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This article was published 21/09/2017 (3105 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The game tonight between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Ottawa Redblacks marks the first official day of fall, bringing an end to summer and the start of colder conditions for CFL games played outside.

Temperatures are expected to drop to a low of 10 C this evening, with scattered showers throughout the night. While it won’t be ideal conditions for the thousands planning to attend the game, many in the Bombers locker room are taking a much different approach to what Mother Nature has in store for the rest of the year.

“I enjoy it,” said quarterback Matt Nichols, noting he’s used to rain after having played his college football on the Pacific Northwest, at Eastern Washington University. “I feel like I throw the ball fine in bad weather, and that’s when you know the season is just getting going. It’s exciting times and I look forward to whatever challenge the weather creates.”

Head coach Mike O’Shea, who became immune to harsh conditions from growing up in North Bay, Ont., and someone who dons a T-shirt and shorts no matter what the conditions are, seemed unfazed by the expected dip in temperatures.

“Well, we live in Winnipeg, we better get used to it, the wind especially,” he said Thursday after his team’s final preparations for the game. “Both teams have to play with it. It’s always that way with any weather conditions. I don’t think it’s an advantage one way or another.”

JOIN THE GANG

The Bombers bolstered their receiving corps on Thursday, adding former NFLer Chris Givens to the practice roster.

Givens, a six-foot, 203-pound native of Jackson, Miss., was drafted in the fourth round in 2012 by the St. Louis Rams but spent most of his 60-game career with the Baltimore Ravens. In 2015, he suited up for 12 games — starting six — while recording 346 receiving yards and one touchdown. In total, the 27-year-old Givens had 107 receptions for 1,779 yards and five touchdowns in the NFL.

“A speedy receiver with fairly good size and obviously has got some games under his belt where he’s had some success,” said O’Shea following the walkthrough Thursday at Investors Group Field.

Givens joins the Bombers after a brief stint with the Philadelphia Eagles, who released him prior to the start of the 2016 season. The move comes just a day after import receiver T.J. Thorpe left the Bombers after being frustrated with his lack of playing time.

O’SHEA CELEBRATES THE BIG 4-7

A celebration in honour of O’Shea’s 47th birthday took place shortly after the walkthrough. Players sang Happy Birthday, with the loudest cheer coming when O’Shea responded by showing off his dance moves. At one point, offensive lineman Jermacus Hardrick lifted the coach up on his shoulders.

Nichols gave O’Shea a nine (out of 10) for the jig, while running back Andrew Harris said, “I don’t know if that was Irish or Scottish, I’m not sure, but it was nice.”

For someone who has never craved the spotlight, O’Shea seemed to embrace the love from his players, showing off a side of him rarely seen during office hours. But when asked about his dance style, O’Shea provided a response much more familiar to the reporters who cover his every move.

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“You can always do better,” he said.

O’Shea, for what was perhaps an early birthday treat, was in attendance at Shaw Park on Wednesday night to watch the Winnipeg Goldeyes repeat as American Association champions. His favourite moment came at the end of the game, when he watched the Goldeyes celebrate with the fans in what he called “something very special.”

“I enjoyed the game, I enjoyed the crowd, the atmosphere,” O’Shea said. “There was a lot of people who stuck around just to stare onto the field. To be a part of something like that was pretty neat, just sitting back and watching the fans watch it. Congratulations to the Goldeyes. Back-to-back is not easy to do, and they were by far the better team. It was something to watch.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton

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Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.