Bombers focused on task at hand

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/08/2022 (1148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s been 62 years since the Bombers started a season 10-0.

The team, which had Bud Grant for a head coach and Kenny Ploen at quarterback, had won the Grey Cup the previous two years, but couldn’t make it three in a row as they ended 1960 at 14-2 before losing a best two-of-three series in the West final against Edmonton.

“I don’t know anything about that team and that’s embarrassing,” admitted Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros on Wednesday.

Considering how the hot start ended without a championship, it’s probably best that Collaros knows nothing about it. That group did, however, bounce back and win the Grey Cup in 1961 and again in 1962.

With a victory over the Montreal Alouettes tonight, the 2022 Bombers will be the first team in franchise history since 1960 to start a season at 10-0. They’d also become only the seventh team in CFL history to open a season with 10 straight wins. It’d be an incredible feat, but not one the current Bombers are focusing on.

“If we’re able to accomplish that it will be something that in 20-30 years, when we’re all talking to each other, we’ll look back and be proud of it, but right now we’re really just focused on this game,” Collaros said.

Head coach Mike O’Shea was also asked for his take on his group potentially entering the record book. Has he spent even one nanosecond thinking about it?

“Not one,” said a straight-faced O’Shea.

WELCOME BACK ELLINGSON

It was an injury that caught everyone by surprise.

Greg Ellingson was fresh off of putting on a show in Week 6, tormenting the Calgary Stampeders for 152 receiving yards on 11 catches.

The performance, which equalled his career-high for receptions in a game, put the 33-year-old in first place in league receiving and led to him being named one of the CFL’s top performers of the week.

Ellingson was in street clothes at the following practice and went on to miss three games with a hip injury. The veteran of eight CFL seasons returned to practice this week and it was revealed Wednesday that he will play Thursday night when the Bombers host the Montreal Alouettes.

Even though the Bombers went 3-0 without him, Ellingson, who’s in his first year in Blue and Gold, was sorely missed.

“I think it’s great for the offence. A guy as talented as Greg, first and foremost, having him out there makes us more dangerous for the defence to prepare for,” quarterback Zach Collaros said after Wednesday’s walk-through practice.

“And he’s a great teammate, great for the room, and keeps things light. I think he’s been a great addition from that standpoint.”

While Ellingson was itching to return, he liked what he saw from the offence in his absence. He said the injury wasn’t a nagging one as it occured on a play in the Calgary game and that it wasn’t something he just couldn’t play through.

“Collaros is always out there balling and it’s fun to watch him play. It’s nice to able to support the team from afar. Watching on TV is a little different from being out there so you kind of see how they deal with the momentum of the game and certain issues,” Ellingson said.

“Last week, the beginning was tough, but we came back in the fourth quarter and really started clicking. That was fun to watch and it will just be nice to get back out there this time.”

Now that it’s behind him, Ellingson’s ready to continue from where he left off.

“Three weeks off is not so fun, so I’m happy to get back out there,” he said.

FOOTBALL FIELD NAMED AFTER O’SHEA

Mike O’Shea will return to his hometown of North Bay, Ont., on Saturday.

The city of just over 50,000 people is honouring the six-time Grey Cup champion by naming the football field at the Steve Omischl Sports Complex after him.

The Bombers are on a bye next week, their first of the season.

“We’re pretty focused on what we’re doing right now,” O’Shea said Wednesday.

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“My wife handles all that stuff, tells me where I’ve got to go and what I’ve got to wear. But, heading home to my hometown of North Bay is always special. They don’t need to do that or honour me to make me feel good about going home.”

ROSTER MOVE

The Bombers released American wide receiver Kelvin McKnight from the practice roster on Wednesday afternoon. McKnight played eight games for the Blue and Gold in 2021, but was cut at the end of this season’s training camp. He was brought back into the fold two weeks ago as the Bombers were banged up at receiver, but McKnight was never activated for a game.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

Every piece of reporting Taylor 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.