QB Hall will start for Bombers against Ticats

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This article was published 20/08/2013 (4481 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Max Hall will get the start for the Blue Bombers again this week, as head coach Tim Burke said he gives the team the best chance to win amongst their three pivots.

Hall, who got his first CFL start in a losing effort against Hamilton last week, has “a lot of intangibles” that rally the team, Burke said. “I just feel really good about Max right now,” he added.

Hall will have to start without one of his key targets: wideout Chris Matthews will be out four to six weeks with a strained tendon in his foot. Lanky 6-foot-4 backup Doug Pierce will be charged with hauling down balls instead.

Burke was in a buoyant mood after today’s practice, the first since the Bombers gave former offensive coordinator Gary Crowton the boot and installed longtime CFL coach Marcel Bellefeuille in his place.

The head coach said he liked Bellefeuille’s swagger. “I like to see an offensive coach yell at his players sometimes,” he said with a grin.

Burke also spoke about the decision to bring in veteran CFL defensive back Bo Smith, who was hunting for work this season after five years with the Tiger-Cats. Right now, Smith is pencilled in as a back-up, Burke said — but noted he hoped the aggressive back will be in the back of the Bombers secondary starters’ heads.

Bringing in CFL vets at this point in the season wasn’t always the Bombers’ usual modus operandi, Burke agreed — but hinted that wasn’t for lack of desire. “That was someone else’s philosophy,” he said, likely a nod to departed GM Joe Mack. Now, Burke said, Bombers brass share a more consistent philosophy on how the team should be built.

Melissa.martin@freepress.mb.ca

Ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPEdTait

Melissa Martin
Reporter-at-large

Melissa Martin reports and opines for the Winnipeg Free Press.

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