Wilson dives head-first into opportunity to be Bombers backup QB

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/09/2024 (354 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opportunity knocks for Terry Wilson, and the only way to answer is to dive in headfirst.

Even if it is into a mass of humanity.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ rookie quarterback will backup Zach Collaros when Winnipeg faces the Edmonton Elks at Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday (6 p.m.)

Wilson, who has been the No. 3 option on the depth chart all season, admitted there’s a different type of pressure that comes with preparing to be the backup, such as knowing he’s one injury away from being at the helm of the offence and that he’ll be tabbed to extend and potentially finish drives in short yardage situations — a gritty yet crucial job previously held by Chris Streveler, who will miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

“I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t,” Wilson said earlier this week. “You’ve got that in the back of your mind like you got to be ready. This game of football, anything can happen.”

Wilson converted all three short-yardage chances he got after Streveler went down in the Banjo Bowl and it’s almost a certainty that he’ll be needed for a few more this weekend.

“There’s just some things that I really didn’t get that many reps at it before because Strev, he’s awesome at it. It’s just something that I never really worked at, but once I got in the game, I knew I had to get the first down no matter what,” Wilson said. “I definitely worked on it some more since then but like I said, anything for the team, anything I got to do, I’m going to do it.”

There’s also a bigger opportunity at hand for the 26-year-old Oklahoma City product.

It’s Wilson’s first — and perhaps only — full audition to win the backup job permanently.

With Streveler out, the Bombers signed three arms— Jake Dolegala, Bryan Scott and Darren Grainger — to the practice roster earlier this week. Dolegala and Scott are two well-travelled veterans who were on CFL rosters this season while Grainger returned to Winnipeg after suffering an injury during training camp.

Wilson was the de facto backup option, given his knowledge of the playbook and the coaching staff’s familiarity with his skillset. The practice reps reflected that, with Wilson taking most of the second-team snaps and the newcomers splitting the little bit that remained.

“He’s the one who’s going to know the playbook best and be able to go out there and operate,” head coach Mike O’Shea said Wednesday. “He’s the one who’s been in it longest, and he’s a good athlete, he’s a good quarterback, he throws the ball extremely well. That’s a guy we would have a lot of confidence in.”

Wilson arrived in Winnipeg and won the No. 3 job out of training camp after short stops in the National Football League with the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Gamblers of the United States Football League. His tumultuous six-year college career, which included two season-ending injuries, was spent at four different schools, beginning with Oregon, then Garden City Community College before getting back to the NCAA with Kentucky and New Mexico.

At 6-3, 207 pounds with a strong arm and the ability to run, Wilson checks a lot of boxes. While others hold the advantage of experience, perhaps Wilson’s size and athleticism could make for the easiest transition from the 6-1, 216-pound Streveler, who was used beyond short-yardage situations as a Swiss Army knife in the Bombers’ offence.

“We’ll see. Terry has been in the room with us now for a number of months and he understands how we operate and what’s expected of you when you got out there on the field and what your process needs to be each week,” said offensive co-ordinator Buck Pierce.

“He has a skillset just like every quarterback. We try and not always, as coaches, look for the same mould of everybody. You look at what guys do well and you look for what they bring, whether it’s mentally, physically, all those type of things— the attributes you like to see. Terry… can do some things that other quarterbacks can’t do, so we’ll try and do it that way.”

It’s not always the most athletically gifted who win the job, though.

“You look for guys that can execute your offence, put your team in positions to be successful. That’s the bottom line is it’s the quarterback’s job to help get your team get in the end zone and do whatever it takes to win, right?” Pierce said.

“It might not be as clear cut week-to-week but we believe in everybody and there’s an expectation that when you’re in the building and you’ve been around and you’re called upon, your expectation is to go out there and help us win.”

Wilson has been around long enough to know in-game opportunities can be tough to come by. With a job at stake, he’s prepared to leave it all on the line.

“It’s been a long time coming, man. Just keep myself even-keeled, just focus on the main thing,” Wilson said.

“This is football, man. This is what we love to do. This is what we signed up for. So, you got to take pride in going out there and making some plays and showing people what you’re capable of.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam

Joshua Frey-Sam
Reporter

Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press. Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh.

Every piece of reporting Josh 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.