Bombers face Riders squad reloaded with Fantuz

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/09/2011 (5384 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG — Depending on who you asked Saturday, newly reinstalled Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Andy Fantuz will:

a) Have a defining impact on Sunday’s Banjo Bowl.

b) Have an undefined impact on Sunday’s Banjo Bowl.

c) Have almost no impact on Sunday’s Banjo Bowl.

Here’s a sampling of opinion as both the Riders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers weighed in on Saturday about what impact Fantuz — the top Canadian in the CFL last season who is back with the Riders this week for the first time this season after failing in his NFL tryout with the Chicago Bears — will have on Sunday afternoon’s big game at Canad Inns Stadium:

“I think he can have a huge impact,” Riders QB Darian Durant said during a media availability at Canad Inns Stadium Saturday afternoon. “He’s always been a big part of what we do and we’re putting him right back in the same spot he vacated. I think his presence is going to be felt out there…

“I feel like the chemistry is still there. We made a couple big plays in practice (this week). So it’s all about translating that over to game day.”

Bombers defensive back Jonathan Hefney, not surprisingly, was much less impressed with the return of Fantuz this week. “That one person isn’t going to make us change our game plan. He’s back — ok, good. Now let’s just go out and play now,” Hefney said Saturday morning after his team did a walk-through at the Stadium.

“It really don’t bother me. He’s just another player and he’s going to play ball,”

Bombers defensive tackle Doug Brown was more impressed, saying he’s just glad he’s not the one who has to cover Fantuz. “He’s an impact player,” Brown said. “I’m sure he got his eyes opened down in the States in terms of developing his skills even further. We’re just going to hope he hasn’t gotten too much time to get reacclimated into the package they play tomorrow.”

And what about the man himself? “I’m excited to play,” said Fantuz. “We went through a week of practice, I’m feeling good and comfortable with the offence. I’m ready to go. I don’t think there will be any issues with that.

“I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of energy in the stadium,” Fantuz continued. “It’s always fun playing here. It’s always a great game in the Banjo Bowl and we’re looking forward to feeding off that energy and continuing our momentum from last week.”

The Riders, of course, dominated the Bombers in a 27-7 victory in Regina as Fantuz watched from the sidelines last Sunday and the addition of Fantuz to the active lineup should only make them better.

But with just three practices this week under his belt since he was cut by the Bears, it might be asking a lot of the six-year CFL veteran to have a measurable impact in a marquee game.

“I’m just going to do whatever I can to help the team win,” Fantuz said. “It’s not about individual players on the team. We’re not changing up the offense much. We’re just going to go out there and do what we do and spread the ball around. I’m just a piece of that puzzle.”

The absence of Fantuz from the Riders lineup was blamed in part for their atrocious 1-7 start. But with former Saskatchewan boss Ken Miller back on the sidelines as head coach and Fantuz in the role of fan last weekend, the Riders doubled their number of victories this season withh the win over Winnipeg and appear to have recaptured the attitude that carried them to three of the last four Grey Cup games.

“We got Ken Miller back and we’re 1-0 with him,” pointed out Fantuz. “That’s all that matters. We’re going forward. We’ve got nine games left and we kind of decided we’re going to have a new season when he got here and took over the reins. We’re all playing under him and he has a good way of getting us ready to play and brining out the best in us.”