Coaches have history with opposing teams

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/11/2022 (1030 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Toronto Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie has been repeatedly asked this week about his first career CFL start — the 2007 Grey Cup as a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Dinwiddie was forced to start at quarterback for the Bombers as starter Kevin Glenn broke his arm in the East Division final the week prior. It was a valiant effort considering the challenging situation, but Dinwiddie threw three interceptions and the Bombers lost 23-19.

“I think I gave us a chance to win the game but at the end but just didn’t make the right plays. We had an opportunity for it. It was unfortunate that we couldn’t bring a Grey Cup back to Winnipeg,” Dinwiddie told reporters at Wednesday morning’s Grey Cup head coaches’ media conference. “I really wanted to be one of the first guys to do it. Unfortunately, Mike (O’Shea) was the guy to get that done.”

Just like Dinwiddie, O’Shea has a history with the team he’ll be coaching against in Sunday’s Grey Cup. Back in his days playing linebacker, Bombers head coach O’Shea signed with the Argos in 1996 after a short stint with the NFL’s Detroit Lions. O’Shea also had a memorable first game, but for much different reasons, as his debut with the Boatmen, which was a few weeks into the season, the team, for whatever reason, didn’t have a jersey ready for him. O’Shea ended up taking the field against the Saskatchewan Roughriders with his No. 50 taped to the front and back of his uniform. As you could imagine, it didn’t take long for the tape to start peeling off.

The Free Press asked O’Shea what he remembered about that bizarre circumstance.

“I don’t remember all the details surrounding it. But probably because they show it on video every once in a while … (equipment manager) Danny Webb is standing behind me with a towel, trying to keep the camera guy off the back of the jersey,” O’Shea said.

“Danny’s a pro and I’m sure something happened out of his control that ended up with that result. It was no big deal. Who really cares? As a player, you just want to be out there playing. If somebody gave you a jersey, with no name and no number, it wouldn’t stop you from going out there and playing.”

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Bombers left tackle Stanley Bryant is once again the West Division representative for the most outstanding offensive lineman. It’s the fifth time he’s represented the West, and if his name is called during the CFL awards Thursday night, it will be the fourth time he’s taken home the prestigious hardware.

Patrick Neufeld has spent the last seven seasons lining up with Bryant on the O-line. The all-star guard spoke glowingly about his teammate when asked about Bryant and what he meant to the Bombers.

“He’s probably the best football player I’ve ever played with, at any position. He’s the most consistent player I’ve ever played with,” Neufeld said. “He’s just so dependable in his preparation and what he’s going to do on the field, on game day, that you know he’s gonna get the job done. As an offensive lineman, I think you want to be known as being a consistent, physical player; those are two incredibly important traits. And that’s exactly what Stan is, to a T. It’s just been an honour to play with him and learn from him and watch him work on a daily basis. It’s pretty great to play with the best offensive lineman in the history of the CFL.”

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Sticking to CFL awards, Bombers receiver Nic Demski dumped a ton of praise on Dalton Schoen, who after a stellar 2022 campaign, his first in the CFL, is a shoo-in to win the league’s rookie of the year. Schoen, 26, led all CFL receivers in yards (1,441) and touchdowns (16).

When asked to describe Schoen’s developmental arc, one that consists of adjusting from the American to Canadian game, Demski said he started to see success almost instantly.

“Dalton has been great, from the moment he put on even a practice jersey in training camp. Each week, he’s just gotten better and better and he keeps making strides and he hasn’t slown down at all this year,” Demski said. “He’s picked up speed, if anything. He’s great on the field and off the field. Weight room. Film room. He always wants to learn and he always wants to get better. His physical attributes are already there, so with a mentality like that, he only has potential to grow.”

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Bombers kicker Marc Liegghio made all three of his field goal attempts in last week’s West Division final against the B.C. Lions, but he did miss a pair of converts. One of them was even returned 126 yards by Terry Williams to give the Lions two points.

“I felt like I was hitting the ball pretty well. I know I missed two PATs, but I felt I hit them pretty well,” said Liegghio. “Obviously, they didn’t go my way, but the next kick, I got it out of my head and went onto the next one and hit the ball the way I needed to hit it. I thought my punts were really good, my kickoffs were solid, and for what the day brought with the weather conditions, I felt I had a pretty good day.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

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.