Brink’s plays numbered

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This article was published 16/06/2010 (5652 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Read nothing into the fact quarterback Alex Brink took the first turns under centre at Winnipeg Blue Bombers camp Tuesday morning.

The former Washington State standout did not leapfrog the pivot group during film study Monday, nor was there a series of shocking disappearances that led to just one quarterback being in a yellow practice jersey. You can also forget about any guilt entering the equation. According to Brink, head coach Paul LaPolice was not trying to make amends to the 25-year-old for what happened over the weekend.

"No, nothing like that at all," Brink said after the sluggish workout at Canad Inns Stadium. "It was just my turn in the rotation."

Brink is paying closer attention to when his number comes up to throw the ball these days, thanks to a minor gaffe during the Bombers 34-10 pre-season win over Montreal Sunday. In the second half of that game, LaPolice admitted afterwards that he messed up the rotation between Brink and Adam DiMichele, a boo-boo which allowed DiMichele to make some headway in his extended game reps, while forcing Brink to sit on the sidelines and wonder if his time is up in Winnipeg.

His final line Sunday: Two pass attempts. Zero completions for zero yards.

"Those aren’t the best stats I’ve put up," joked Brink, who holds Huskies’ career records for yards (10,913) and touchdowns (76).

To his credit, Brink wasn’t upset with the small error. Sure, it wasn’t how he envisioned his CFL debut and he would have loved to see more time in front of the Winnipeg fans, but any frustration he may have had at the circumstances regarding his lack of playing time was certainly tempered by Tuesday.

"All you can do is take from the reps that you did play," he said. "I know that with what I had, I went to the right places with the football, made good throws. I’ll build on that and hopefully I’ll get a chance again next week."

Does Brink blame the coach? Of course not.

He’s still here, right?

"We all get in similar position where in the heat of the moment, something happens," he added. "That’s just the nature of the game, right? Things slip my mind from time to time, so I would never blame someone from that."

LaPolice has uttered the terms ‘learning’ and ‘evaluation’ so many times in training camp, one wonders if they should be the Blue Bombers’ marketing campaign this season. But before we all look for the ‘Unfinished Teaching’ billboards around town, remember this: The 2010 edition of the Bombers also marks LaPolice’s first head coaching gig, and surely he’ll be absorbing a lesson or two as the team comes together over the next two weeks.

Was he trying to do too much on the sidelines Sunday? The coach wouldn’t say, but he did admit he’s had to remind himself to be more of a delegator than a regulator during camp.

"If I get too focused in on one thing — maybe calling the plays, or helping with the play calling or coaching up guys — I may miss (something)," LaPolice said. "I’m making sure I don’t coach everything. I’ve been trying to do a better job of that."

If Brink wanted to lay some blame for his pre-empted time, he could also look at the receivers assigned to catch the two balls he put up. Both Cory Watson and Jabari Arthur dropped easy passes during Brink’s limited minutes, two blown chances that put a quick end to his important real-time evaluation.

"No, I don’t blame those guys, either," he said. "There’s nothing I can do about it now. We’re out here in the same position — we’re all trying to get better.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca