Most Outstanding Player Award

[jerrym]

It's time to predict the MOP. In the East, with the injury to Whitaker, Ray's main competitor a month ago, I think Ricky Ray will win. While Chad Owens has been outstanding when he played, he missed considerable time and therefore I do not think he will get much consideration. Collaros has looked good recently but he has also missed considerable time. In addition, he is seventh in passing yards and behind Ray in Rating 95.6 to 89.3.
In the West, while Cornish has been phenomenal when he has played, he has already missed eight games, almost certainly putting him out of the picture. I therefore think it's down to Adarius Bowman, who has 1,352 receiving yards and an almost 400 yard lead on second place Clarence Denmark, and Solomon Elimimian, whose 121 tackles leads second place Brandon Smith by 43 tackles. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Elimimian should get the West and National MOP because he has been so dominant, but I realize this is a risky choice, as defensive players have never won the award.
Since no defensive player has ever won the award, my choice is unlikely to occur. (Garney Henley won the award when he played a full season as wide receiver, in part, because his outstanding play as a defensive back in previous seasons had never been officially recognized. Hal Patterson, the 1956 winner, is the only player listed for a defensive position, but he is listed as a defensive back/offensive end in the two-way player era. However, as everyone remembers him as Sam Etcheverry's Hall of Fame receiver, I am sure he did not win the award for his defensive prowess). So I think Bowman will get the award, as Ray has won before, he is doing well but certainly not having his best season, and the Argos are not doing well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CFL's_M...g_Player_Award

[Argocister]

If Crompton continues to take the ALs on its winning streak, would he or the Montreal Defense be considered MOP?
Not necessarily the greatest numbers but the greatest effect on the team.

[ArgoRavi]

If Crompton continues to take the ALs on its winning streak, would he or the Montreal Defense be considered MOP?
Not necessarily the greatest numbers but the greatest effect on the team.

Crompton is managing games effectively but I really don't consider him to be playing at an MOP level. The Montreal defence has been dominant which is the primary reason for their resurgence. Another key for them has been getting their receiving corps healthy (with the exception of Chad Johnson who is not a factor anyway).

[jerrym]

In the opening post I mentioned Hal Patterson and Garney Henley. For younger fans here are bios of their careers. Patterson, incidentally had 1914 yards as a receiver in a 14 game season in the year he won the award. Quite an accomplishment!
While Henley won the award as a receiver in 1972, this was, in part, compensation for overlooking his accomplishments as a defensive back, where he chosen as an Eastern and All Canadian All-Star eight straight years. In 1972, when Henley won the award he had 881 yards receiving in 14 games.

http://www.cflapedia.com/Players/p/patterson_hal.htm

http://www.cflapedia.com/Players/h/henley_garney.htm

[Argo57]

Slim pickings trying to find an MOP in the east this season. Ray has been good but not great (for various reasons) and there is very little else to choose from.

[jerrym]

Crompton is managing games effectively but I really don't consider him to be playing at an MOP level. The Montreal defence has been dominant which is the primary reason for their resurgence. Another key for them has been getting their receiving corps healthy (with the exception of Chad Johnson who is not a factor anyway).

Since Crompton did not start until the ninth week of the season, I think he will not receive much consideration. Furthermore he ranks 8th in passing yardage with 1947 yards, roughly 500 yards behind Collaros, who has also missed considerable time. In addition, his QB Rating of 83.5 is considerably behind Ray's 95.6 and even Collaros's 89.3. I think the chances of any player winning who has missed substantial time, is almost zero. If any such player were to win, I would rank Cornish as the most outstanding, followed by Owens, and Collaros in order, ahead of Crompton.
Bo Levi Mitchell,who ranks fifth in passing yardage with 3,043 and a QB rating of 97.2, and who now has a record career QB win starts numbering 15 versus 1 loss over two seasons, but has missed three games will also get some consideration.

[jerrym]

With seven tackles and an interception tonight, Solomon Elimimian broke JC Sherritt's record of 130 defensive tackles tonight, giving him 132 with one game to play. Elimimian also has 8 Special Team tackles, 5 sacks and 3 fumble recoveries.
During the Edmonton-BC TSN half-time show, all the panel were in favour of giving him the Most Outstanding Player award. Although I argued above that Solomon deserves the award, I was pleasantly surprised to see them support him for MOP as they noted, as I have above, that the MOP award has never been given to a defensive player. I hope the momentum to give it to Elimimian keeps building.

[jerrym]

Solomon Elimimian has been named the West Division nominee for the MOP award - the first time a defensive player has been a finalist for the award. As noted in my last post, the momentum for giving the award to a defensive player has been building for at least a month. It reminds me of 1972, when Garney Henley, who had been considered the best defensive player in the league for almost a decade, started getting more and more support for MOP. However, that year, he played receiver, gaining 881 yards. While it is quite possible he was not the best offensive player that year, he was very good and many felt he should be given the award as recognition of his career accomplishments, which were primarily on defence.
With 2014 being a year in which the defences dominated, and Ricky Ray having a good but not great season, I now think a similar sentiment is building for giving Elimimian the MOP award, partly in recognition of his historic 143 tackles and overall defensive dominance, and partly as acknowledgement of the vital importance of defence to success in the game.

[jerrym]

Here is the Vancouver Sun perspective on the Solomon-Ricky race.

A record-breaking season has earned Solomon Elimimian a historic nomination.The B.C. Lions linebacker was named the West Division finalist for the CFL's outstanding player award Thursday after registering a league-record 143 tackles. The six-foot, 227-pound Elimimian became the first pure defensive player named a conference nominee for the league's top individual honour. ...
Several two-way performers have won the outstanding player award, but Elimimian is the first defensive-only star to be named a division finalist.
Toronto Argonauts quarterback Ricky Ray was named the East Division's outstanding player for a second straight year in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada and nine CFL head coaches. Despite injuries to veteran receivers as Chad Owens, Andre Durie and Jason Barnes and promising rookie Anthony Coombs, Ray led the CFL in passing yards (4,595), TDs (28), completion percentage (68.5 per cent) and completions (425).
But Toronto missing the CFL playoffs has put a huge damper on Ray's season.
"I'd much rather be known for being a winner and being in the playoffs than putting up good stats," Ray said during a conference call. "The reason we play this game is to be able to accomplish some things as a team and obviously win the Grey Cup.
"There's no other feeling like that."

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/L...907/story.html

[jerrym]

BC Lions' linebacker coach, Johnny Holland, who had 145 tackles in his best NFL season, played an important role in Solomon's success.

His star pupil with the Lions -- Solomon Elimimian -- had a record 143 defensive tackles this season in the Canadian Football League. ...
“It makes me feel so proud, because I know how much he put into it,” Holland said. “I hope I did something to help build his confidence, so he can realize how good he can be. When Benny (head coach Mike Benevides) interviewed me for the job, he told me he had two great linebackers (in Elimimian and Adam Bighill) that needed to take their game to another level. I told him, ‘I’m you’re guy.’ I hope it worked out like that.” ...
“I’m a firm believer in the theory that when you work hard, and you’re around good people, great things happen,” Elimimian said. “Certainly, me and Biggie are surrounded by a great coach in Johnny Holland. And you have to give it up to Mike Benevides for making the hire. Johnny was somebody Mike wasn’t familiar with, but his credentials said a lot. He gives us so much confidence.”
Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Alan Page (1971) and New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor (1986) previously broke the stranglehold in the NFL, where quarterbacks and running backs have dominated the Associated Press Player of the Year Award throughout the decades.
But Elimimian’s selection as a most outstanding player finalist is a watershed moment for the CFL ...

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/L...269/story.html

[Argocister]

I agree that Elimimian has an edge on Ray to win the MOP award ..... But from a different perspective .....can you imagine what the Argos would have been like without Ray at the helm ? Yikes! ....I believe the Lions D would still be fairly strong without Elimimian.

[jerrym]

It looks like Elimimian is going to win MOP. Other likely award winners are discussed at the bottom of the article.

Solomon Elimimian is poised to make CFL history Thursday night.The B.C. Lions rugged linebacker is expected to be the runaway winner of the league’s outstanding player award after registering a CFL-record 143 tackles this season. If Elimimian is selected ahead of Ricky Ray of the Toronto Argonauts in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada and the nine league head coaches, he’d become the first pure defensive player to capture the honour.
The six-foot, 227-pound Elimimian is certainly one of the league’s top feel-good stories of the season and is expected to also walk away with the top defensive player honour during the league’s awards banquet at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. But Ray deserves equal consideration as the CFL’s outstanding player.
The 35-year-old Californian was the CFL leader in passing yards (4,595), touchdowns (28), completion percentage (68.5), attempts (620) and completions (425). Ray was the only league quarterback to crack the 4,000-yard passing plateau and was a big reason why Toronto sported the league’s top aerial attack in 2014.
He did so in spite of an injury-ravaged receiving corps that saw veteran slotbacks Andre Durie, Jason Barnes and Chad Owens and promising rookie Anthony Coombs all miss significant chunks of the season. The absence of Durie, Barnes and Owens left Ray without trusted veteran players while continually having to get used to new faces in the lineup.
What’s more, Ray played the ’14 campaign with a shoulder ailment that required off-season surgery, yet he still made 17 regular-season starts.
Ray’s detractors suggest his completion percentage and 15 interceptions are clear indications of a down year for the Toronto quarterback. Certainly, in 2013 Ray threw just two interceptions while completing a league-record 77.2 per cent of his passes.
However, Ray only made 11 starts last season in being named the finalist for the league’s outstanding player award behind Calgary running back Jon Cornish. However, despite being less than 100 per cent physically and with a seemingly ever-changing receiving corps, Ray helped Toronto finish with an 8-10 record to narrowly miss making the East Division playoffs.
Even with Elimimian’s outstanding season, B.C. (9-9) finished fourth in the West Division standings to become the No. 3 playoff seed in the East before losing 50-17 to Montreal in the division semifinal.
Here’s a look at who should win the other individual honours:
Top Defensive Player — Elimimian, again, as he was by far the league’s most dominant and consistent defensive player. Montreal linebacker Bear Woods was second overall in tackles with 89 and is a deserving finalist.
Top Canadian — Cornish wins this honour for the third straight year after posting a league-high 1,082 yards rushing in just nine games. Had Cornish been able to maintain that pace over an 18-game schedule, he would’ve broken Mike Pringle’s single-season rushing record and been a lock for a second straight outstanding player award. Hamilton’s Ted Laurent is the finalist.
Top lineman — Calgary centre Brett Jones likely wins, an accomplishment for a second-year player. Montreal’s Jeff Perrett is the finalist.
Special-teams award — Toronto’s Swayze Waters was the league’s leading scorer and punter. Winnipeg’s Lirim Hajrullahu is the finalist.
Top rookie — Edmonton linebacker Dexter McCoil (tied for league lead with six interceptions) should get the nod ahead of Toronto defensive lineman Tristan Okpalaugo (12 sacks).

http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl...istory-as-mop/

[jerrym]

Below is an excerpt from a long article about, Solomon Elimimian and what he learned about using your intellect in football from his father, a retired professor, and from coaching at Simon Fraser University in his spare time. His brother Abe coaches there. Solomon must be a pretty good coach as one of the players that he coached, Jordan Herdman, set a single season tackle record of 165 (66 more than the second place player in the US league SFU that SFU plays in. Herdman is only a sophomore, so it sounds like he could be a great find for whatever CFL team drafts him, although with those numbers as a sophomore it's much more likely that he's heading for the NFL, at least initially.

Abe Elimimian, who had previous coaching stints at SMU and Washington State, was brought on board by first-year Simon Fraser head coach Jacques Chapdelaine, a Clan alumnus and former B.C. Lions offensive co-ordinator.As a coach seeking to recalibrate the football program on Burnaby Mountain, Chapdelaine thought Solomon’s presence could double the Elimimian coaching power.
“Solly was an easy one to call because Abe was here,” Chapdelaine said. “I knew, from my own experience, that coaching helps you see things differently as a player.”
Eyes and thinking skills, two of a linebacker’s most important tools, thus were sharpened this season at Simon Fraser, where Solomon believes he benefited as much as the Clan did by having him coach there.
“Any time you spend more time with the game, you see the game better and your knowledge of the game expands,” he says. “Man, it’s fun, helping kids improve their game. It opens your mind. And they’ve got some good kids up there.”
None are brighter than the sophomore linebacker Jordan Herdman, a Winnipeg native who was selected Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) defensive player of the year. His single-season tackles total of 165 — an average of 15 a game — was 66 more than his nearest GNAC rival. He also broke the previous single-game record for tackles with 27.
Herdman’s dominance in the classroom was just as impressive. The 20-year-old headlined the GNAC Academic All-Conference team with a 3.99 GPA (out of 4) in biomedical physiology.
Herdman doesn’t watch CFL

http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/f...370/story.html

[ArgoRavi]

Elimimian won both MOP and top defensive player. Jon Cornish won top Canadian. Brett Jones won top offensive lineman. Dexter McCoil won top rookie while our Swayze Waters won top special teams player. Randy Chevrier of the Stamps won the Tom Pate Award and the RedBlacks ownership group won the Commissioner's Award. Finally, the Argos' James Yurichuk won the Jake Gaudaur Award.

http://cfl.ca/news/tag/awards14