Game Thread: Edmonton Elks @ Toronto Argonauts

[jerrym]

Tre Ford just show he is a in a league of his own in terms of escapability as he eluded Argo after Argo to escape and throw a TD pass. Still overall Argos are doing a good job of containing him. You just can't keep Houdini under water forever.

[Argo57]

The RTP penalty was a joke!

[jerrym]

The Argo coaching staff should have taken AJ out of the game the first time he limped off the field to avoid serious injury in a game which is meaningless for the Argos.

[jerrym]

McManus pick six just as Ford was marching the Elks towards the end zone. Winton always seems to come up with key plays.

[jerrym]

Argo DL dominating game shutting down Brown and sacking Ford.

[jerrym]

Great effort by Pierce to get the INT on what looked like a completion to Cobb.

[jerrym]

Argos sitting like vultures in the final minutes picking apart the Elks offence.

[Antwon]

Great game, they left Kelly in long enough to keep his rhythm. Our D is looking strong.
I wish TSN would have shown a few more Alum.
And Ford is going to be a force in the future.

["Issues"Mcgee]

14,246.

[Mocha]

Bit of a shame UofT vs York was scheduled at the same time as the Argos game. The three teams should be working together at cross-promotion.

Then again, York put up no resistance in the game, as usual. 57-3 for the Blues.

[Waffle]

After years of being an Argo fan, I wondered if the sack on the first play for the offence was a portend of things to come. But this Argo team is different and resilient. Good game by them, esp special teams and the defence.


Imagine having a win with only 16 passing plays.


I thought Dan Adeboboye looked pretty good. Maybe they have a successor to Harris.

[ArgoRavi]

The RTP penalty was a joke!

That was the one on Harry, right? Honestly, I have no idea what he did on that play that warranted a roughing penalty.

I also though that the horsecollar penalty, which kept the Elks' lone TD drive alive late in the second quarter, was a weak call. The defender (Jones?) got a hand on the nameplate but quickly removed it and did not appear to pull on it.

After the Harry penalty, I started to wonder if there was a new rule about not being able to touch Tre Ford.

[Argo57]

That was the one on Harry, right? Honestly, I have no idea what he did on that play that warranted a roughing penalty.

I also though that the horsecollar penalty, which kept the Elks' lone TD drive alive late in the second quarter, was a weak call. The defender (Jones?) got a hand on the nameplate but quickly removed it and did not appear to pull on it.

After the Harry penalty, I started to wonder if there was a new rule about not being able to touch Tre Ford.

Yes Ravi, that’s the play I was referring to and you are also correct in regards to the horse collar penalty.
Nice to see the ever confused and incompetent Tom Vallessi back in control of things on the field.

[paulwoods13]

Great job by the org on the reunion. Hats off to Hogie and everyone else involved in bringing back so many players and putting on such a great tailgate and in-game ceremonies and videos. There has been some grumbling, on site and at the tailgate, about the wristband policy. But I don't know what else could have been done apart from publicizing the fact that wristbands would be handed out and that numbers were limited because of time constraints. The players involved are not gonna sit there and sign for three hours, and lines have to be controlled in some fashion. Anyone who really wanted autographs could have got them from many more guys than just the big six. There was a huge corral with players chatting and signing for most of the three hours the thing was open, and there were no restrictions on getting to them.

As for the game itself, the D looked extremely good and it's especially great to see the subs performing so well, in particular Mason Pierce who has really come into his own at halfback. Jonathan Jones had a monster game as the last-minute replacement for Jordan Williams, who was a late scratch after tweaking something during warmups. And after their bye week, McManis and Oakman played like they were shot out of a cannon. I expect to see similar energy from Hendrix next week, maybe Barlow as well. I think McManis has supplanted Pickett as the likely Eastern nominee for MODP, and I think he should be the favourite to become just the second Argo to win that award.

To my eyes, Kelly has not looked himself for a few games. He's missing on passes he was making earlier this season. Fortunately this has not cost us in any tangible way, but it speaks to the need to keep getting him game reps. I would prefer he play the first half of each of the last three games (and maybe more than that vs. Sask) than have him sit one out entirely.

[ArgoGabe22]

Great job by the org on the reunion. Hats off to Hogie and everyone else involved in bringing back so many players and putting on such a great tailgate and in-game ceremonies and videos. There has been some grumbling, on site and at the tailgate, about the wristband policy. But I don't know what else could have been done apart from publicizing the fact that wristbands would be handed out and that numbers were limited because of time constraints. The players involved are not gonna sit there and sign for three hours, and lines have to be controlled in some fashion. Anyone who really wanted autographs could have got them from many more guys than just the big six. There was a huge corral with players chatting and signing for most of the three hours the thing was open, and there were no restrictions on getting to them.

As for the game itself, the D looked extremely good and it's especially great to see the subs performing so well, in particular Mason Pierce who has really come into his own at halfback. Jonathan Jones had a monster game as the last-minute replacement for Jordan Williams, who was a late scratch after tweaking something during warmups. And after their bye week, McManis and Oakman played like they were shot out of a cannon. I expect to see similar energy from Hendrix next week, maybe Barlow as well. I think McManis has supplanted Pickett as the likely Eastern nominee for MODP, and I think he should be the favourite to become just the second Argo to win that award.

To my eyes, Kelly has not looked himself for a few games. He's missing on passes he was making earlier this season. Fortunately this has not cost us in any tangible way, but it speaks to the need to keep getting him game reps. I would prefer he play the first half of each of the last three games (and maybe more than that vs. Sask) than have him sit one out entirely.

Of course there will be grumbling. Wristbands were gone before tailgate opened. Not even Argos staff were aware of this policy. Fans will always get turned away or miss out at these kind of events. But the organization keeps shooting themselves in the foot with such poor communication. Also, there are methods that organizers have in place to ensure the line goes smoothly and quickly. Wristbands even got turned away because it went too slow. Like the Blue/White game in Guelph starting earlier than shared with the fans. Why screw around with the fans like that? It’s disappointing and some will say us fans are too negative. I just think we care too much and want to see a better effort done by the organization. They desperately need someone in place to spearhead everything the team does. Almost like a president. Someone is signing off on these but no one it taking any responsibility for it.

[paulwoods13]

Of course there will be grumbling. Wristbands were gone before tailgate opened. Not even Argos staff were aware of this policy. Fans will always get turned away or miss out at these kind of events. But the organization keeps shooting themselves in the foot with such poor communication. Also, there are methods that organizers have in place to ensure the line goes smoothly and quickly. Wristbands even got turned away because it went too slow. Like the Blue/White starting earlier than shared with the fans. Why screw around with the fans like that? It’s disappointing and some will say us fans are too negative. I just think we care too much and want to see a better effort done by the organization. They desperately need someone in place spearhead everything the team does. Almost like a president.

No president, however accomplished, could or should micro-manage to the level you seem to want. Could there have been better communications with fans about the need to get there early to get a wristband? Yes. Should anyone have expected that every autograph-seeker would be accommodated in two 45-minute windows? No. Is grumbling about this the best possible response to an organization that did so many things well in the celebration (like bringing in dozens of players, from big names to lesser lights), and has put a 13-2 team on the field? No.

[paulwoods13]

Back to the game-day thread, there was one major (and possibly devastating) development. Dejon Allen left the game and had a boot on one foot. He was replaced by Hunter, with MacKellar sliding into Hunter's spot at LG. Presumably Cage will be healthy soon, but I have no idea whether either Cage or Tate can slide over to RT. If we leave Hunter out there, Mackellar is adequate at guard but we start to get thin behind the starters. Giffen's a good player, but Noll is unproven and I've expressed concerns about Richards many times over the past year.

[ArgoGabe22]

No president, however accomplished, could or should micro-manage to the level you seem to want. Could there have been better communications with fans about the need to get there early to get a wristband? Yes. Should anyone have expected that every autograph-seeker would be accommodated in two 45-minute windows? No. Is grumbling about this the best possible response to an organization that did so many things well in the celebration (like bringing in dozens of players, from big names to lesser lights), and has put a 13-2 team on the field? No.

Including additional information in the details provided, creating a system (ex. no individual photos, one item per person), having actual knowledgeable staff present is not micromanaging. It's really the minimum. This would never happen with Leafs or Raptors. Raptors make it very clear it is a wrist banded event and bands are distributed at a certain time.

Being 13-2 should not be an excuse for something they have overlooked or did not plan properly. No one is blaming football ops. This is the 150th after all. And this isn't the first time something was poorly communicated with the fans

[paulwoods13]

Including additional information in the details provided, creating a system (ex. no individual photos, one item per person), having actual knowledgeable staff present is not micromanaging. It's really the minimum. This would never happen with Leafs or Raptors. Raptors make it very clear it is a wrist banded event and bands are distributed at a certain time.

Being 13-2 should not be an excuse for something they have overlooked or did not plan properly. No one is blaming football ops. This is the 150th after all. And this isn't the first time something was poorly communicated with the fans

This organization is not perfect. But as far as celebrations go, this one was done a lot bigger and better than any other one I've seen. They spent a lot of money and effort bringing in a lot of people for this, and they honoured them suitably and appropriately before and during the game. Imposing rules as you suggest would not have guaranteed everyone who wanted an autograph got one, and probably would have resulted in just as much, if not more, criticism. I have no idea what Raptors events you are talking about, but I bet there has never been a Raptors event with six legendary players signing autographs, and dozens more former players also available to interact directly with.

[ArgoGabe22]

This organization is not perfect. But as far as celebrations go, this one was done a lot bigger and better than any other one I've seen. They spent a lot of money and effort bringing in a lot of people for this, and they honoured them suitably and appropriately before and during the game. Imposing rules as you suggest would not have guaranteed everyone who wanted an autograph got one, and probably would have resulted in just as much, if not more, criticism. I have no idea what Raptors events you are talking about, but I bet there has never been a Raptors event with six legendary players signing autographs, and dozens more former players also available to interact directly with.

Raptors hold or at least used to hold (I stopped following) public signings with current and past players. Two players at a time. And they make it clear what the rules are. Of course its a crapshoot but at least they have it written down and can point to it when asked. The effort some fans put in to come to a tailgate at not an easy time on a work day and to to only find out there was some details not included is not fair to them. It's just such a typical Argos SNAFU. The wristbands didn't even guarantee you one last night...