July 30, 2013: BC Lions vs. Toronto Argonauts

[T-Bone]

http://cfl.assets.mrx.ca/shared/sked_blocks_logos/2012_2/2012_schedule_default2/bc.png vs. http://cfl.assets.mrx.ca/shared/sked_blocks_logos/2012_2/2012_schedule_default2/tor.png

Week 5
Tuesday, July 30, 2013 at 7:30pm EDT.
Rogers Centre. Toronto, ON.

TV: TSN (http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/feature/?id=508) - NBC Sports (http://cfl.ca/page/us-broadcast-schedule)
Video Webcast: Mobile TV (http://www.tsn.ca/mobiletv/)
Team Radio BC: TEAM 1040 (http://www.teamradio.ca/#) - TOR: TSN Radio 1050 (http://www.tsn.ca/toronto/feature/?fid=43622)
Audio Webcast: BC: Here (http://www.teamradio.ca/live/music-player/index.html) - TOR: Here (http://www.tsn.ca/Toronto/listen/)
Satellite Radio: SiriusXM (http://www.siriusxm.ca/sports-schedules/cfl/)

Depth Charts: BC: Here (http://www.bclions.com/page/depthchart) - TOR: Here (http://www.argonauts.ca/depthchart/list/team/7/year/2013)

Ticket Info: Here (http://www.argofans.com/showthread.php?1999-Save-30-on-Toronto-Argonauts-Tickets-!!!!!&p=31437&viewfull=1#post31437) and Here (http://www.argonauts.ca/page/single-game-tickets) or at Rogers Centre Gate 9 Box Office (http://www.rogerscentre.com/events/tickets.jsp).

Post Game: Collaros and Co. Cruise Past Lions (http://www.argonauts.ca/article/week-5-argos-vs-lions)

[Will]

Much of this game (from our perspective) is clouded because we don't know what is up with #15 or #44. We were in for a tough assignment anyhow because the Lions appear to be firing on all cylinders right now and we were in tough against them in BC a few weeks ago.

[argotom]

Agree even with a full team, the Lions are light years away from Winnipeg.

[mchesher03]

I'm guessing Shane Horton is in for Brandon Isaac at LB for this one....

[matchuk]

damn...what is attendance going to be for this one? ray is possibly out, kackert is out, and its a tuesday evening game,....8,000?

[1argoholic]

This is a team we've only beaten once in the last 15 or 16 times. We did beat them when it counted at Grey Cup 04 though. We'll be in real tough.

[mchesher03]

damn...what is attendance going to be for this one? ray is possibly out, kackert is out, and its a tuesday evening game,....8,000?

this will for sure be the lowest attendance we have this season, no question.

[argonaut11xx]

Attendance...its going to be bad....however the Sask game was in the midst of the flood, and other things that affected getting to the stadium in a bad way...
so....i kinda suspect another 18K ish crowd...BC is never a big draw, plus No Ray, No Kack, and other on field issue's...

Tuesday?...what a stupid night for a game...if your not a hardcore fan...would you even have a CLUE there was a Pro Football game on?

Finally, BC is the team to beat, and we would be in tough with all our vet's...so with a "rag tag" bunch of fill-in's...this could get ugly...so hopefully being a tuesday, the media wont notice either...hahahaha....

Damn i wish i was back in TO....me and Lil Bec would be there for sure....

[ArgoRedneck]

Travelzoo.com is 30% off on all tickets for this game. Just released today.

[Fungi]

http://www.13thman.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=37820
Anybody want to add to this?

[argolio]

Anybody want to add to this?I think they just about covered it.

[ArgoGabe22]

Argos announce the signing of DE Ivan Brown & RB Quinn Porter. Have released LB Akwasi Antwi. Zach Collaros was also named the starter if Ricky cannot play, will give it a go on day 3 of practice (Sunday?)

[Rich]

I'm hoping Milanovich does not name a starting QB before the game and keeps the Lions guessing. Can you imagine prepping for Ray and then having Collaros skampering all over the place instead?

[ArgoRavi]

I am sure that if it were a playoff game that Ricky would be playing but, just from reading between the lines of Milanovich's comments on Tuesday, it seems quite likely that they will keep him out of this B.C. game and get both him and Inman ready to play in Montreal in early August. Many have been anxious to see Collaros play and they will probably get their chance on Tuesday.

[paulwoods13]

Antwi's release, assuming he is truly gone, means we lost that trade. Calgary got a starting o-lineman for him. I know Federkeil wouldn't come to Toronto regardless, but wish we had something to show for him. I guess the good news is that we have scads of NI LB/STers, with Pottinger, Yurichuk, Tonye-Tonye and Hood.

I wouldn't be so sure we will see Collaros. I think it's 50/50 which backup QB starts. Harris might be more of a game manager/Jarious Jackson type, which might mean he gets the ball first.

[Will]

No fan of the Admirals but:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/TorontoArgos">@TorontoArgos</a> HC Milanovich: &quot;If Ricky (Ray) is not able to play, Zach Collaros is going to start this game.&quot; <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Argos&amp;src=hash">#Argos</a></p>&mdash; Argos Admirals (@ArgosAdmirals) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArgosAdmirals/statuses/360450931504058369">July 25, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[ArgoRavi]

Milanovich told the media today that Collaros will start if Ray can't go.

[doubleblue]

Antwi's release, assuming he is truly gone, means we lost that trade. Calgary got a starting o-lineman for him. I know Federkeil wouldn't come to Toronto regardless, but wish we had something to show for him. I guess the good news is that we have scads of NI LB/STers, with Pottinger, Yurichuk, Tonye-Tonye and Hood.

I wouldn't be so sure we will see Collaros. I think it's 50/50 which backup QB starts. Harris might be more of a game manager/Jarious Jackson type, which might mean he gets the ball first. Never could understand that trade as Antwi was not any where equal in ability. Federkeil was a potential starter, which he has become, and Antwi was a potential back up. Maybe Barker was trying to appease Huff after stealing Chris Jones.

[Argocister]

Never could understand that trade as Antwi was not any where equal in ability. Federkeil was a potential starter, which he has become, and Antwi was a potential back up. Maybe Barker was trying to appease Huff after stealing Chris Jones.

I think it was more ..... give Federkeil a chance to play as he had no interest in coming to TO. His family is stationed and happy in Calgary.

[ArgoRavi]

I think it was more ..... give Federkeil a chance to play as he had no interest in coming to TO. His family is stationed and happy in Calgary.

Agreed. Also, Federkeil is a risky proposition given his concussion issues. Like it or not, the Argos weren't going to get much of a return for him.

[Wobbler]

It was a bit weird that we accepted yet another LB in the trade, despite having signed Yurichuk in free agency. I suppose Antwi did have a substantially different body type than Pottinger or Yurichuk, and was worth a look at DE as well, but in retrospect a third/fourth round pick would have been much better value.

[294life]

this will for sure be the lowest attendance we have this season, no question.

My dad will be there. We do our part.

[Argocister]

My dad will be there. We do our part.

Maybe ..... Hopeful thinking..... The attendance will be okay.
They are having pre-game fun stuff at both gates 5/6 and 10/11 , which fits in well for family summer holiday times.
In fact I'm bring 10 extras to this game .... Including my nephew and his family of 4 boys for exactly the summer holiday reason.

[flafson]

It actually doesn't look that bad from Ticketmaster, quite a few sections are somewhat full.

[Wobbler]

It sounds like Jamie Robinson will indeed move from field corner to SAM LB (http://www.torontosun.com/2013/07/26/argos-talking-change-on-defence). We know he can cover receivers; now we'll find out if he can beat blocks and tackle well.

I haven't seen any indication of who the new corner will be, though. Does anyone know who lined up there on Friday?

[Argo57]

I know Chris Jones has some unique defensive philosophies but the trend seems to favour smaller more agile linebackers that can drop into coverage, very little (if any) difference between the size of the line backing corp and the DB's (Mc Cune excepted).

[ArgoRavi]

It sounds like Jamie Robinson will indeed move from field corner to SAM LB (http://www.torontosun.com/2013/07/26/argos-talking-change-on-defence). We know he can cover receivers; now we'll find out if he can beat blocks and tackle well.

I haven't seen any indication of who the new corner will be, though. Does anyone know who lined up there on Friday?

I don't know who lined up there on Friday but I wouldn't be surprised to see Gatlin in the secondary on Tuesday night. It is too bad that Johnnie Dixon was unable to go this season as he would have been an obvious replacement for Isaac.

[AngeloV]

I know Chris Jones has some unique defensive philosophies but the trend seems to favour smaller more agile linebackers that can drop into coverage, very little (if any) difference between the size of the line backing corp and the DB's (Mc Cune excepted).

Gatlin definitely took first string reps in practice today. Also looks like Bradwell will be back this week.

[Wobbler]

TSN (hashmarks) is indicating that Chiles took first team reps at WR again today, Angelo. Did you see Inman at all?

[Argo57]

Gatlin definitely took first string reps in practice today. Also looks like Bradwell will be back this week.

Angelo
How did Gatlin look to you???

[ArgoGabe22]

I was at practice yesterday and Inman just watched. I didn't see a definite starter to replace Issac, a lot of rotating so maybe it was decided today. I also saw Romby Bryant Bryant back in pads doing drills. Ray didn't look that bad but Kackert had an obvious limp. Jennings wasn't there but Porter was.

[AngeloV]

Angelo
How did Gatlin look to you???

Very hard to evaluate how a wide side corner looks in practice.


TSN (hashmarks) is indicating that Chiles took first team reps at WR again today, Angelo. Did you see Inman at all?
Chiles was taking first string reps again. Inman was dressed, but no doing much in practice.


I was at practice yesterday and Inman just watched. I didn't see a definite starter to replace Issac, a lot of rotating so maybe it was decided today. I also saw Romby Bryant Bryant back in pads doing drills.

I missed the first half hour, but didn't see Bryant at all on Saturday.

[ArgoGabe22]

I missed the first half hour, but didn't see Bryant at all on Saturday.

When I went on Friday I actually only noticed him during the stretching. Maybe he's just doing cardio at this point but he was in fact wearing pads and had a helmet.

[argonaut11xx]

I know Chris Jones has some unique defensive philosophies but the trend seems to favour smaller more agile linebackers that can drop into coverage, very little (if any) difference between the size of the line backing corp and the DB's (Mc Cune excepted).

Maybe having so many "little men" is the reason we cant stop the run....

I think we just had to much TALENT to replace this year, and while jones is a great recruiter, we lost too much talent to replace in a single season.

Remember these folks who pay to tryout, are not playing PRO football for a reason.

Really hope im wrong, but so far, its not been promising on D

[Will]

TSN is confirming that Ray will not play on Tuesday and that it will be Zach Collaros at QB.

[Argo57]

Maybe having so many "little men" is the reason we cant stop the run....

I think we just had to much TALENT to replace this year, and while jones is a great recruiter, we lost too much talent to replace in a single season.

Remember these folks who pay to tryout, are not playing PRO football for a reason.

Really hope im wrong, but so far, its not been promising on D

100% correct, you simply cannot rebuild almost an entire Defence year after year and expect success, 2-3 changes you can deal with but replacing 8-9 starters 2 years in a row is too much.
I still like our management and coaches but I wonder if they collectively overestimated (particularly on Defence) their schemes and subsequently underestimated the talent as well as chemistry that actually made it happen on the field.
A couple of months ago the Argos (Mr Rudge I believe) was making a comment about a possible dynasty, but if memory serves me correct the Eskimo teams of the late 70's and early 80's had great talent-chemistry and minimal player turnover!
I know times have changed since then but the way this past off season and subsequent start to this season have unfolded has been disappointing..

[1argoholic]

I still think that Jones and Barker have a confidence or over confidence/cocky attitudes believing that they can just keep finding guys who can play and thrive. I believe that you can't have that many changes year in and year out. Then once the season starts they continue to cut guys loose. They proved themselves last year and time will tell this year. If we can pull it together this year they'll never get questioned by me again. I'm still in their corner but I'm not happy with trying to learn a new team every year.

[Will]

Here is the depth chart (http://cfl.uploads.mrx.ca/league/pdf/en/depth/2013/2013_RegSeasonGame5vsBCJuly30071719.pdf)

This hasn't always been reliable, but it appears that Inman will suit up tomorrow, but Chiles is going to start at WR. Josh Portis will be the third-string quarterback. Jamie Robinson takes over Isaac's spot and Gatlin moves into Robinson's CB spot.

[ArgoRavi]

Here is the depth chart (http://cfl.uploads.mrx.ca/league/pdf/en/depth/2013/2013_RegSeasonGame5vsBCJuly30071719.pdf)

This hasn't always been reliable, but it appears that Inman will suit up tomorrow, but Chiles is going to start at WR. Josh Portis will be the third-string quarterback. Jamie Robinson takes over Isaac's spot and Gatlin moves into Robinson's CB spot.

I am guessing that Inman will be one of the four scratches. Also, I wonder if Chris Jennings did not pass his physical as he does not show anywhere on the active or practice rosters or on any of the lists.

[Will]

Why take a guy like Inman off the 1-game list then if your just going to make him one of the scratches?

[mchesher03]

you know what - i'm actually looking forward to this one. very low chance lightning strikes twice but last time i had expectations this low heading into a football game was last year when a whack of our backups knocked hamilton out of the playoffs. Heading into this game even with Ray, Kackert, etc. I would still say its a low percentage we pulled out a win so it's not worth risking Ricky this early into the season - let Collaros see what he can do in there against one of the league's better defences. If he shows something, great.

Also looking forward to seeing what Chiles, Iglesias, etc. can do with Collaros - opportunities can present themselves with mobile QB's when defenders press up to stop the run - maybe we can get a few big plays.

either way it's good ol' tuesday night football (hah) and we'll see what happens - the much larger game is in Montreal the following week IMO (i know i know, every game is important....)

[ArgoRavi]

Why take a guy like Inman off the 1-game list then if your just going to make him one of the scratches?

Maybe they want to keep the Lions guessing.

[Argo57]

I am looking forward to this game as well, in a lot of ways they have nothing to lose, should be interesting to see if the young guys rise to the occasion or not.

[1argoholic]

Will be shocked if we win. Happy but SHOCKED. BC has our number. Hopefully Collaros can surprise them and run for over 100 yards like Ray did against them with Edmonton a few years back.

[Ballstothewall]

damn...what is attendance going to be for this one? ray is possibly out, kackert is out, and its a tuesday evening game,....8,000?
It's looking likem 14,000'to 16,000 as of Sun, if we get a descent walk up (on a tues night, ya right) we may hit 19,000. Either way, the Rogers/ MLSE owned media, will take their shots

[argotom]

Great match up with the story lines from Zack to the new running back. Even though we are an underdog, the keys in my opinion will be at the line and on both sides. Will Zack enough time to throw and set up the running game and conversely we have to control Travis and Harris?

[LLB997]

It's looking likem 14,000'to 16,000 as of Sun, if we get a descent walk up (on a tues night, ya right) we may hit 19,000. Either way, the Rogers/ MLSE owned media, will take their shots I guess you are not expecting a small bump due to the survey promotion?

[mint83]

It's looking likem 14,000'to 16,000 as of Sun, if we get a descent walk up (on a tues night, ya right) we may hit 19,000. Either way, the Rogers/ MLSE owned media, will take their shots

It's very unfortunate that last year's Grey Cup championship has not led to better attendance. The media love to pounce on negative CFL news and I fear that this story will begin to overshadow positive momentum the CFL has built.

[mchesher03]

The CFL is booming and doing great. The CFL in TOronto not as much - hopefully we're just in a similar situation to the Alouettes pre-molson stadium though. and the ti-cats game on a WEEKEND looks like it was a blast - except for the labour day tuesday and one thursday we're all weekends moving forward at least...

[argonaut11xx]

Just kickoff already.......geesh.....

[tennyis]

so far so good!

[argos1873]

The Zach Collaros show is getting warmed up. Look the other way Ottawa.

[Ballstothewall]

Crowd does not seem that bad, thought it would be worse

[argos1873]

Crowd does not seem that bad, thought it would be worse

They seem to be a bit more boisterous than usual as well, which might be helping it look a little bigger than it might be. I'm streaming online because I refuse to pay Robbers, so its hard for me to tell though.

[Argos4Life]

So far so good. Pretty entertaining game and the crowd although small is in to it.

[294life]

Good start. Zach doing the two step on Bighill

[Ballstothewall]

Man, this kid looks good

[argos1873]

Man, this kid looks good

I don't want to go too far out and say he's the real deal, but he seems to have a lot of tools under his belt. He passes well under pressure, is not afraid to run, and scrambles well. I guess his weakness could be that he can get caught deep in the backfield when the line breaks down, and I'm afraid he's going to get hurt on some of his runs.

[294life]

so far so 100th grey cup

[Deerkeeper]

20000 plus attendance according to TSN radio

[Argos4Life]

Up 24 - 12. C'mon defense keep playing strong.

[Argos4Life]

Sounds like 20, 000 but doesn't look like it.

[argos1873]

Steele seals it, with a nice over the top TD.

[294life]

Very impressive performance tonight. Should be quite the tilt next Thursday for top spot.

Congrats. Someone might want to check the degree of 1argo's shock

[tennyis]

just sealed it again haha. Steele has looked very good, we have a new starting RB... Kackert has not been impressive this year.

Argos need to find a way to keep Collaros.. this kid is something else! If he starts again this year and has a few more games like this then they may have to consider protecting him and not Ray.

Having said that I have asked this before.. his contract is up this year does anyone know for sure if they need to protect him? he's a free agent so I don't believe he goes into the draft?

[Argo57]

Wow
Didn't see that coming!!!!
ARRRRRGOOOOSSS!!!!!!!

[ArgoZ]

ARRRRRRRRRRGOOOOOS! Screw you Ottawa! He's ours.

[Midnight Blue]

Gotta love a Defense, which limits the Lions to an average of 3 points a quarter.

CoolArgos did ok too.



Ka 'Pla !

[1argoholic]

The only people more shocked than me were all wearing Orange. Collaros looked GREAT and way too much fun to watch. Love Ray but Collaros is the kind of QB I LOVE to watch. If anyone from Ottawa is reading this Collaros has mentioned his Hate fort the Ottawa region and that he wouldn't report. haha.

The D played great and the crowd was loud and sounded amazing across the tv. GREAT night all in all. Steele looked better and better as the game went on. I guess Barker and Jones know how to find talent. If we could keep a team together for three or four years they could be scary good.

Fun night and I'm very happy.

[Argo57]

A lot of encouraging things tonight, obviously Collaros and Steele lead the way but in my mind most importantly the defence looked great tonight, hopefully they have turned the corner.
Liked Gatlin, but am pretty impressed with Cleyon Laing as well.

[Stevoman]

Well that was very fun to watch!

[Wobbler]

I was amazed at how poised the whole team was, despite the changes on defense, new QB, and new RB. We took very few penalties and our only true blunder (Steele knocking the ball from Collaros' hands in Q1) didn't hurt us. Pre was terrible, and that didn't really hurt us either.

Huge credit to the D for stifling BC while ZC got comfortable. Then he just... took over. He is talented and very fun to watch. At this point I'm not sure it matters how good Trevor Harris is; why would we play him?

I can't remember the last time I saw our team deliver such effective pressure against an opposing QB. BC clearly wasn't expecting it, which obviously helped.

Overall: wow!

[Wobbler]

Oh, and I've said before that Kackert hasn't been the same player this season. I'm not happy he was injured, obviously, but I don't think he's going to have an easy time winning his job back.

[argos1873]

just sealed it again haha. Steele has looked very good, we have a new starting RB... Kackert has not been impressive this year.

Argos need to find a way to keep Collaros.. this kid is something else! If he starts again this year and has a few more games like this then they may have to consider protecting him and not Ray.

Having said that I have asked this before.. his contract is up this year does anyone know for sure if they need to protect him? he's a free agent so I don't believe he goes into the draft?

Not sure but if he's a free agent then I guess Ottawa or anyone gets to sign him. I believe the expansion draft is for anyone on your roster, which would mean signed players.

[Midnight Blue]

I was amazed at how poised the whole team was, despite the changes on defense, new QB, and new RB. We took very few penalties and our only true blunder (Steele knocking the ball from Collaros' hands in Q1) didn't hurt us. Pre was terrible, and that didn't really hurt us either.

Huge credit to the D for stifling BC while ZC got comfortable. Then he just... took over. He is talented and very fun to watch. At this point I'm not sure it matters how good Trevor Harris is; why would we play him?

I can't remember the last time I saw our team deliver such effective pressure against an opposing QB. BC clearly wasn't expecting it, which obviously helped.

Overall: wow!


Try not to get too excited, Wobbler....

Remember, your job is to keep the rest of us, from going insane.


Mind you, while it may be too late, for 1argoholic and myself,

there are still some fans on this site, who take your exquisite advice, seriously.


Ka 'Pla !

[argos1873]

I'm not ready to give up on Kackert yet, just like I'm not ready to hand the reigns to Collaros. But the 2 did impress. A few more games like this from Collaros, and I say leave Ray unprotected and hope Ottawa balks on age and salary, and I say you keep Steele on for short yardage plays when Kackert returns, if the roster allows it. I'm willing to give up on Ray due to age, but not willing to give up on Kackert yet.

[ArgoGabe22]

But the 2 did impress. A few more games like this from Collaros, and I say leave Ray unprotected and hope Ottawa balks on age and salary, and I say you keep Steele on for short yardage plays when Kackert returns, if the roster allows it. I'm willing to give up on Ray due to age, but not willing to give up on Kackert yet.

I would still protect Ray regardless how Collaros does. Ray is a proven CFL QB and is only 32. I'm not sure he'll be like Calvillo and play till he's 49 but he still has 6 good years left to win multiple MOPs. Who knows Harris/Portis/Gale may have huge potential as well.

[Midnight Blue]

I'm not ready to give up on Kackert yet, just like I'm not ready to hand the reigns to Collaros. But the 2 did impress. A few more games like this from Collaros, and I say leave Ray unprotected and hope Ottawa balks on age and salary, and I say you keep Steele on for short yardage plays when Kackert returns, if the roster allows it. I'm willing to give up on Ray due to age, but not willing to give up on Kackert yet.


Should Collaros rack up four to six games like the last one, then I might agree that he might be in a position, to shine Ray's shoes. Don't get me wrong; I like him.... But it takes more than one game, to impress in the bedroom (er, boardroom).

Collargos has definitely earned a chance to star.


But then, so have the coolest Chicks in my life.


I don't expect him to wear heels and stockings; this would be detrimental, to any new Quarterback....


Ka 'Pla !

[AngeloV]

Huge credit to the D for stifling BC while ZC got comfortable. Then he just... took over. He is talented and very fun to watch.

I'd love to hear OVArgo's thoughts on Robert McCune tonight. He was outstanding. He made to TD saving tackles causing the Lions to kick for 3 instead.

[matchuk]

I would still protect Ray regardless how Collaros does. Ray is a proven CFL QB and is only 32. I'm not sure he'll be like Calvillo and play till he's 49 but he still has 6 good years left to win multiple MOPs. Who knows Harris/Portis/Gale may have huge potential as well.

i agree...i like collaros a lot, but he doesnt have 3 grey cup rings, plain and simple...ray is proven, and has to be protected...if collaros was a free agent, maybe he could turn down every offer and have a mutual agreement to come back to toronto lol

as for the game...WOW....what an awesome game to be at...i dont think it was 20,000, but was getting pretty loud in there when mitchell started jumping around and pumping the crowd up...steele looks great, and of course so did collaros....our d was perfect...holding arguably one of the top teams in the league to 4 field goals is outstanding...

[dmont]

Helloooooooo all,

Yes, Zachy boy looked very good. No, he's not even close to replacing Ray. He had one outstanding game against a team that didn't know what to expect from him. Promising start, but not Ray-esque quite yet.

Something else to temper our enthusiasm about Colarros: our receivers were unconscious good tonight. Un. Conscious. Good. They were climbing the ladder, diving, blocking, making plays like they NEVER have for Ricky so far this season. And Owens didn't have to carry the load. Nights like this havent happened for our receivers too often in recent memory. If this is a sign of things to come, then woohoo!

On defense, I like everybody. No complaints. Carter seems to get beat on that deep route every so often. Very different looking Argonaut defense. It was "bend-don't-break" and reminded me of, weirdly enough, Rich Stubler. We just saw Chris Jones out-Stubler Rich Stubler.

Keep it going Argos! And kudos from Atlanta for the butt-load of Argo fans who turned out on a Tuesday night. Wish I coulda been there.

[Midnight Blue]

I'd love to hear OVArgo's thoughts on Robert McCune tonight. He was outstanding. He made to TD saving tackles causing the Lions to kick for 3 instead.


I agree. OV was, and is, outstanding. And so was Robert McCune. Linebackers rule !


I still remember my first post on this forum. It was in July 2009, the previous incarnation of this forum.


Someone mentioned Mike O' Shea.


I replied : "Long live the Glory ! Long Live the Fire !"



Wobbler, was the first to reply, and he said something like, "Yeeeeeah !"




Ka 'Pla !

[Wobbler]

I'd love to hear OVArgo's thoughts on Robert McCune tonight. He was outstanding. He made to TD saving tackles causing the Lions to kick for 3 instead.
McCune was terrific but I'm sure that Yurichuk and Pottinger were underused...

Seriously though, tonight was a big feather in Chris Jones' cap. His personnel changes worked, and I am still amazed at how effectively we were able to bring pressure. We had a terrific game plan on D.

[dmont]

I forgot about Steele. Great night. Might be in a position to replace Kackert. Like others said, Kackert hasn't been producing like last year. I originally thought it was the Olines fault, but Steele was playing with the same Oline. Mayve it was becausr the D was worried about our suddenly-productive receivers, or about Colarros running. Could be a lot of things. Thats why I don't get paid the big bucks to make these decisions. In Milanovich we trust! Crazy trades one week, and beat the Lions the next. Hes bullet proof.

[Rich]

The turning point of the game was when Khalif ran down the length of the bench, firing up the players and turning to fire up the crowd. A great bit of leadership, it seemed like he picked the whole building up when it looked like things were gonna be really tight.

[1argoholic]

Collaros did toss two balls into double coverage in the endzone where Barnes and Chiles made great catches. Barnes was highlight of the night material. I did love the way Collaros scrambled.

[Will]

I certainly wasn't expecting a 38-12 victory over the Lions. A big win for the team and kudos to the coaching staff in their preparations for this game.

Let us not dramatize yet about the QB's. Collaros was very good, but one game a quarterback does not make. Make no mistake about it Mr. Ricky Ray is our starting quarterback. Steele was effective, but I'm not in a rush to send Chad Kackert packing yet. The o-line struggled badly against BC and Saskatchewan. They also admitted that they didn't do as good a job run blocking in the Winnipeg game.

Marcus Ball was pretty good tonight too and credit to Mitchell and Horton for two early sacks that really set the tone for the Argonauts.

[ArgoRavi]

The D played great and the crowd was loud and sounded amazing across the tv. GREAT night all in all.

One of the best parts of the night was late in the first half when the Lions' offence took three penalties in a row without getting a play off because the Argo defence and crowd had them rattled. Khalif was going crazy - a good "crazy" - at that point.

[ArgoRavi]

Not sure but if he's a free agent then I guess Ottawa or anyone gets to sign him. I believe the expansion draft is for anyone on your roster, which would mean signed players.

The expansion draft is December 16th and Collaros is likely going to become a free agent on February 16th. Ottawa could choose him but they might have him for just two months if they are unable to sign him so he would be a risky pick.

[Wobbler]

One of the best parts of the night was late in the first half when the Lions' offence took three penalties in a row without getting a play off because the Argo defence and crowd had them rattled. Khalif was going crazy - a good "crazy" - at that point.
I did enjoy that - and it certainly seemed to demoralize the Lions.

[gilthethrill]

A strong game to start the post BI era. Gatlin looked alright on the corner, McCune was a beast & for a guy who did not make the stat sheet, Cleyon Laing continues to impress me. This D has only allowed a garbage TD in the last 2 games now.

In addition to his stats, I thought Steele showed he is not afraid to stepup & make blocks.

Definitely worth staying up late to watch the game in its entirety, but I am paying for it today.

[tennyis]

on TSN they mentioned that Collaros said he knew Ottawa would be watching and wanted to have a big game... it sounds like he wants out of town so our chances of signing him as a free agent are likely slim. He wants to start, and can't really blame him for that. Given that Ottawa can sign him as a free agent for a real chance to start he will likely jump ship as a free agent. The Redblacks will take a different QB in the draft that has a longer contract.

We all know Ray is our guy and I don't suggest that he's going to replace him after one game. If Ray does miss say 3-4 more games though and Collaros plays like this in all of them then thats when things get interesting regarding who to protect. I don't see the Ottawa ownership group taking Ray.. He will be 33 next year, making big bucks on an expansion team that is likely to have a weak supporting cast. The team will likely take 2-3 years at minimum to get a grey cup caliber team on the field. At that point Ray is probably closer to retirement then anything else.

Also have to factor in that the decision would be Collaros + 2 big name free agent signings vs Ray... because they would have about 250,000 of cap space freed up.

[tennyis]

A strong game to start the post BI era. Gatlin looked alright on the corner, McCune was a beast & for a guy who did not make the stat sheet, Cleyon Laing continues to impress me. This D has only allowed a garbage TD in the last 2 games now.

In addition to his stats, I thought Steele showed he is not afraid to stepup & make blocks.

Definitely worth staying up late to watch the game in its entirety, but I am paying for it today.

Steele has a similar style to CB3, was fun to watch. I wouldn't be surprised if the Kackert era is over... given what happened last year with Boyd they wouldn't think twice about cutting Kack

[294life]

Guess Braley's happy with the win. He can hope to have more people for the next game though I don't know if a sunday night is any better than a tuesday night.

[mchesher03]

Guess Braley's happy with the win. He can hope to have more people for the next game though I don't know if a sunday night is any better than a tuesday night.

for sure sunday night is (marginally better than tuesday) - tuesday is the double whammy of rushing to the game and rushing home from the game due to work the next day - at least sunday takes away the front end rush.

obviously friday / saturday nights would be optimal but we have to take what we get.

is it just me or was the crowd more into it than normal last night? i mean it was one of the more exciting games as of late but still - just my observation.

[gilthethrill]

Guess Braley's happy with the win. He can hope to have more people for the next game though I don't know if a sunday night is any better than a tuesday night.

Why is the game not being played in the afternoon against Edmonton??? With the Jays out of town for 10 days, I thought last nights game could have been played on Saturday of the long weekend.

[herrington2828]

Why is the game not being played in the afternoon against Edmonton??? With the Jays out of town for 10 days, I thought last nights game could have been played on Saturday of the long weekend.
Because they wanted to give us more time to tailgate and drink before

[ArgoGabe22]

I liked Steele but I'm surprised to see a few members already wanting Kackert shipped out. In the Argos offence Kackert isn't going to get 20 carries for over 100 yards like Sheets. Remember the RBs first job is to protect the QB. I wouldn't say Kakcert isn't as good as last year either. He's only played 4 games and always had hot and cold nights statistically.

[mchesher03]

my guess re: the edmonton game being at night is for TSN cause i can't see any reason for the dome to want it later.

[Will]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned I don't think is that the return game woke up a little bit. Chad had a nice return and that reverse was pretty nice, too. Prefontaine needs to be replaced if Waters is going to be out for a long time, however.

[AngeloV]

I liked Steele but I'm surprised to see a few members already wanting Kackert shipped out. In the Argos offence Kackert isn't going to get 20 carries for over 100 yards like Sheets. Remember the RBs first job is to protect the QB. I wouldn't say Kakcert isn't as good as last year either. He's only played 4 games and always had hot and cold nights statistically.

Personally, when Kackert is healthy, I want to see them both dressed. They dressed Quinn Porter last night as a back-up, so there really is no reason why they can't dress 2 import backs when Kackert is back. Always nice to put in a fresh back once in a while.

[gilthethrill]

AV, if I am not mistaken, you are high on Janzen Jackson. He showed he likes to get verbal & play physical. I was hoping he would have scored that late TD on the fumble, but he was carrying the ball like a loaf of Dempsters bread when he got hit.

[AngeloV]

AV, if I am not mistaken, you are high on Janzen Jackson. He showed he likes to get verbal & play physical. I was hoping he would have scored that late TD on the fumble, but he was carrying the ball like a loaf of Dempsters bread when he got hit.

Like they say...That's why he plays defence.

I am high on Janzen. I love a physical DB and he flies to the ball. I also like what I saw of Gatlin last night. He got beat deep once, but that was a perfect throw. The coverage was there to the point where if the throw wasn't perfect, he would have been in position to break it up.

So glad everyone on here didn't over react when the defence was having problems early this season. ;)

[ArgoGabe22]

Personally, when Kackert is healthy, I want to see them both dressed. They dressed Quinn Porter last night as a back-up, so there really is no reason why they can't dress 2 import backs when Kackert is back. Always nice to put in a fresh back once in a while.

I was thinking the same thing and also what about Chiles when Inman comes back? Would Iglesias not dress or would Chiles just have to take a back seat? I think Chiles should be rotated in sometimes as well but it can be difficult.

[gilthethrill]

I was thinking the same thing and also what about Chiles when Inman comes back? Would Iglesias not dress or would Chiles just have to take a back seat? Or has Inman been outplayed?

I think Iglesias sits. No way does Inman not dress & the speed Chiles has, he remains on the field. It will really get interesting when veteran Romby Bryant is healthy again.

[paulwoods13]

I am not in Canada and was not able to see the game, which sounds like a great one, but I am amazed how all it took was one game for people to anoint Collaros, Steele and Chiles as the ready-made replacements for Ray, Kackert and Inman. It's great to have depth, but I for one want no part of any talk about not protecting RR in the draft or getting rid of Kackert or Inman. Those guys won a Grey Cup for us, and in case anyone has forgotten, RR is completing 75 per cent of his passes, with eight TDs and no interceptions and a QB rating of 124. One great game by Collaros does not suddenly make it worth exposing RR to the Redblacks draft -- anyone who thinks they would not draft him is nuts, IMO. He is performing as well or better than he ever has, and he is only 32, with many years left. I would love to keep Collaros as well, but I cannot envisage a scenario in which Ricky Ray is not protected in the draft. As for Kackert and Inman, they have done enough over a long enough period of time to declare that they don't lose their jobs because of a single game by a rookie.

[Will]

The Argonauts passing game over the last two weeks:

Forty completions in forty-five attempts for 549 yards with 5 touchdowns and 0 interceptions thrown. A 154.5 QB rating assuming that the CFL formula is the same as the NFL. Very impressive!

[gilthethrill]

If I am not mistaken, the fumble by Collaros was the first turnover by the Argos this season. Does anyone remember when Owens had trouble hanging onto the ball?

If this team continues to win the turnover battle like they did last night, wins will continue to come.

[Wobbler]

I liked Steele but I'm surprised to see a few members already wanting Kackert shipped out.
I just double checked the thread and I can't find a single post expressing that thought.

[Will]

The Argos have yet to throw an interception, but I think there may have been a fumble or two lost in one of the earlier games, but I don't remember who or when specifically.

[ArgoGabe22]

I just double checked the thread and I can't find a single post expressing that thought.

Not exactly "shipped out" but you certainly get the vibe he is due for an immediate back up role after one good game from Steele with these comments...


Steele has looked very good, we have a new starting RB... Kackert has not been impressive this year.


I forgot about Steele. Great night. Might be in a position to replace Kackert. Like others said, Kackert hasn't been producing like last year. I originally thought it was the Olines fault, but Steele was playing with the same Oline


Steele has a similar style to CB3, was fun to watch. I wouldn't be surprised if the Kackert era is over...

[ArgoRavi]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned I don't think is that the return game woke up a little bit. Chad had a nice return and that reverse was pretty nice, too. Prefontaine needs to be replaced if Waters is going to be out for a long time, however.

Don't forget about Xander Robinson's nice kickoff return as well. I too am concerned about Prefontaine. His leg looks weaker than it was at the end of last year. His kickoffs aren't deep enough, his punts don't have sufficient distance or hang time and he is operating at less than 70% accuracy in field goals in a league that now demands its field goal kickers to be better than 80%.

[QBall]

Collaros was absolute magic last night. He was breaking tackles and dodging the Lion's defense so much you think he was covered in oil. I hope he gets the start for the next game because I'm desperate to see if this guy is for real or it was just a one-off. If he is for real I would hate to be in Barker's shoes. Ray might be proven but you always have to be looking to the future and I think losing Collaros would be huge.

[Will]

Don't forget about Xander Robinson's nice kickoff return as well. I too am concerned about Prefontaine. His leg looks weaker than it was at the end of last year. His kickoffs aren't deep enough, his punts don't have sufficient distance or hang time and he is operating at less than 70% accuracy in field goals in a league that now demands its field goal kickers to be better than 80%.

Prefontaine's punting average was 35 yards yesterday.

[ArgoRavi]

AV, if I am not mistaken, you are high on Janzen Jackson. He showed he likes to get verbal & play physical. I was hoping he would have scored that late TD on the fumble, but he was carrying the ball like a loaf of Dempsters bread when he got hit.

Kerry Joseph tweeted during last night's game that he played with Jackson's father in university and remembers when he was two years-old. You know you are old when ... :D

[gilthethrill]

Don't forget about Xander Robinson's nice kickoff return as well. I too am concerned about Prefontaine. His leg looks weaker than it was at the end of last year. His kickoffs aren't deep enough, his punts don't have sufficient distance or hang time and he is operating at less than 70% accuracy in field goals in a league that now demands its field goal kickers to be better than 80%.

My TSN feed is getting somewhat unreliable....it blacked out during that kickoff by Robinson & skips around alot during games. Since CFL is the only sport I watch, I have no idea if it does it during other sports.

[Will]

My TSN feed is getting somewhat unreliable....it blacked out during that kickoff by Robinson & skips around alot during games. Since CFL is the only sport I watch, I have no idea if it does it during other sports.

You can always watch the on demand version at TSN.ca to fill in any blanks that you may have missed.

[gilthethrill]

Collaros was absolute magic last night. He was breaking tackles and dodging the Lion's defense so much you think he was covered in oil. I hope he gets the start for the next game because I'm desperate to see if this guy is for real or it was just a one-off. If he is for real I would hate to be in Barker's shoes. Ray might be proven but you always have to be looking to the future and I think losing Collaros would be huge.

If Ricky is healthy he must start in Montreal.

[AngeloV]

I am not in Canada and was not able to see the game, which sounds like a great one, but I am amazed how all it took was one game for people to anoint Collaros, Steele and Chiles as the ready-made replacements for Ray, Kackert and Inman. It's great to have depth, but I for one want no part of any talk about not protecting RR in the draft or getting rid of Kackert or Inman. Those guys won a Grey Cup for us, and in case anyone has forgotten, RR is completing 75 per cent of his passes, with eight TDs and no interceptions and a QB rating of 124. One great game by Collaros does not suddenly make it worth exposing RR to the Redblacks draft -- anyone who thinks they would not draft him is nuts, IMO. He is performing as well or better than he ever has, and he is only 32, with many years left. I would love to keep Collaros as well, but I cannot envisage a scenario in which Ricky Ray is not protected in the draft. As for Kackert and Inman, they have done enough over a long enough period of time to declare that they don't lose their jobs because of a single game by a rookie.

I agree with you Paul. I was joking with my buddy at the game last night, "I wonder how long until the AF board decides Ray should be exposed". Ray makes everyone around him better. Even Collaros. I don't think we have to worry about Barker and Milanovich making a knee jerk reaction here. Ray will be protected.

[Will]

I agree with you Paul. I was joking with my buddy at the game last night, "I wonder how long until the AF board decides Ray should be exposed". Ray makes everyone around him better. Even Collaros. I don't think we have to worry about Barker and Milanovich making a knee jerk reaction here. Ray will be protected.

I can't say it was especially hard to predict.

[Wobbler]

I am not in Canada and was not able to see the game, which sounds like a great one, but I am amazed how all it took was one game for people to anoint Collaros, Steele and Chiles as the ready-made replacements for Ray, Kackert and Inman.
I'm amazed by your straw man argument!

[Argocister]

It was a great game last night.... Some of my two cents worth....
The game plan was super... The O-Line could do its job, and looked seamless for the most part.
Our running game was gong well, and Collaros was getting some good protection.
The " made for Collaros" plays were excellent , and BC didn't know what hit them.
Having a new QB and RB in place helped with confusing the Lions.
Our defence stepped up to the plate and handled their offence with a lot of hard hitting. The Lions had to be perfect in order to get any yards. I loved the red zone play.... It's great to say the Lions were only held to field goals. I also loved the 13 th man playing their part with the D, causing 3 penalties in a row, then decline the last one on 3 rd down. Good coaching moves and reading a crowd that was into the game. I was wandering around town a few hours before and was hoping some of the walk up summer crowd had hit the game last night, for it was a good game and good crowd to " show off" the Argos.
Collaros was super, and fun to watch. It was definitely a team win on offence, as some of those catches were strong receivers making it work. I'm sure if Zach was the routine starter, we would see some interceptions at some point, but everyone made it work last night. Our coaches did some great game planning, and with the strong practices that everyone was talking about, the Argos definitely out played and out coached the Lions.
I also liked some of the special teams plays... Improving and showing some creativity. It was a discussion point with an avid NFL fan that I invited to the game. He loved it.
I've heard the attendance was about 20,000? That was great for a Tues night game and against the Lions. ( the gang green should be embarrassed) I have a feeling the crowds will begin to grow over the season.
Go Argooooos !

[Ballstothewall]

I am not in Canada and was not able to see the game, which sounds like a great one, but I am amazed how all it took was one game for people to anoint Collaros, Steele and Chiles as the ready-made replacements for Ray, Kackert and Inman. It's great to have depth, but I for one want no part of any talk about not protecting RR in the draft or getting rid of Kackert or Inman. Those guys won a Grey Cup for us, and in case anyone has forgotten, RR is completing 75 per cent of his passes, with eight TDs and no interceptions and a QB rating of 124. One great game by Collaros does not suddenly make it worth exposing RR to the Redblacks draft -- anyone who thinks they would not draft him is nuts, IMO. He is performing as well or better than he ever has, and he is only 32, with many years left. I would love to keep Collaros as well, but I cannot envisage a scenario in which Ricky Ray is not protected in the draft. As for Kackert and Inman, they have done enough over a long enough period of time to declare that they don't lose their jobs because of a single game by a rookie.

So for the upcoming draft, we need to protect Collaros and expose Ray and his 450,000 salary. This only makes sense now

[flafson]

Why do you think he makes 450k? Pretty sure it's "only" 300k

They need to give out at games more of those clapping balloons. I was able to make so much noise with them last night.

[Ballstothewall]

Why do you think he makes 450k? Pretty sure it's "only" 300k

They need to give out at games more of those clapping balloons. I was able to make so much noise with them last night.
He made 450,000 in Edm, the Argos resigned him to a contract extension, I highly doubt he took a 150,000 pay cut with the Argos.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/story/2007/12/19/ricky-ray.html

[gilthethrill]

Why do you think he makes 450k? Pretty sure it's "only" 300k

They need to give out at games more of those clapping balloons. I was able to make so much noise with them last night.

I can honestly say I really despise those things.

[argolio]

The Argonauts passing game over the last two weeks:

Forty completions in forty-five attempts for 549 yards with 5 touchdowns and 0 interceptions thrown. A 154.5 QB rating assuming that the CFL formula is the same as the NFL. Very impressive!It's the same formula.

[paulwoods13]

So for the upcoming draft, we need to protect Collaros and expose Ray and his 450,000 salary. This only makes sense now

So you are OK with losing him and his salary to Ottawa? Because as I said, if he is exposed he will be drafted. I personally don't want to lose a guy who has won as many Grey Cups as any QB in history.

[paulwoods13]

I'm amazed by your straw man argument!

Glad I could amaze you. Anyone reading this thread and the other will have seen that there were all kinds of suggestions that the new guys should or will replace the old.

[Ballstothewall]

So you are OK with losing him and his salary to Ottawa? Because as I said, if he is exposed he will be drafted. I personally don't want to lose a guy who has won as many Grey Cups as any QB in history.
I realize now paul, that my statement did not have enough sarcasam in it. No, i don"t want to lose Ray

[flafson]

Both Kackert and Steele should be playing when available, they are both great.

[paulwoods13]

I realize now paul, that my statement did not have enough sarcasam in it. No, i don"t want to lose Ray

Thanks. I kinda thought so but you never know around here . . .

[paulwoods13]

Both Kackert and Steele should be playing when available, they are both great.

Like AV, I would not mind seeing Steele dress (presumably in place of Iglesias) when Kackert returns, but I feel quite confident that SM and MB are not going to bust out a two-RB offence any time soon.

[Gill The Thrill]

I can honestly say I really despise those things.

Agree, I'm not a fan of those clapping balloons beside my ears...I can understand some fans liking them, but I don't want that to be as distracting as the vuvuzela at the World Cup in South Africa and used throughout the entire game. I prefer to have natural noise coming from the cheering. Speaking of vuvuzelas, I've heard very few plastic air horns, which used to be staples for many in the crowd during CFL games. It got a little sad when the Argos would be losing and you'd hear one guy trying to drum up support by desperately blowing it and barely getting any sound. When I remember sounds of the old CNE for Argos games, it was the plastic airhorns and the sound of seagulls quacking as they swooped down empty sections toward the end of games to scavenge for leftovers that may have been left from departed fans...ah the good old days, when you could get crapped on by the hundreds of seagulls that would fly around the open air sections of that stadium.

[OV Argo]

He made 450,000 in Edm, the Argos resigned him to a contract extension, I highly doubt he took a 150,000 pay cut with the Argos.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/story/2007/12/19/ricky-ray.html


CFL salaries are not made public - if you're big on media reports and guessing/conjecture - fair enough.

Exposing Ray to Ottawa in the draft in favor of Collaros as the young (and cheaper) gun would be pretty iffy IMO - but I also could see it happening ... maybe ?

[Midnight Blue]

CFL salaries are not made public - if you're big on media reports and guessing/conjecture - fair enough.

Exposing Ray to Ottawa in the draft in favor of Collaros as the young (and cheaper) gun would be pretty iffy IMO - but I also could see it happening ... maybe ?


I definitely don't want to expose Ray in the draft. Luckily, we have both Collaros and Harris. Perhaps we should give Harris some starting time, as well as Collaros, and by the December 16th draft, we may wish to trade one of Collaros/Harris to the Rebs.


EDIT : To clarify, if Harris shows some good stuff, then we will know that he can be a future star, tutored by Ray. What I'm hoping for, is for Harris to out-perform as well (he's showed glimpses in the past, according to what I've read on this forum), and then we will at least know, what he's made of. Then, we can trade/give-way one of Collaros/Harris to Ottawa, with the stipulation that they not draft the other. Besides, Ray could use some more rest for his knee.

Maybe start Harris in Montreal next game? Let's find out what we've got.

[Wobbler]

Glad I could amaze you. Anyone reading this thread and the other will have seen that there were all kinds of suggestions that the new guys should or will replace the old.
Never mind the details, I suppose. Accuracy is for those silly academics.

[ArgoRedneck]

WOW!! Just got back from a canoe trip and PVR'ed the game. Did not expect that. IMO Collaros needs one more game to even consider "which one". If that game was NOT just a one game fluke then I ask myself who has more of a future in the CFL? Ray suspect knee and older, or the younger guy? Very tough choice if he preforms like that again. To those that do not like the noise makers, it looked (sounded) great on TV and helped the Argos in some downs. To me that is OLD school thinking and a big part of why the Dome sucks, put some noise and rowdy fans in there and it gets a little better.

[Ballstothewall]

CFL salaries are not made public - if you're big on media reports and guessing/conjecture - fair enough.

Exposing Ray to Ottawa in the draft in favor of Collaros as the young (and cheaper) gun would be pretty iffy IMO - but I also could see it happening ... maybe ?

When there is multiple media reports all from different source stating dam near the same money amount, then yeah I think its fairly accurate. Where did you pull the 300,000 from.

[Gill The Thrill]

To those that do not like the noise makers, it looked (sounded) great on TV and helped the Argos in some downs. To me that is OLD school thinking and a big part of why the Dome sucks, put some noise and rowdy fans in there and it gets a little better.

Noise by cheering because the crowd are educated football fans not just random clacking of thundersticks for the sake of making noise akin a 4 yr old. That's the only problem I have with using "foreign objects" to use a wrestling term to make noise. The crowd was into the game, and I've seen Argo games in years past where everybody in the end zone seats used to be given those thundersticks. I'm not a fan of the actual noise that they make, not necessarily a fan against natural ambience celebrating the play on the field. I really don't think people don't go to the games because the music is not loud enough between plays or because the PA announcer is just giving information as opposed to leading a cheer. Anyways, a great game, good atmosphere which was also provided by the St. Michael's Drumline in conjunction with the Argonotes who are always supplying a football atmosphere with their brass band.

PS - The Dome sucks for the Argos because they get nothing from the overpriced concessions and parking, which is a huge contributing factor to why many people, other than die-hards don't go down to watch the Argos there....let's not even start about security and the draconian smoking and drinking policies in Ontario, but I could write for hours about that, and we could debate those issues forever.

[ArgoRedneck]

Noise by cheering because the crowd are educated football fans not just random clacking of thundersticks for the sake of making noise akin a 4 yr old. That's the only problem I have with using "foreign objects" to use a wrestling term to make noise. The crowd was into the game, and I've seen Argo games in years past where everybody in the end zone seats used to be given those thundersticks. I'm not a fan of the actual noise that they make, not necessarily a fan against natural ambience celebrating the play on the field. I really don't think people don't go to the games because the music is not loud enough between plays or because the PA announcer is just giving information as opposed to leading a cheer. Anyways, a great game, good atmosphere which was also provided by the St. Michael's Drumline in conjunction with the Argonotes who are always supplying a football atmosphere with their brass band.

PS - The Dome sucks for the Argos because they get nothing from the overpriced concessions and parking, which is a huge contributing factor to why many people, other than die-hards don't go down to watch the Argos there....let's not even start about security and the draconian smoking and drinking policies in Ontario, but I could write for hours about that, and we could debate those issues forever.

Get a good set of ear plugs so the kids and 1000's of other fans can have fun. Name me a place in North America where a person can smoke during a sporting event in a stadium. I can tell you one can not even smoke at a NASCAR event. The security I agree is over the top. Its the same security that does a UFC event. If a ARGO fan acted the same way as fans during the UFC event they would be dragged out.

[Ron]

PS - The Dome sucks for the Argos because they get nothing from the overpriced concessions and parking, which is a huge contributing factor to why many people, other than die-hards don't go down to watch the Argos there....let's not even start about security and the draconian smoking and drinking policies in Ontario, but I could write for hours about that, and we could debate those issues forever.

So you're admitting that the Jays have more fans in Toronto than the Argos ... but a pretty wide margin? All those aspects are in place and they can get 40K+ for a crap team.

[Hewie Louie]

I've always found the crowds at Argos games to be pretty knowledgable about when to make noise and when to stay quiet. It sounded great on tv last Tuesday, and that series where BC took three straight penalties was incredible. I couldn't tell if it was Mitchell who was getting the crowd fired up or the crowd who was getting Mitchell fired up, but that's what I love about the CFL - there's an obvious relationship and connection between the players and the fans. That's rare in pro sports, and is something that shouldn't be discouraged.

Toronto sports fans used to have a horrible reputation of being too quiet. And we all know the Argos have trouble filling seats. So we should be happy that there were actually fans in the seats. And as long as they weren't being vulgar or violent, instead of complaining about the kind of noise they were making, we should be thrilled that they were making any kind of noise at all.

[Ron]

I'd say the crowd being a bit louder inspired Mitchell ... who then inspired more fans to make noise ... who inspired more Argo players to ask for noise ... which sent the fans off the hook.

I was along time ticket holder but stopped for a couple seasons. I noticed on TSN that Argo crowds sounder way quieter than I remembered at the stadium. Now I am back for this season and notice the crowd is as loud as I remembered. So TSN is doing something to cut down on the crowd noise which may lead viewers to think CFL games are more quiet (boring?) than the crowd noise we hear on NFL telecasts.

[paulwoods13]

I was along time ticket holder but stopped for a couple seasons. I noticed on TSN that Argo crowds sounder way quieter than I remembered at the stadium. Now I am back for this season and notice the crowd is as loud as I remembered. So TSN is doing something to cut down on the crowd noise which may lead viewers to think CFL games are more quiet (boring?) than the crowd noise we hear on NFL telecasts.

I am sure they are not "cutting down" the noise (why would they do so? It would devalue the product), but I strongly suspect they do not mic the crowd to the extent the NFL's broadcasters do. And the fact is that 95% of NFL crowds are of 50,000 or more, so they will naturally be louder than 20,000-plus. But I agree that the crowd has been nice and loud at the two games I've been to so far this year.

[bluto]

they're cutting out sound for sure. i checked this when i got home and re-watched the game.

evidence: the drum corps from the last game. they can be heard very loud and clearly when they start playing... and as the commentators talk prior to the snap their drumming gets faded out to zilch. not cut off when they stopped playing, but faded.

[flafson]

I sat next to the drum corps and i can say that they did most of the noise in the game, at least what you heard on tv. It was so loud that there was a roaming camera man filming them most of the game.
No idea how they got in those big drums to be honest. Looked more like a DJ station.

[doubleblue]

I'd say the crowd being a bit louder inspired Mitchell ... who then inspired more fans to make noise ... who inspired more Argo players to ask for noise ... which sent the fans off the hook.

I was along time ticket holder but stopped for a couple seasons. I noticed on TSN that Argo crowds sounder way quieter than I remembered at the stadium. Now I am back for this season and notice the crowd is as loud as I remembered. So TSN is doing something to cut down on the crowd noise which may lead viewers to think CFL games are more quiet (boring?) than the crowd noise we hear on NFL telecasts. Glad you guys are back. In 207?

[Argocister]

Pottinger was on the Hogan show on Sat. Afternoon. They discussed the crowd and its ability to make some great noise for the team during the BC game. Pottinger said the team was quite impressed especially on a Tuesday night.
:)