by Sara Buchan
By the end of August, the Argos had slipped deep into a 2-6 hole: Not many gave them a chance at hauling the ship out of that pit and the questions about personnel, offence, and coaching were plentiful.
Fast-forward 10 weeks.
An incredible 9-1 run capped by a 41-13 thumping of the Roughriders on a balmy, breezy November Saturday in Regina (!!) vaulted the Boatmen to the top of the East division and into a the highly-coveted bye week.
The very definition of the ‘catbird seat’.
“This is a reward for us.” Says Arland Bruce III who equalled his career mark with 171-receiving yards in the win over the Roughies. A game that goes that well for the beleaguered and much put-upon offence, you’d think they’d almost want to play again right away.
“We do want to play again but this shows how much we’ve worked from 2-6 to get to where we are: This is our reward.”
No one’s about to start any premature celebrations, though. Every player is well-aware how quickly things can go wrong just when they’re looking so right. And all they have to do to find evidence of that is look back top the start of the season: So much promise and positivity circled the drain pretty quickly.
“We’re not worried about popping bottles or having dinner – (the bye week) gives us a chance to really look at the things we’d done when we lost and look at the things we’ve done when we’re winning and put that all together and get ready for this run.”
Pearson’s Surgery Goes Well
LT Mike Pearson had surgery on his ankle and will be on crutches watching the team go through the playoff run. “We (were) real happy about his contribution and how he’s come in, in his first year and really established himself – really has become a leader on our team.” Says coach Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons.
