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July 21, 2013 , By Terry Jones, QMI Agency
Esks head coach Kavis Reed talked to Edmonton reporters Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium. (IAN KUCERAK/QMI Agency)
EDMONTON - Count ‘em up.
A dozen new starters.
Mike Reilly QB. Gord Hinse C. Matt O’Donnell LG. Cliff Louis RT. Thaddeus Coleman LT. Isaiah Sweeney WR. John White/Calvin McCarty RB. Aaron Grymes CB. Marcell Young DB. Rennie Curran LB. Odell Willis DE. Almondo Sewell DT.
From Game 1 of the season last year to Saturday’s lid-lifter against the Saskatchewan Roughriders at Commonwealth Stadium, those are guys who won prime-time jobs who didn’t have them last year.
That’s half the starting lineup!
OK. White made it as designated import backing up Hugh Charles at running back. McCarty will be listed as the starter. But either way, Mathieu Bertrand started there last year.
And, OK. Curran will likely be listed as a backup to the veteran Damaso Munoz at linebacker, where the Eskimos have the luxury of starting four imports, but that looks like political correctness from my pew in press box.
Whatever, you get the idea.
This isn’t last year’s football team.
And there’s more.
Saturday night in Vancouver that rookie quarterback Jonathan Crompton appeared to win the job of No. 2 quarterback. Head coach Kavis Reed hasn’t officially made any such declaration, but unless your correspondent is guilty of totally reading the tea leaves wrong, it’s going to be Kerry Joseph carrying the clip-board and Crompton replacing injured Matt Nichols as Reilly’s relief mate.
After Steven Jyles/Kerry Joseph last year, I would suspect he’s not going to get a lot of second guessing about that.
Going into a season with a dozen new starters is seldom a recipe for success. But with most of them, it’s been obvious to the fan in the stands that they are upgrades.
In addition to the quarterbacks, players like speed demon Sweeney, ex-NFLer Curran, who authored the book ‘Free Agent’, 6-foot-8 offensive lineman Louis and cornerback Grymes, they simply showed up and claimed their jobs.
“Guys played themselves into positions. And guys played themselves out of positions. Guys made plays and guys didn’t make plays,” said the head coach.
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