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– A new face was present for Wednesdays practice. Defensive back Cody Williams, a 5-9, 190-pound product of Colgate joined the Ticats roster, taking the place of WR Willie Quinnie. Quinnie was placed on the nine-game injured list after suffering an Achilles injury during Monday’s practice.
– WR Drisan James enjoyed a phenomenal day as the Boise State product seemingly hauled in every pass thrown his way. He was able to routinely find space downfield and the quarterbacks were able to connect with him all morning long for lengthy gains.
– Receivers Marquay McDaniel and Chris Davis also shone on Wednesday. Davis had been off to a bit of a slow start thus far, but made several nice catches over the course of Wednesday’s activities.
– A handful of players were given the opportunity to show their long-snapping skills. Working aside the Ticats incumbent long snapper, Matt Robichaud, were DT Matt Kirk, LB Jordan Matechuk and FB Robert Pavlovic. WR Dave Stala, QB Jason Boltus and WR Chris Bauman served as holders.
– Loyal Ticats.ca readers may recall a story that appeared on the website last year about a group of offensive linemen who were unfortunately trapped in a McMaster dormitory elevator during last year’s training camp. History repeated itself for a quartet of unlucky Ticats on Tuesday night, as RB Terry Caulley, WR Jacob Willis, WR Marquay McDaniel and RB Tre Smith were stuck on a malfunctioning elevator for approximately 45 minutes.
– LB Otis Floyd continued to be seen and heard all over the field. Floyd has made it abundantly clear that he’s not afraid to share what’s on his mind with anyone within about a 20 foot radius. Floyd, like Peter Dyakowski, has been documenting his training camp experience for Ticats TV. Click here to watch his first entry.
– QB Adam Tafralis was able to put together a strong drive during the ‘fire’ period of the first practice. Tafralis hit Jacob Willis (twice) and Prechae Rodriguez on successive passes to move the chains.
– RB DeAndre’ Cobb showed that he’s got some power to go along with his blazing speed during run drills. The 5-10, 196-pound tailback leveled linebacker Isaac Brown with a vicious stiff arm after exploding through the offensive line.
– Nick Setta unloaded some huge punts during punt coverage drills. The third-year Ticat looks like he’ll be ready to defend his title as the CFL’s top punter after leading the league with a 47.4 yards per punt average last season.
– Spotted on the sidelines: former Ticats offensive coordinator/ current University of Waterloo offensive co-ordinator Joe Paopao and CFL on TSN/Canadian Football Hall of Famer Matt Dunigan.
– The defensive line was given a rare turn with the jugs (pass throwing) machine late in the day. The defenders-turned-receivers seemed excited to get this rare opportunity to practice their pass-catching technique. Said DE Brandan Guillory, “Last time I did this was my sophomore year in college.”
– A handful of Ticats watched practice from the sidelines, unable to contribute due to minor injuries. Sidelined players included DB Sandy Beveridge, LB Cameron Siskowic, OL Alexandre Gauthier, DL Scott McCuaig, DB Alan Zemaitis, RB Kenton Keith and WR Eddie Cohen. OT Todd Londot needed assistance from teammates to leave the field during the late stages of Wednesday’s second practice.
– The Tiger-Cats communications staff will also be active on Twitter throughout training camp, giving fans an insider’s view of what is transpiring on the field and behind-the-scenes as it happens. Follow @TicatsPR for updates from camp and @CFLTigerCats for the team’s news feed.
– Be sure to check Ticats.ca for the latest breaking news, roster moves, notes from each practice, Q & A’s with coaches, photo galleries, Ticats TV videos and more!
