Rick Moffat
CFL.ca
During a week that saw Anthony Calvillo answer more questions about his brain than he could possibly handle, the laid-back 39-year old, decided to finally set the record straight.
He asked the first question.
Following his 20-second blackout in Edmonton, Calvillo came out firing even before the concussion protocol questions were tossed at him.
“I wanted to know if we recovered the fumble,” said Calvillo shortly after arriving at the team hotel in Winnipeg.
Then came the questions, the tests and the memory pop quizzes. But still, no one can explain why or how AC has become the David Dunn of the CFL.
Don’t remember seeing Dunn play in the three-down realm? Well, that is likely because Dunn has never even strapped on the pads. The man we speak of comes from the movie ‘Unbreakable’.
“I did see the hit and honestly, as a spectator and a friend, it really did scare me,” says former Alouette and Blue Bomber bodyguard to quarterbacks Luke Fritz.
“Especially seeing him not get up after the hit, right away I called him and wished him all the best.”
Some suggest that the Als should sit Calvillo out entirely, hoping that an extra week of recuperation proves beneficial in the long run.
Some also believe due to his advanced age, this has already advanced Calvillo along the road to impending retirement.
“I don’t like people being categorized by age,” Fritz reasons. “AC is young at heart. He’s going play as long as he wants to and is physically able to. At 37…38, it might be the same as someone else at 32. He’s at a different level than a lot of people.” (Memo to Luke: you missed Anthony’s 39th birthday in August.)
While the Bombers will be giving Buck Pierce night off on Friday, Calvillo says he’s totally comfortable with the Als going all-in for the quarterback ante.
“I just put a lot of ice on my legs and I’m ready to go,” said Calvillo, only six days removed from his brain freeze. Ice in the quarterback’s veins is unquestioned.
Calvillo has thrown only one interception in his last eight games (more than 200 attempts); his touchdown-interception ratio is 15-1 over that span.
Slotback Jamel Richardson is the biggest beneficiary, becoming the first receiver to reach the 1,000-yard plateau this season.
Running back Brandon Whitaker is destined to become the first 1,000-yard rusher this season, and could easily finish the season with twice as many receiving touchdowns as scores on the ground.
“He’s tough,” says Richardson, full of admiration for his QB’s remarkable bounce-back. “I never had to take a hit like that…I dish it out,” says the slotback who prides himself on yards-after-catch, busting tackles and down-field blocking.
Head coach Marc Trestman, grins when I asked him if he’d ever taken a blow-up shot or feared concussion during his high school or college career.
“I didnt’ get enough playing time to have to face hits like that.”
“I know what’s going through your mind right now – you’re searching for meaning,” Samuel L. Jackson’s character says to Willis aka Dunn after a train-wreck.
“Know one thing…you can finally understand the destiny for which you were born. Are you ready for the truth?”
The Als are a dysfunctional 4-4 over the last 60 days. If Calvillo can unscramble his own brain, no one doubts he can unscramble Montreal’s inconsistencies.
