Rick Moffat
CFL.ca
Anthony Calvillo and Marcus Brady know if they’re going to be spending even more quality time together in 2012, they better keep the women in their lives happy now. AC and the OC know the offseason game plans as well as their playbooks.
The FHOF (future Hall of Famer) has recently been put through the bargaining ringer by his elementary school aged daughter who insisted Daddy play another 10 years. He bargained her down to 5 on the hope Athena learns the phrase “year-to-year” before high school.
The new offensive coordinator confesses this has already happened to him: he’s lying in bed with his wife. She notices he’s deep in thought. “What are you thinking of?” – the kind of open question some men consider more inviting than first-and-goal.
“Pass me a pen; I’ve got a new play.” Marcus Brady, self-professed X’s & O’s guy since he was a kid, has dreamed up a new pass route combination. Not exactly bedroom pay-dirt but this is a family blog.
“It happens a lot.”
It will be spring before AC and the OC will have to deal with each other and not with the ladies of their lives. By then Brady will have made clear to Calvillo he’ll be in first every morning to their concrete lair at Olympic Stadium.
“I’m usually in just before him,” says coach Brady who will turn 33 two months before the 100th Grey Cup and one month after Calvillo turns 40. “I get to work at 5:45 a.m., AC was usually about 10 minutes behind me.”
Both are well-practised on early mornings thanks to offseason Mr. Mom off-to-school chores and fatherly chauffeuring duties.
“I spoke to Marcus before my decision was announced and we talked more about life than football,” says Calvillo, who admits his teammates were unanimous in expecting back for at least one more season. “He’s really excited to have more input (into the offence).”
But will a passing legend put up with his former backup, seven years his junior, when he gets in Calvillo’s face and finds Bad Cop to balance the Mr. Mom?
“It won’t feel weird, I’ve always been very open minded,” says AC of the OC. “Not trusting your coach really hurts you as a QB. I don’t care how long you play, you need advice. Getting it from Marcus will definitely benefit me.”
“I always have respect for the guys who played the game. As a veteran quarterback if you’re not willing to accept criticism you are defeated. I’m convinced Marcus is going to help me play better.”
“As a quarterback I was behind Damon Allen in Toronto, Danny McManus in Hamilton and then in Montreal AC, so there’s the top three,” Brady reminisces. “I’ve had to be patient but I learned from all of them.”
“Since I was a kid playing ‘Madden’ I’ve always loved the X’s and O’s. As a coach Scott Milanovich (the Als OC turned Argos head coach) has been a big influence the last three years. Now I believe maybe in a few years I can be a head coach.”
If the age gap is not a factor between player and coach, Brady knows Calvillo’s age will be a vital stat.
“He can throw and read defences as good as ever…The Eastern Semi-Final proves he can still bring it… but you don’t want him to take any more hits.”
“This is the first offseason I actually thought about retirement,” Calvillo admits. “This year I had more time to think about it. The physical and mental stuff I could deal with, but after suffering my first knockout concussion – I had to accept the risk. ”
But in the CFL running to stand still isn’t running fast enough. Many Als fans will wonder if Adrian McPherson will get more of a chance to run some of the offence. Or whether the Als will run more in critical situations, red zone situations.
“You can’t get static,” says Brady. “I’ve got ideas.”
Just keep a pen and paper handy by the pillow.
