Preview: Argos, Esks match up in Northern Kickoff

CFL.ca Staff
#CFLKickoff

FORT MCMURRAY – This isn’t your typical home game.

The Toronto Argonauts are set to ‘host’ the Edmonton Eskimos at SMS Equipment Stadium in what is being called the Northern Kickoff.

That’s because the game is in Fort McMurray, Alb., and it will be the northernmost game in CFL history.

The Argos will need to make do in this home away from home as they aren’t expecting a warm welcome from the crowd.

Fort McMurray is located approximately 436 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, roughly a four and a half hour drive. Those in attendance will likely be cheering for the ‘local away’ team in the Eskimos over the Argonauts.

“It just feels like a road game for us. I don’t know if any of our players are treating it as a home game,” said Argos head coach Scott Milanovich. “It’s really not a big deal to our players, it’s not a big deal to us. We’re used to playing on the road. This one’s a unique one, for sure, but our guys are focused in on the job at hand.”

Adding he has no idea what type of crowd will be in attendance, Milanovich thinks it will likely heavily favour the Eskimos.

“I’d expect this to be a pro-Edmonton crowd, obviously. We’re treating this like a road game, which is what it is.”

For as many factors that surround the Northern Kickoff, the game itself still counts in the standings. That isn’t being lost on players from either team, who know how important it is to start the season off with a win.

“When it becomes regular season, these games count and you can’t get them back,” said Esks quarterback Mike Reilly. “We know very well that you can start out hot or start out slow and that changes how difficult the rest of the season’s going to go. We want to get off on the right foot.”

Player Spotlight
RB Chad Simpson Edmonton Eskimos Signed after the Esks lost John White for the year, Simpson had a strong pre-season. QB Trevor Harris Toronto Argonauts This will be the first test for Harris as he fills in for Ricky Ray against a very tough defence.

The Argos enter the game with Trevor Harris under centre as Ricky Ray still recovers from off-season shoulder surgery. Harris, now in his fourth season with the Boatmen, feels confident in his ability to lead the offence.

So does Milanovich.

“He’s probably inexperienced in terms of starts but his knowledge of our offence, what he’s done the last three years, he has gotten playing time. He’s not like a normal backup, I don’t think, that comes in very green,” said Milanovich. “Trevor is highly intelligent, phenomenal in the way he prepares himself, even when he’s not the starter, so the fact that this is his team right now, I don’t think that weighs too heavily on him, I think he embraces that.”

Brandon Whitaker will be the starting running back for Toronto after he was signed following his release from the Alouettes and an injury to Curtis Steele. The Esks know what it’s like to be down a running back – they lost John White for the season and brought in Chad Simpson.

The Eskimos were the CFL’s top defensive team throughout the 2014 season and were one win away from the Grey Cup game. Edmonton was dominant on both sides of the ball but knows nothing can be taken for granted.

“You better be well-prepared and have more than probably one or two plans when you’re going against Scott Milanovich and his staff,” said Esks head coach Chris Jones. “They’re going to have a lot ready for us. They had a tremendous game plan the last time we played. Lack of execution and penalties is something that kept them on the field for drives. They had 370 yards of offence and certainly we can’t give up 370 and let them control the football this weekend.”

While pre-season can be important in determining roster depth and starting positions, it is also a time for veteran players, who have the luxury, to ease back into game mode. Reilly played in the exhibitions, just not a lot. Still, he feels his preparation throughout training camp was enough to get him ready for the season opener.

“I got a ton of action during camp. I took a lot of snaps during training camp. I think we have the best defence in the league so I was going against them every single day,” he said. “It’s going to be a different game. The stuff that we’ve seen from Toronto from the two pre-season games, they’re going to be running totally different stuff.”

Game Notes:

-The Argonauts enter 2015 with 32 of their 55 players in either their first or second CFL season, by far the most in the league (average: 26 players).
-In 2014, Chad Owens and Andre Durie missed a combined 21 games and were in the lineup together only 3 times. Toronto was 2-1 in those games and 6-9 with at least one or both missing.
-Of Toronto’s top nine receivers in 2014, only Chad Owens has returned to the club in 2015 for Week #1. Curtis Steele is on the roster but is sidelined this week. The players on the current, active Toronto roster with the most rushing yards in 2014 are Anthony Coombs with 75 yards and backup QB Mitchell Gale who had 57.
-Trevor Harris will be making his second career start and second at “home.’
-The Eskimos have only 7 first-year players heading into 2015, well below the CFL average of 11 per team. In 2014, Edmonton started Week #1 with 17 first-year players on their roster. Their average roster age of 27.5 years is second only to Montreal at 27.8 years.
-Edmonton has started fast in recent years winning 3 of their last 4 openers.
-Edmonton went 12-3 with Reilly as their starting QB in 2014 and 0-3 with him on the sidelines.
-Edmonton led the CFL in 2014 in both net yards gained and fewest allowed. A feat that has been done 9 times since 1978.
-In the entire second half of the 2014 season, only one team scored more than 3 points in any 1st Quarter against Edmonton. The Esks went 7-1 in 2014 when leading after one Quarter and 9-2 when at least tied.

With files from Esks.com, Argonauts.ca and Steve Daniel, Head Statistician