BCLions.com
On a day when the temperature was edging toward freezing slotback Emmanuel Arceneaux was the only B.C. Lion on the practice field wearing shorts.
Making a statement maybe in advance of Sunday’s CFL West Final against the Calgary Stampeders?
“I was just getting my mind right,” Arceneaux said as he peeled off his jersey in the B.C. dressing room. “Just getting ready to play, trying to get my body acclimated to what might be in Calgary.
“They have cold winters over that way. I didn’t want to layer up too much. It’s not going to be 90 degrees over there.”
Arceneaux talks like a man who has made up his mind he’s going to dress against the Stampeders. It’s now up to his body to convince the medical staff and coaches he’s capable.
“I’m feeling great,” said Arceneaux. “I’m just getting better day by day.”
Arceneaux took a monster hit from safety Taylor Loffler in the third quarter of B.C.’s come-from-behind 32-31 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in last weekend’s West semifinal. Arceneaux lay motionless on the field for several minutes before being helped to the sidelines. He didn’t return to the game.
“I have been hit worse than that,” Arceneaux shrugged. “But that’s probably the first head shot that I have taken in my career.”
Arceneaux has gone through the concussion protocols and said he has no lingering effects from the hit. Of equal concern is an ankle injury he suffered on the first play of the game.
“That’s coming around,” he said. “I’m ready to play football.”
During practice Arceneaux seemed to run without trouble on the ankle but some of his cuts didn’t look crisp and clean.
Even Arceneaux said the final decision on his availability probably won’t be made until prior to game time Sunday.
Playing in his sixth CFL season, Arceneaux had a career-year with 105 catches for 1,566 yards and a league-leading 13 touchdowns. The six-foot-two receiver uses his height to reach over defenders and his 210 pounds to bull over would-be tacklers.
Not having Arceneaux in the lineup against Calgary would be a dent in the Lions armour, but not necessary a crushing blow.
Wally Buono, B.C.’s head coach and general manager, pointed out that the Lions played almost a half without Arceneaux and still managed 503 yards offence against Winnipeg.
“I would rather be playing the Stampeders with Manny,” said Buono. “If an injury occurs, the show goes on. We do what we do.”
Quarterback Jonathon Jennings said the Lions still have plenty of weapons remaining in their arsenal. Receivers like Bryan Burnham, Shaw Gore, Terrell Sinkfield and even running back Chris Rainey can make big plays.
“Manny is a special player and he’s a special emotional leader,” said Jennings, who threw for 329 yards and scrambled for the game-deciding touchdown in the win over Winnipeg. “He’s the leader of the wide receiver corps. Those guys look up to him.
“At the same time, whether he is or is not playing, he is going to be there in spirit. He is going to allow people to understand they have to do the job. We are going to be OK regardless.”
Burnham said the remaining receivers owe it to Arceneaux to step up their game.
“He’s had our backs all season,” said Burnham. “He’s always been there going hard.
“If it comes to the point where he can’t go any more, then we are going to have to pick our game up.”
While Arceneaux’s highlight-reel catches often steal the spotlight, Burnham has been a steady supporting actor in the Lions’ offensive show. The six-foot-two, 205-pound native of Mooretown, N.J., had 79 catches for 1,392 yards, three touchdowns and a league-best 17.6-yard average.
“Burnham does a good job of getting open,” said Jennings. “He creates space and he makes hard catches look easy.
“He’s gone up and got the football and made some spectacular plays that kind of have been under the radar.”
The Stampeder defence finished the regular season leading the league in fewest points allowed (369) and tied with the Lions for quarterback sacks (52).
Burnham credits Calgary defensive coordinator DeVone Claybrooks with building a unit that might not always be flashy but gets the job done.
“They are fundamentally sound,” he said. “They are a veteran group and they play well together. They are always communicating.
“I think they have a great defensive coordinator that prepares them for every game. They don’t have a lot of busted coverages. You have to beat them.”
Gore, a Toronto native who played his college football at Bishop’s, returned to practice this week after missing two games with concussion symptoms. He was on track for his best season ever before the injury, finishing the year with 59 catches for 835 yards and three touchdowns.
As an insurance policy, the Lions will take Doug McNeil to Calgary. McNeil, who won an NFC championship ring with the NFL Seattle Seahawks in 2014, has spent the season on the Lions’ practice roster and has yet to play a CFL game.
Asked to give odds on the chances of Arceneaux playing, Buono declined, saying he’s not a betting man.
Jennings had no trouble with a prediction.
“I think Manny is going to be fine,” he said. “He’s tough as nails. He’s a guy that is going to do everything he can to be on that field.”
