Arthur Ward/CFL.ca
CALGARY — The latest iteration of the Battle of Alberta is upon us, but there’s only one thing that’s on Calgary’s mind, and that’s the status of Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell.
On Thursday, the Stamps removed the 2018 CFL Most Outstanding Player and Grey Cup MVP from the six-game injured list. He has returned to practice, but will he be the man under centre during Calgary’s Mark’s Labour Day Weekend showdown with the Edmonton Eskimos? That remains to be seen.
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“(Mitchell) texted me last night, actually, and said that he thinks it’s time to go,” head coach Dave Dickenson told Stampeders.com.
Over the past two days, the 29-year-old Mitchell has been out early, throwing the ball as much as possible. He said he’s tossed 50-plus balls ahead of both practices. Time will tell what the plan is for the star — he still has to go through practices for the rest of the week.
One thing’s for sure: Mitchell is itching to get back to work on the gridiron.
“I told Dave, to me, it’s now or never. I want to get back out there,” Mitchell said. “It’s Labour Day. I couldn’t think of a better game to come back against the number one rated defence and the number one ranked offence in the entire league for such an important game.”
Mitchell has been out of action since Week 3 after he suffered a pectoral injury on his throwing side against the BC Lions. Nick Arbuckle has been the starter for the majority of the season, and the third-year pivot has helped the Stamps get out to a 5-4 record.
In eight games this year, Arbuckle has thrown for 2,103 yards and 11 touchdowns while throwing five interceptions. Mitchell has appeared in just two games, tossing for 527 yards and three touchdowns.
“To me, I’m done testing it. Felt good yesterday, felt good today. So I need to go out and prove to Dave (Dickenson) and (John) Hufnagel that the eyes and the feet look good and the reads are there,” Mitchell said of his arm. “I haven’t played football in eight weeks, and it’s not that the other guy is playing bad, I just want to make sure that I’m out there and giving the team the best opportunity to win.”
Regardless of who’s starting under centre, the Eskimos are bringing their A-game into this contest. Their defence is the best at getting to the quarterback, leading the league with 33 sacks. They’re also first in the league in yards allowed with 183.7 per game and have 10 interceptions.
For all that their defence has done, Trevor Harris and the offence have done just as well. The pivot is on pace to have the best season of his career and he’s tied for second in touchdowns with 14 on the season. He also has C.J. Gable to hand the ball off to as well as a three-headed monster of receivers in Greg Ellingson, Ricky Collins, and DaVaris Daniels — each individual could go off for a big game on a weekly basis.
Calgary also has talent all over the field. The ball-hawking Stamps secondary leads the league with 16 picks. Cory Greenwood has a league-best 69 total tackles on the year. On the offensive side, Arbuckle has Reggie Begelton and Eric Rogers to work with. In the backfield, it’s been a bit of a revolving door. Romar Morris and Ka’Deem Carey are both injured, but Don Jackson has returned and rushed for 70 yards in Week 10.
Jackson will be looking to continue to rumble in this game, but that will be easier said than done with the front seven the Esks boast.
“They’ve got dogs on defence. They’ve got a great linebacking core and their d-line is the best in the league hands down,” Jackson said on Wednesday. “They’ve got some things that we think we can exploit on defence also. So we’re going to get to the board, try and get those things going, and see what we can do on Monday.”
With a victory, Calgary would leapfrog the Eskimos for third place in the West Division. With the backdrop of Labour Day Weekend raising the hype of the contest, it should be a physical and fun affair.
“We’re obviously playing a conference opponent that’s ahead of us,” Dickenson said. “We know that we basically have to take care of McMahon and take care of our home turf. The quarterback is going to be in for a battle no matter who it is.”
– With files from Stampeders.com
