That about says it all. Stegall will in fact return for 2007. One has to think he could play five more years if he wants to, with the shape he keeps himself in. But for right now, I’ll settle for one.

Now, about that getting him the record at home thing…

The Doug Brown show just ended a few minutes ago, and I thought I’d come on here and quickly throw some thoughts up. I’m supposed to be studying, but pssh, that’s no fun. Anyway, Stegall (and his wife Darlene) were interviewed by phone, from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. And just what were they doing there? Wasting time because their connection to Winnipeg was delayed. Which means Milt is coming to Winnipeg from Atlanta in December. He did claim it was because Winnipeg is a lovely city to visit until the temperature turns below “oh, say, minus five”. I don’t think that’s what it is though. Just a thought.

As Brown correctly noted, he’d be bringing his family up for a retirement announcement as well. With that said, the overall tone of the interview, and of the answers that both Darlene and Milt gave did not imply that Milt is coming up here to retire by any means. I would be inclined to stick with Brown’s prediction from the end of the show. Stegall made it officlal that one way or another the answer will be known this week. I would say it’s a pretty good bet that he’ll play one more year.
Now, back to those pesky books.

Cheers.

Speculation out of Winnipeg (largely from Bob Irving) has Milt Stegall appearing on the Doug Brown show tonight on CJOB. When I spoke to Brown over Grey Cup weekend he had indicated that Stegall had personally promised him that Milt would reveal his intentions for 2007 on Doug’s show. Which indicates that well, tonight is quite possibly the case.

The show is at 8 PM Central time, and can be heard live online at http://www.cjob.com/

I will have a response either way on this tomorrow afternoon. And yes, it seems unlikely that he would choose a radio show over a press conference to announce his retirement, but for just this once I can be completely biased if I want, and damned if I’m jinxing anything.

Things are a little bit hectic in this end of the woods for any serious new content this weekend, or early this week. I should be back in business Thursday. Sorry for the delay, folks.

I’m fairly confident this cold has robbed me of all ability to communicate clearly, but then many people would tell you I never possessed such a trait anyway. Oh, and on a completely self-serving note, I’m tracking the stadiums I’ve been to on the right there, under Where I’ve Been (clearly a creative title, eh?). Having been to all of them except Olympic Stadium, I look forward to Grey Cup 2008. That, and I’ll share some quick thoughts on them some day.
But for now, I believe I owed you guys a quick summary of the coaches out east, didn’t I?

Winnipeg -  It was reported by both papers here that Berry invited his entire coaching staff back. Although I don’t know for sure that this is a good idea, I can’t really argue with the logic behind it, that continuity will only foster future growth and make them all work together better as they move into a second year together. The one that surprises me, to be honest, is that Gibson was asked back as OC. But hey, at least for now, In Berry We Trust. If Marshall somehow sticks around another year, that will make my day. I don’t at all believe he deserves to, given his body of work in Edmonton, Ottawa and now Winnipeg, and that’s just the last four seasons. But hey, if you can keep a talent like that as defensive coordinator, you’re doing pretty well. If there was a God in the CFL, and I’ve long ago concluded there can’t possibly be, but if there was, both Hall and Marshall would land headcoaching gigs this year. But Marshall’s rumoured to get an interview for the Ticats job, and doesn’t look like even a longshot candidate for the other two. So we’ll see.

Toronto - Looks like Danny Barrett might land in the Big Smoke as Offensive Coordinator, and that might just be the perfect job for him. I don’t know that the problem in Regina was tactics so much as the… inability to manage the game, and to consistently motivate his team. Pinball has proven adept at both of those, and tactically, well, Barrett isn’t one of two quarterbacks in CFL history to throw for 600 yards in a game by accident. He knows his offense, and would be a solid hire for the Argos. Look for that to end up happening, and Allen will share a sideline with Barrett twenty years after they faced off in one of the greatest Grey Cups in history.

Hamilton - Still a LOT of ways that this one could go. I never did agree with the firing of Greg Marshall, and I really don’t think Marshall was the problem in Hamilton so much as their inability to address the key holes on their roster instead of the flashy ones. Same thing, I think Maas can be very very productive in Hamilton, provided they give him the proper tools, instead of 3 starting calibre RB’s and no wideouts that would be a #1 anywhere else. But returning to coaches, I think they need to go with an experienced hand, to make players buy into the system from day 1. And Taaffe is really the best they’re going to do on that front. Plus with the Montreal connection he looks the likely choice as well as the smart one. Five years of coaching offense at BCS-level college football down south isn’t such a bad thing. But it will be interesting to see how long it  takes him to re-adapt to the northern game.

Montreal - Given that they already told all the candidates they’d have to keep every last assistant on board, they’re pretty clearly confident in the systems they’ve got set up. Which means they’re pretty much looking for a guy desperate to get his first job, and willing to play any kind of puppet necessary. Which, to me, means Chapdelaine or Marshall. And judging by the buzz, I’d say Chapdelaine wins that contest rather handily. Given the hometown (okay, home province) angle, I suppose it makes some degree of sense. So we’ll just count that one up as such. I can’t see Popp staying on as coach AND GM. He’ll move back upstairs.

Ottawa - Some day, baby. Some day.

Cheers

–JTD

Note to self… check your email. And your comments blog. My apologies, I didn’t realize I actually had readers. That’s a first. Well, maybe not.

And I will refer to myself as we as much as I want. Then we will refer to ourselves as I for a little while.

Now, as for this whole coaching thing, let’s work our way across the country… keeping in mind that I really don’t have much more then random facts and speculation to base this on. But it’s about half prediction, half repetition of others predictions. So do what you will with it.

Vancouver - Wally ain’t going nowhere. That’s for sure. But uh, both Chapdelaine and Ritchie could be headed elsewhere. Heck, as you’re about to see, I think they both are. Which will leave the defending Grey Cup champs without two of their three top coaches. Many Lions fans would tell you that the loss of Chapdelaine is an upgrade, but hey, they were doing something right to keep cruising so effectively even with their third string quarterback. Ritchie will prove a fairly substantial loss as well, but as his track record shows, his effectiveness goes drastically downhill around year 4 of his regime. Consider him in both Montreal and Winnipeg, where by the end he slowly lost power battles in both cities as his locker room both defended and tuned him out. I have the utmost respect for Ritchie, a class act that no one could possibly dislike. He’s just one of those guys that needs to move every few years. As for the Lions, contrary to the impression I may have just given, they may have trouble replacing both their coordinators. Mind you, the Western division is in complete upheaval at the moment, and they have the league’s best head coach. They’ll be alright.

Edmonton - Are you kidding? You go 7-11 and get a contract extension, while being brutally outcoached time after time? Honey, I shrunk the kids AND missed the playoffs. Yeesh. With that said, Buratto is rumoured to be headed to Edmonton, and the idea of Buratto commanding an offense so loaded with downfield weapons is mildly scary. Assuming they find any kind of offensive line anyway. McGrath and Kabongo look like studs in the long term, but Ray paid dearly for a few of their learning experiences this year. The Esks have always managed to land their man. No reason to believe it stops here. Buratto to green and gold it is. Which is odd, the Esks don’t like to go outside the family. But hey, when you’re coming off a 7-11 season, big steps are needed.

Calgary - Someone has to actually replace Buratto, eh? If I had a damned clue who, I might be able to write something else here. On a completely random note, that Tollenstrup kid is gonna be something special for the Dinos in a couple years.

Regina - Like I said here, there’s no reason Barrett deserved a new contract, and I can’t say I’m at all surprised (nor is anyone else) that he didn’t get asked back. Depending who you ask, either Kent Austin or Dave Ritchie has the inside track on the job. Both men have to be considered front runners miles ahead of anyone else, given Tillman’s stated preference to hire someone he knows on a personal level. Nothing new for the old boys club of the CFL, although its rare that someone is so blatant about it. And for what its worth, was I the only one to find his “blind date” analogy in the press conference a little on the creepy side? Anyway, Tillman does know his football, and that’s why I think he’ll go with Ritchie over the inexperienced Austin. Austin doesn’t make sense for the Green and White for a number of reasons, like the terms on which he left Regina last time, his clear preference to throw the ball 40 times a game when the Riders have Keith, Dorsey and Bracey, and about six hundred other reasons. Says here the next Labour Day game will be extra interesting, featuring Ritchie against the Blue Bombers. I can’t really see Richie Hall sticking around if they don’t pick him, simply because at that point it’s fairly obvious that you’re never going to get the job. Witness Greg Marshall ducking out of Edmonton three years ago when they hired Maciocia over him. It’s just not something you see.

And since that got much longer then I thought it would, we’ll do the eastern division tomorrow.

Cheers.

I realize it seems ironic to be back in business all of 10 days AFTER the end of the season, but hey, that’s the breaks some days. I’d comment about why, but if I’m going to make excuses for why I don’t update my blog, I might as well turn on some Good Charlotte and cry myself to sleep in front of a MySpace page or two.

Football content coming once I have something formulated beyond wild ideas. Maciocia, Ottawa, and the coaching carousel are bouncing around my head at the moment.

–JTD

For fans that live anywhere from the shadows of the Rocky Mountains to the shadows of the steel mills in Hamilton, there is one weekend a year that nearly tops Grey Cup. There’s nothing like Labour Day. I’ve been to Regina for six games, this weekend will be my seventh, and fifth Labour Day. I can’t wait. Especially on the Prairies, Labour Day is insane.

This is not Edmonton-Calgary, where between hockey, football, baseball, and pretty much every other sport in existence, the two cities compete 20 or 25 times a year. This isn’t Toronto and Hamilton, although I’m more willing to believe Hamilton understands what its like. Winnipeg and Regina have one team each. We both know what it’s like to watch people describe Canada as Toronto, Calgary, and a whole bunch of wheat in between. There’s one chance a year for bragging rights. Yes, the Banjo Bowl back in Winnipeg will be tremendous fun. But it doesn’t mean half as much as Labour Day.

Bomber fans and Rider fans understand each other on some level. Both teams have histories splotched with long periods of ineptitude. Both teams know what it’s like to watch Edmonton, Toronto, and Montreal play in the Grey Cup every year, while we sit at home and wait another year. Some day, you see, one side or the other of the prairies will rise again, and that wind that howls across fifteen hundred kilometers of open field come every January will feel a little warmer. We know the Bombers or Riders will win again. We have to know that, we don’t know any other way. And yet in our heart of hearts we know we’re resigned to seeing how they blow it this year. It’s the life of a prairie football fan. The only questions are just how close they will get, and just how deep the knife will go this time. It’s been sixteen years for us, seventeen for them, and yet every spring we’re all determined that this year is the year. We know it’s not, but we pray it is.

What defines the CFL in Edmonton is excellence, and all too often in Southern Ontario its negativity. On the prairies? It’s heartbreak.

And of course, there’s nothing better then causing someone else’s. And nothing more painful then suffering it at the hands of someone so similar to yourselves. That’s what makes Labour Day so great out here. True rivals are often born from identical foes, and in so many ways, the Bombers and Riders fit that to a tee.

So what’s Labour Day about?

It’s about the ten year old kid that flips me off every year from the top row of Taylor Field’s sunny side. Just for wearing a Bomber jersey, you understand.

It’s the roar of six thousand Bomber fans holding their own during player introductions. Until the first hint of a green jersey is seen, and a twenty thousand strong green tide sucks away any prayer you have of hearing the PA announcer.

It’s grabbing a beer after the game with five friends. Four are Rider fans, and the six of us hail from Winnipeg, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Vancouver, and Wisconsin. Two of them will drive in excess of fifteen hours one way, for a football game.

It’s the Rider fan who deadpan replied “Yes, but we don’t have to live in Winnipeg” to a particularly spirited burst of trashtalk out the passenger window. Oh, and we were both going 70 kilometers an hour at the time.

It’s about the longest five hour drive in existence, every time the Bombers lose. Nothing speeds those agonizing kilometers up.

It’s getting up so early on Sunday morning that you don’t see the full sunrise until you’re most of the way to Brandon.

It’s the chills you get running down your spine when you think about the next Labour Day game. Even though it’s February at the time.

It’s about living on the Prairies.

What did we say yesterday about how to fix the Cats?

Let’s see. We wanted Rob Katz to quit, maybe find an experienced football mind (give me an hour to get a link for this one), and maybe a big trade or two.

10:05 CT - From 900CHML.com : A source says the new general manager will be a surprise to Ticats fans. Haven’t Cat fans suffered enough?

10:10 CT - CBC says… it might be Shivers. Not that we know who else it could be. Would that really be that much of a surprise?

10:40 CT - Marcel Desjardin it is, apparently. Surprised he was able to get out of his contract midseason.

Don’t worry Bob. Our advice is still free for now.

–JTD