EDMONTON, AB; July 09 /2015: - Photos during the 2nd quarter of CFL game action between the Edmonton Eskimo's and the Ottawa RedBlacks at Commonwealth stadium in Edmonton on Friday, July 09/2015 (CFL PHOTO - Walter Tychnowicz)
There’s a sense of familiarity when the Edmonton Eskimos kick off the 2016 regular season Saturday night at The Brick Field at Commonwealth Stadium against the Ottawa RedBlacks. (5 p.m.)
It’s the traditional Grey Cup rematch on the home field of the team that won the last game of the 2015 season, but this one has its own storyline.
Edmonton head coach Jason Maas had his moments here as a player. Most recently, Maas made an impact as the offensive co-ordinator of a powerful RedBlacks unit led by future Hall of Famer Henry Burris.
Maas’s offence boasted four 1,000-yard receivers and stopping Burris shapes up as one of the big keys for Edmonton.
“They have to be tenacious and be able to do it for 60 minutes,” said Maas about the effort his defence will need to stop Burris. “There’s not been a thought of the past since we started training camp. We all took a moment of silence to congratulate everybody and since then, it’s been ‘what have you done for me lately.’ That’s the mindset we have here.”
Ottawa’s new direction of its post-Maas offence is largely unknown, going as far as resting all starters in their final pre-season game at Hamilton.
After a month of training camp and a couple of pre-season games, the Esks defensive unit is raring to go.
“This is what you play for,” said veteran middle linebacker JC Sherritt. “These are the games that count. The goal is to start fast in this league. Right out of the gate, we get one of the best offences in the league to test us, so we’re excited.”
One player who’s definitely excited for this season to get going is linebacker Deon Lacey, who’s taking on more responsibility after proving himself as a hard-nosed special teams stud.
“This is the one that counts,” said Lacey. “The guys are ready to go, anxious for the season to get started.”
Facing a high-powered offence right off the git-go should give the team a clear picture of how much different the defence will play its cards under the direction of assistant head coach and defensive co-ordinator Mike Benevides.
“When the team gets to go against a quarterback like this (Burris), with a strong arm, we look forward to playing against him,” said Lacey. “The guys are eager to get it rolling and knowing we have the Grey Cup rematch, the guys are eager to get it done.”
Make no mistake. Any time a team wins a championship, the next season there’s a big target on their back as the other teams try to knock down the kings of the castle.
Eskimos quarterback Mike Reilly may have an even bigger target on his back after he was named the No. 1 player in the annual TSN Top 50 CFL players feature.
“That doesn’t have any bearing on the season,” said Reilly. “It’s what you do on the field and how you perform Saturday that I’m concerned about.”
Reilly will have plenty of weapons in an established receiving corps and has the return of running back John White.
“It’s different for us because this is the first time we’re defending the Grey Cup in more than a decade,” Reilly said. “We’ve certainly been on the other end of it and we know what it’s like to play against a championship team. Last year was Calgary. They were getting everybody’s best shot and this year, we’ll be getting everybody’s best shot.
“Our personal expectations are so high we don’t need anything to push us to win another Grey Cup.”