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Alouettes news 2003


Habs77

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Turnover on Grey Cup teams is not rare in the CFL. It raises the market value of the team's free agents, allows aging veterans like Baker and Reid to retire as champions and boosts the confidence of those looking to catch on in the NFL.  

But the Alouettes made sure to keep the most important piece of the puzzle when they opened the vault to sign quarterback Anthony Calvillo to a long-term contract this winter.  

"I'm looking forward to another championship," said Calvillo, a 30-year-old 10-year veteran. "I'm glad to see the guys they brought in."  

The Alouettes stopped being primarily a running team last season, when Pringle was bumped to backup after the surprise signing of Phillips, the troubled former NFL star.  

Pringle left as a free agent to Edmonton and the oft-injured Phillips was abruptly cut. He then signed with Calgary. Slotback Haskins also went to the Eskimos.  

Montreal native Eric Lapointe, coming off major knee surgery, is the top candidate to start at running back, although import newcomer Jay Graham could take over the job. Bruno Heppell is back at fullback.  

Another newcomer, Chris Coleman, has turned heads in camp as Haskins' replacement.  

Receivers Ben Cahoon and Jeremaine Copeland are back and Kwame Cavil, little-used last season, is expected to start in place of Woodcock. Sylvain Girard of Chicoutimi, Que., could also finally become a starting receiver.  

Special teams is the big question.  

Baker was a good placekicker and a very good punter. He was also Canadian.  

But it appears the Alouettes will need two players -- one to punt, one to make placements -- and may have to use an import at one of those positions this season.  

So far, Charles Hebert and import Vadad Siljkovic have battled for the kicking job while Burke Dales and former Hamilton Tiger-Cat Mike O'Brien are in line to do the punting.  

There is also question of who will replace Stokes as kick returner and, to make matters worse, long-snapper Jason Richards was let go. That job could fall to untested linebacker Sean Spender.  

"That's going to handle itself," Calvillo said of the special teams. "Whoever it is just has to take advantage of the opportunity and, if not, they'll bring someone else in.  

"I'm not worried about that."  

Losing the veteran Reid was a blow to the defence. To replace him, the talented Kevin Johnston was moved to outside linebacker and import Mark Thompson moves into the middle.  

Anwar Stewart is expected to move up to the defensive line to replace Lowe, while Omar Evans, a free agent signing from Saskatchewan, replaces the departed Perry Carter in the backfield.  

Defensive tackle Ed Phllion, defensive back Barron Miles, centre Bryan Chiu, guard Scott Flory and tackles Neal Fort and Uzooma Okeke are all back.  

Lefsrud left as a free agent for Edmonton, but will be replaced at guard by Paul Lambert, a free agent from Hamilton.

Are there no decent kickers in all of Canada?..

Man, starting tomorrow I'm going to the park to see how good of a leg I have... this is ridiculous. :wall:

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- We signed kicker Kellett who was just released by BC.

He's Canadian and can do both jobs, punting & FGs, but had only a 66% success rate last year, 3rd worst in the league.

The Als will therefore use him only to punt for now, and keep one of Hebert or Silijkovic to kick the FGs. If Kellett can improve over time, he'll end up doing both to give the Als some flexibility at other positions.

- Kelvin Anderson contacted the Als to offer his services, Matthews said no thanks... he's happy with Lapointe & Jay Graham, with Heppell at fullback.

Thunder Collins should remain with the team, on the practice squad... he was unable to win the 2nd RB spot since he was injured most of camp.

- Canadian Brad Collinson will replace Jason Richards as long snapper. we could not afford to waste an import on the position.

- slotbacks will be Cahoon & Coleman, wide receivers will be Copeland, Girard, Cavil, & Stala.

#1 pick Andrew Noel will remain on the practice squad.

No word of any interest in Terry Ray... and let's no forget Stokes who might be back soon... I'm not sure who will be returning kicks in the meantime.

Season kicks off Tuesday at 7pm on TSN... vs. Phillips, Sanchez, and the Calgary Stampeders.

Can't wait...

[Edited on 15-6-03 by Habs77]

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On the Als Site it says that the first game is only on RDS, but on TSN.ca it says it is on TSN also. Phew, i thought i was going to miss the opener. It's going to be tough to beat the Eskimos with only a Tuesday to Saturday break though.

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:puke::puke::puke:

Als are getting killed tonight , we're being totally outplayed and outcoached. Damn Barker knows all our plays! He knows exactly how to stop us and how to beat us...

Plus the Als are not getting any breaks! All the calls are going to the stamps... (Dont get me wrong , we deserve to be losing)

18-1 Stamps at the half

Horrible!

[Edited on 2003/6/18 by puck7x]

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Yeah we've been playing alot better in the 2nd half , alot more intense plus Matthews made some changes over the halftime ...

Down by 6 , under 5 to go...

Lets go Als!

Its too bad that Lapointe got injured (boy does he have bad luck with injuries...) , on the bright side Jay Graham has looked pretty good replacing him.

[Edited on 2003/6/18 by puck7x]

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OMG!!! ALS WON!

23-20 In overtime!

I freaking love this team , we can play like garbage for half the game and still win (did it a few times last year) ... Sure I'd love to play a FULL game , but hey its great when you can still win without doing it.

The Stamps had the ball on the on the Als 1 yard line in OT and were down by 3 ... They were stopped twice on the rush and then took a risk and went for it on 3rd down rather then kick the FG for the tie... Crandell threw an incomplete pass and the Als won...

Wow ... Never expected a win tonight (we were down 20-1 in the 3rd quarter) after that first half , but its a HUGE win , if we would of lost we would probably start the season 0-2 since we play the Esks this Saturday.

[Edited on 2003/6/18 by puck7x]

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Horrible 1st half... decent 2nd.

Calgary really let us back into it, and to our credit we took advantage.

Our defense allowed only 3 points in the 2nd half, again saving our butts... as they did all year last year including the Grey Cup final.

One of CGY's TDs was on special teams, and we gave up 2 safeties, so our defense allowed only 9 pts and no TDs... solid.

1st Half was plain ugly, no protection, errant passes, dropped passes... and if we ever did manage a good play we'd have a penalty bringing it back.

Defense gave up a few big plays, but always stiffened up when CGY got to the red zone... that's the key to winning ball games.

2nd was much better, offense made the proper adjustements... finally managed to sustain a few drives, allowing their D to finally get a breather.

The D showed their appreciation by keeping CGY off the scoreboard.

On special teams we gave up great returns all game, that has to be corrected.

We almost blocked 3 punts yet never did, but we had some good pressure on them... and we had few decent returns. I like the new return guy.

ANd last but not least... my biggest concern at the start of training camp was the kicking game, and it turns out it's our kicking game that saved us.

What can I say, just a few days ago they were saying Kellett would only punt... now he's 5 for 5 with 2 kicks in the clutch.

Great story.

Good thing we won this game, with all the new faces around we needed get that winning attitude goin'... and we got it done.

With Edmonton at home on 3 days rest, I feel alot better going in there 1-0. But we better play 4 quarters on Saturday, cuz EDM won't let us get away with the kind of effort we had tonight.

I doubt Lapointe will play that one, no surprise to see him injured that's his MO. Our backup Graham did very well, I'm not concerned there.

P.S. I'm the only one who got the first game prediction right.... Als didn't cover.

I'm doubly happy because I actually bet some money on my picks.

[Edited on 18-6-03 by Habs77]

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Wow what a finish. Very risky move by Barker to go for it there, I'm sure he will be hearing about it in the papers for a while.

I love the way our Offense played in the 2nd half. Would have been nice to finish off a couple more drives and not have to rely on our kicking game so much.

I don't know what's up with our O-line, that was terrible. What was the final tally, 8 or 9 sacks? I don't want to see a performance like that by them again.

Edmonton will be tough but we may be able to pull one off if we get off to a stronger start. I never felt as though the Als were out of it despite the terrible first half, but we were very close to being toast.

Overall a good game by the defense and a good half by the offense with bad special teams (because of the big returns)

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Als goto 2-0 on the year with a convincing win over the Esks...

Very impressive that the Als won tonight on less then 5 days rest , and its even more impressive the way we won.

AC was on the mark tonight...

We are still the class of the league.

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It was 2 games on 3 days rest... or 2 games in 5 days.

Still, it's the first time a team wins their 2nd game when playing twice in the same week... I think having it in week 1 is an advantage.

You're not as tired since you're just starting the year, plus the other team will take time shaking off the rust of the off-season while you alredy have one game under your belt.

Remember how we took 3 quarters to get going against Calgary?.. Edmonton needed the same time to get going tonight. Only difference is we didn't let them off the hook like Calgary last week.

2-0 in week 1 on the road against 2 good teams... more than I expected.

And how about Greene on the return game... interesting to see what the Als do when Stokes potentially comes back.

Pringle is done, Mills is far superior... and gave us much more trouble just like he did last year in the Grey Cup game.

That's what happens when you field guys based on reputation instead of actual performance... you lose.

Defense solid as always, offense finally had the ball moving... which hadn't happened since mid-season last year.

Good punting by Kellett btw.

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His first game in a new offense, i think you need to give him a bit more time to tell whether he is in fact "done" It will be pretty interesting to see how he does though.

Couldn't have asked for a better start from the Als this season, Calvillo has been on fire the last game and a half.

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Originally posted by Quebecois

His first game in a new offense, i think you need to give him a bit more time to tell whether he is in fact "done" It will be pretty interesting to see how he does though.

IMO he's been "done" or "finished" for a few years now... he hasn't been MIKE PRINGLE for 2-3 years now.

He kept getting yards because of the shear number of times we'd give him the ball.... and because we have the best O-line in the league.

Edmonton having so many other weapons, including a better running back in Mills, Pringle will never get the ball often enough to even have the chance to pretend he still has it.

Now the Esks will feel pressured to continue giving him the ball even though he's ineffective because of his "star" status... and it will only hurt the team.

Thank god he & Phillips are gone.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Wow what a game , what a finish... Als beat Sask 32-31

Als are a perfect 3-0 on the season (We ALWAYS have insanely good starts to each season...) ...

This game was a carbon-copy of game #1 of the season against Calgary. The Als were down by 19 points at one point , the Riders got all the breaks in the 1st half and the Als got all the penalties... When the 2nd half started it was a whole new ballgame and the Als came alive , Copeland had one hell of a game with 3 TD catches (All in 4th Quarter)...

The game finished on a missed fieldgoal (single) by the Riders kicker McCallum ... And the Als win by 1 point...

WOW! Go ALS!!!! Absouletely no quit in this team.

[Edited on 2003/7/5 by puck7x]

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Quite a game... I had truly given up after we gave the Riders a bonus field goal right before the end of the 1st half, then fumbled the opening kickoff in the 2nd half and gave them yet another free field goal.

And yet they still managed to pull it off... lady luck is on their side this year, no doubt.

You gotta love the way they never panic or give up, but man are they frustration to watch with their endless string of penalties... ugh

I didn't get why they didn't go for the 2pt convert at the end, should have cost them the game if the kicker didn't choke.

Ah well, a win's a win... let's not complain... although we should be 1-2 after 3 and we know it.

Stokes should be back, I'm guessing he'll replace Coleman who's been having a really hard time... we'll see.

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I never saw a good angle of the play... can't say whether it was a crap call or not.

Matthews has been giving his defense challenges at the end of games... to test them I guess.

Last week he went for the 1 pt convert when he should have gone for 2pts to get a 3pt cushion... he didn't and he challenged his D to keep the lead. The defense failed but was bailed out by a shanked kick.

Today he could, should, have gone for it on 3rd and 1/2 a yard at the end of the game but decided to punt it and challenge his D to keep the lead.

Ironically the D managed to keep them out of range (barely) but the special teams managed to screw it up.

Fact is we blew so many chances to put BC away we deserved to lose. Girard was pathetic at receiver, Stokes sucked, Kellett choked, Miles was taken to school... bleah

In the end who cares since the East is a gimme division, all that's important is that they peak come playoff time.

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In the end who cares since the East is a gimme division, all that's important is that they peak come playoff time.  

Yeah that's why its hard to get too riled up over one loss. It's so easy to make the playoffs in the east it's almost a joke. Hamilton and Ottawa are the teams we have to beat out, I don't think Hamilton would catch us if we lost the rest of the season. The first couple of months in the CFL can seem very meaningless at times when 2 thirds of the league end up playing come playoff time.

I still think it was a bad call, but i guess we have to live with that.

I agree with you about Stokes, he didn't seem to be into the game yet, hopefully he will be re-adjusted to CFL play come next week. We also would have blown B.C. away in the early going if Calvillo didn't overthrow two long bombs.

Copeland was outstanding again, along with Anderson and Cahoon our receiving corps was great.

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Originally posted by Quebecois

Copeland was outstanding again, along with Anderson and Cahoon our receiving corps was great.

Yeah Anderson was a nice surprise... did really well in Cavil's absence. He's better than Girard & Coleman, those 2 could end up being replaced by Anderson & Stokes before long if they don't wake up.

Greene also continued to do a great job in the return game... I forgot to mention that.

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Oh well , who needs a perfect season anyways? Win when it counts , in the playoffs...

Lousy way to lose though , our kicker chokes twice against his former team and their new kicker finishes us off with a winning field-goal ... As for the winning play itself , it looked like the right call to me (though at the time I was getting pretty wasted and the TV at the bar was at a bad angle... ) , I will say that it is a shitty rule...

Why the hell should the kickers be immune to physical play? (At least when they are in the act of kicking the ball) No fair!

Oh and that new receiver Anderson looks great , the guy is huge and has soft hands...

[Edited on 2003-7-14 by puck7x]

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How many RBs have we gone through since the beginning of training camp?... talk about a revolving door.

Anyway, the way we threw the ball on every single down... didn't really matter who was at RB.

I'm guessing this is a way to get Stokes more involved as well.... speaking of him Greene won't be dressed next game and Stokes will be returning the kicks.

I hope Greene is injured, cuz there is no way Greene should lose his job after the way he's played in the first 4 games.

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Originally posted by Habs77

I hope Greene is injured, cuz there is no way Greene should lose his job after the way he's played in the first 4 games.

It better be because he's injured, as Stokes' performance on Saturday certainly doesn't merit more playing time. (He had negative yardage and a fumble.) Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing Stokes as a runningback, he's certainly agile enough, although that along with his size are negatives. Couldn't hurt, especially the way we're going through RB's...

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