2011 Training Camp fan reports and observations thread

Just read a great quote from coach Bellefeuille regarding Chris Rwabukamba..

“He has very good coverage skills,? Bellefeuille said. “He’s going to be a formidable guy for everybody in the secondary. I like what he’s done here in rookie camp and he’s put himself in a position where we know he can compete.?

He also goes on to say..

“He is a bigger, longer athlete [in person] than he looked like on tape coming out of Duke,? Bellefeuille commented. “He’s going to compete for the job there [at field corner].?

Reading between the lines, McDaniel better have a spectacular camp or find platform spikes.

Really excited to hear Rwabukamba is having a good camp so far and making great impressions on the coaches. It's actually possible there could be 3 starting Canadian DB's on the team. A CFL first I'm sure.

The weekend just started and I'm already wishing it was Sunday! lol

I can not wait to see how Rwabukamba stacks up against ABIII, Stala, Mann, and McDaniel.. That is over 4000 yards receiving in 2010 lining up across from you.. Good luck kid lol

And I'm looking forward to seeing how Kelly, Grant, London, Kruger, and Kohlert stack up against Hinds, Dennis, Shivers, Bo Smith, and Francis.

Our young DB's have a much higher quality competitor across from them in Arland Bruce III(1303yds rec. in 2010), than any receiver will have across from them.. So the DB's have their work cut out for them thats for sure.

It's gonna be awesome to watch!

Ok, there are times I wish I had no job, no problem, and no wife, a problem. :wink:

Thanks GB for the summary, well done! :thup:

Thanks Earl, oh and don’t we all! LOL :lol:

Great work Gbonds as Always ..
Thank you :thup:

From the Ticats TV Rookie Camp Day 2 video;
“In the pros it’s only the first 5 yards that the defence can touch you; here they can kinda ride you all the way down the field” - A. Kelly

I hope he realizes this is a paying gig.

This is A pro team.The CFL is A pro league.The NFL is A pro league.Wake up Mr.Kelly, probably just a small oversight on your part.

Obviously he knows it's pro football since he is being paid. It's truly awe inspiring how much some of you over think what other people say. I thought this was a camp observations thread?

If one thread ever truly stays on topic on these forums then all the participating posters deserve an award. Seriously.

Anyone who attended have any constructive non-petty things to say about camp?

Umm, it was 2 small comments against the 25 other comments actually about TC, way to over exaggerate much.All i’m saying it it’s probably a tiny mistake on his part, however I hope he does realize that just because this isn’t the NFL doesn’t mean it’s a breeze to do well, nor is it a minor league or semi-pro by any standards.

Have the distinct feeling fans better get used to having Kelly around.

I just found it amusing because I remember when Major Harris first went to the BC Lions he was doing a TV interview during a game, and said something like "I'm gonna probably play here a couple of years and then go back down to the pros".
He went on to barely see the field, if at all.

X2,
i’m not saying this is where Kelly is going, i’m giving him the benefit of the doubt here and calling it a slip of the tongue.HOWEVER, if he didn’t make a mistake and that’s what he actually believes, the league will school him and he’ll either smarten up or be gone within a year.

wow, lol…everyone here better take notice…zenstate is nothing to be messed with, don’t cross him or you will get yelled at shakes with fear

I was going to point it out my self, it was his exact words…no interpretation there. Did he mean it the way it sounded? I Doubt it, but its something that happened at camp so its worthy of “minor” discussion. From what I herd Im excited to go see how he does at mac tomorrow but he does need to learn how to give an interview, slip of the tongue or not…he can’t be saying that stuff on TSN for a national audience or hes going to take some heat. If people make a big deal out if it when clearly its not, I will be right there with you putting people in line but come on, its clear you know your sh*t so just relax a little, the offseason is over!

meanwhile back at the ranch.....

whos coming out to mac tomorrow? Any specifics your looking for?

For me my top 4 are

1/. Thigpen vs. Williams
2/. RB battle
3/. kicking battle
4/. Seeing how Kelly stacks up against faster and more physical DBs. Like zenstate pointed out, I to have a feeling hes going to be around a while, this kid could be dangerous. I only hope he doesnt go the way of some of our other rookie WR's who start off with a lot of promise then dont work out in the long run. lol....anyone remember Demetris Breedlove? I thought that guy was going to be something....lots of hype around Earnest Jackson, even when he finally got in the line up the first pass thrown to him was a TD then he vanished...even Prechae Rodriguez ultimately fizzled out. Im hoping he sticks though, like OB said, it would add another dimension to the offence.

I can’t make it out tomorrow but if I could i’d be looking at:

1.Our secondary
2.Avon Cobourne
3.Justin Medlock
4.Kevin Glenn
5.Aaron Kelly and Maurice Mann
6.Marcus Thigpen + Chris Williams
7.Stevie Baggs and Justin Hickman

My thoughts from Sunday's camp

QB: Jason Boltus was sharp, very accurate and threw some great balls into tight spaces. Mustain struggled in the team drills, throwing a few interceptions.

RB: Cuttino is definitely elusive and Milner fought for every yard during the short yardage drills.

WR: Aaron Kelly was definitely impressive, even when he doesn't gain separation he's somehow able to locate the ball and catch it. Bakari Grant ran some great routes and has decent speed. Chris Williams is a BURNER, but he has some good hands to go with it. Blaine Kruger looked very good as did Glenn McKay, i'm not even slightly worried about our Canadian Depth at receiver. Maurice Mann made a few highlight reel catches as did Arland Bruce.

OL: Wayne Smith has the biggest arms i've ever seen. Jack Julsing and Brian Simmons will provide great competition at tackle. Dyakowski had a good day, nobody seemed to be able to get by him, with the exception of one person (more on that below).

DL: No Hickman today, he's tied up in personal issues. Maurice Forbes doesn't look out of place at all and has a very wide body. DT Ventrell Jenkins made Dyakowski look silly on one play, basically throwing him to the ground. Stevie Baggs looks very quick.

LB: Renuald Williams is extremely fast for a linebacker, espcially one that plays in the middle. Nothing was new with J.J. and Markeith. The rumours are true about Denson, he's a beast.

DB: Jerome Dennis is going to be an all-star this year, he kept going up against Arland Bruce in the one-on-one drills and shut him down a few times. Hinds looked great as well. Francis Adjei is very physical with the receivers but got injured late and looked to be in a lot of pain. Rwabukamba looked good as did Beswick. I know it doesn't mean anything on the first day of camp but the starting secondary looked as follows: Hinds and Beswick on the corners (two canadians), Dennis and Toney as the halfbacks (Darren Toney looked awful) and Shivers at safety ( :? ).

K: Medlock and Wilbur looked good but Gunderson was awful at punting.

I thought Mitch Mustain had the best punt of the day. Even pinned it up against the sideline.
Then he came back down to reality on his next attempt.

The first one was a beauty, Boltus tried a couple but couldn’t match Mustain.