CALL ME CRAZY BUT I THINK THE ALS ARE GOING TO THE GREY CUP

Alouettes de Montréal
1

I think the Als are going to go to the GREY CUP this season--

All the signs are there, from the inseason switch to JIM (GURU) POPP to bringing in the hotshot 23 year old TANNER MARSH at QB--

This season reminds me a lot of the BC LIONS season when they started 1-7 and won the GREY CUP---

First of all let's look at the similarities--

Arland BRUCE was on the BC team, and he is on this team-

The BC offense was struggling mightily when they were 1-7 that season- I attended a practice when they were 1-7 and the receivers were running 10 yard hooks and the receivers coach would throw the ball at them and every single receiver dropped the ball except for BRUCE and GEROY SIMON- That team was really struggling badly-- THen they turned it around with 1 big win at EDMONTON by the score of 36-1--

This Montreal team was struggling on offense with MIKE MILLER and the aging CALVILLO who wouldnt take a hit- Now they have a hotshot young 23 year QB from TEXAS - TEXAS is the football FACTORY of QBS_ Texas is the SAMSUNG of QBS--
MARSH= LULAY--- Both were unproven and LULAY got hot for that season and he won a grey cup-- MARSH can do the same as he is from TEXAS and QBS from Texas are pretty amazing-- BRees, RG3, Andrew Luck, Ryan Tannehill, Andy Dalton, Matthew Stafford, Christian Ponder, Colt Mckoy, Matt Flynn, Kevin Kolb--

The BC teams strength that year was in its linebackers and D line-- This ALS team has really good linebackers and the pass rush with the emergence of AARON LAVARIOUS to team with JOHN BOWMAN and the ageless ANWAR STEWART who can still get it done-- LAVARIOUS is like a hungry TIGER out there, He is howling and growling and relentless in his pursuit, he is playing at a very high level, its like he hasn't eaten in a month and is trying to take a bite out of the opposing QB-

The linebackers on the ALS are amazing-- Emree is solid as ever, CHIP COX is the best cover linebacker in the CFL and KYRIES HEBERT (THE HUMAN MISSILE) is the most ferocious hitter in the CFL and the most athletic player in the league)
The safety MIKE EDEM is the best safety I have seen in the past 25 years in the CFL-- And he has a good haircut also.

I know that we do have TISDALE and BYRON (I ate too many donuts) PARKER who was getting beaten in BC, but perhaps he can slim down a bit to football shape and perhaps eat a few less donuts and be able to run with receivers--

Add in the 1-2 combo of WHITTAKER and MESSAM, they will be the next SISKEL and EBERT-- Teams will not know how to defend the power of MESSAM with the FINESSE and beautiful runs of WHITTAKER--

THe team will run with a YOUNG QB who has wide eyes and talent oozing out of his blood- The team was sick of AC and his ducking and turtling and doing acrobatic yoga and breakdancing moves to avoid HITS and pass rushers-- Watching AC play was like watching a little zebra trying to avoid getting eaten by a hungry tiger- He used the Old (IF i just fall to the ground, maybe no one will hit me move)

Sean WHYTE's leg may be a small concern, because as the season progresses his skinny legs might become skinnier and he might not have much power left in week 18 into the playoffs- Maybe POPP can feed WHYTE some more pasta or heavy carbs to push WHYTE over 160 lbs--

The O line is playing like a riot Squad Line, when they push the punks back away and hit them with their batons-- They are inprenetable and playing physical smash leg football--

I can see it now-- Als get to the CUp this season--

Only thing I can see effecting this season is if MARSH starts a nice winning streak here, and then ANTONIO CALVILLO decides he wants to play again and control the ALS like he knows he can-- What does POPP do when the smooth talking Calvillo walks into POPP's office and says "Jim I want to play, I am healthy now, I am symptom Free and ready to take control of the team-

What does POPP do? Does he stick to his loyalties and allow CALVILLO to resume or does he play the hot shot hard throwing gunslinger from TEXAS?

2

Ur Crazy...

But the good kind

:wink:
3

You forgot the “kungfu action kick”

4

I think you cross the bridge with AC when you come to it. Right now, he's not close to returning and Marsh is winning. So let's go with that. I doubt we'll make it to the Grey Cup game, but we're in a better spot than I thought we would be at the halfway mark of the season. Since Hawkins was canned, we've beaten Toronto and BC, and we almost (should have) beaten Saskatchewan. That's a positive. We're not a top team, but we're not as bad as our early-season struggles indicated. We need to finish off scoring drives and stop turning the ball over, but the pieces are there for us to be at least competitive this year, particularly since the east is pretty weak overall...

5

All 3 eastern teams are very close talent wise, all 3 are well coached. It will come down to what team is the most healthy come November. Let's face it we have many injuries. Toronto is missing Ray,Kackert, Waters. We have yet to play Hamilton but right now are the most injury free of the three but have beaten no other team than Winnipeg and split/handed Edmonton their only win. They've lost to BC, Toronto and swept by Saskatchewan.

The more playing time "The Replacements" get and the more time Calvillo and others have to heal, the more experience and options the coaching staff will have come playoff time.

But we have a long,long way to go but there is no question as long as the players and staff work this hard, good things will happen.

6

Last evening Marsh demonstrated the value of A QB who can run. He has a 10 yard rushing going into that game. There is no doubt that Trestman made his game with Calvillo as QB. He could and did stand in the pocket making his throws and, he was the QB in our three years of playing in the Grey Cup game. Actually in the first Q Marsh played like a rookie making all his throws from a running right position and, I thought that this was pretty in effective. The second half showed Marsh actually staying in the pocket for a sustained period. Liked that screen pass to Messam in the 4th Q. Messam was devastation in action as he bulled his way past the Argos. So, Marsh, in the 4th Q is, beginning to demonstrate the beginnings of his learning curve and he, utilized play action, and a better use of the running backs as receivers. This was a positive move as compared to his quick decision to run up to that time. Marsh had a 10 yard rushing average in his first game. Beginning in the third Q of this game, he was not retaining that 10 yard average run, but instead was making superior use of his backs in his passing game. He is already showing progress.
I'm still looking to see Troy in action and, at this point of time, I really don't perceive the QB position being handed back to AC.

7

I don’t call anyone crazy, but it’s waaaaayyyy too early to be bustin’ open the bubbly!

The Als are definitely playing better, but there’s a long way to go. Injuries are indeed the “X” factor in football seasons. Many of our stars are on the walking wounded list while others are gone for the season. Teams that have great depth with players capable of stepping in and being able to perform are another part of the “X” factor.

We are dealing with a rookie QB. True, he has shown growth between his first and second appearances. Can he keep that up, or will another QB have to step in? Will Anthony be back and be effective?

So far, we can credit the last two Ws to a ferocious D. Will the replacements continue to grow and produce from game to game? Will we be able to string together a series of Ws, creep up the standings…?

All of these questions must be answered before we order caseloads of Dom Perignon.

Is there some cause for optimism? Yes! As a fan, you look forward to every game hoping your team finds a way to win. I am enjoying our recent successes, but I haven’t booked airfare to Regina just yet.

8

Je crois qu’il est très tôt pour mettre Calvillo dans la poubelle.

Les Alouettes ont eu le luxe de jouer contre des Argonauts qui jouaient sans Ricky Ray. L’attaque des Argonauts avec Collaros n’a pas réussi à demeurer sur le terrain assez longtemps pour permettre à sa défensive de reprendre son souffle. C’est ce qui fait que les Alouettes ont pu soutenir des séquences assez longtemps pour reposer sa défensive, même en ne comptant pas de points. Les Argonauts en arrachent défensivement et Marsh a profité de leurs difficultés pour ne pas avoir trop l’air d’une recrue.

Lorsque les Alouettes joueront contre un club ayant son quart #1, nous verrons de quoi Marsh est fait pour diriger l’attaque. Une prestation de 13 points à l’attaque est loin d’être impressionnante en soi, surtout lorsque l’équipe a cumulé au-delà de 450 verges de gains. On ne pourra gagner contre les Lions à Vancouver ou contre les Roughriders avec des gains aussi modestes à l’attaque.

Marsh s’est amélioré et mérite un autre départ si Calvillo n’est pas en état de jouer. Mais il faut remettre les choses en prespective. Jusqu’à maintenant, Marsh n’a pas montré qu’il peut faire compter 30 points à l’attaque avec régularité.

Les prochaines étapes vont être plus difficiles pour Marsh maintenant qu’il y a plus de film sur lui, et actuellement, il doit encore prouver qu’il peut faire gagner cette équipe de semaine en semaine. On lui souhaite ce succès, mais il est peu probable qu’il soit maintenant le Messie. C’est pourquoi Calvillo demeure encore la valeur sûre derrière le beau risque.

9

Ok I'll bite. Your crazy. The Grey Cup berth is going to go through Toronto and Ricky Ray. :smiley:

10

C’est aussi évident que de prétendre aujourd’hui que les Alouettes ou les Blue Bombers vont gagner la Coupe! :wink:

11

[i][b]OK GRIDIRON GURU, JOHNNY IS CALLING YOU CRAZY!

What's the deal with them all caps and bold letters Gridiron? [/b][/i]

12

Beating a backup QB is probably not something you want to start planning the victory parade over. :stuck_out_tongue:

13

Nobody’s planning that parade except Guru, who isn’t even an Als fan. :slight_smile:

Having said that, beating a backup QB with your own (younger, less experienced) backup QB feels pretty good…

14

Here we go TROY smith-- make my prediction come thru

15

Yup! You're crazy!