TrueBlue4ever

One man's take: I love the approach that Noeller took for the most part. If you are the best ever in the CFL at your position, you should be up on that mountain. So Stegall, Walby, and Brown make great sense. I guess Cameron and Herb Gray could fit under that criteria too. But I also look at it from a "brand recognition" point of view. If I am a generic fan from another market, and you ask me to name the greatest Blue Bomber as a rival fan, whose name immediately springs to mind? Doug Flutie is arguably the greatest player to ever play CFL football (some throw Jackie Parker's name into the mix - not me), but he probably doesn't belong on the Toronto or BC Mount Rushmores. Parker is an Edmonton legend, but does he pass Moon (or do they both belong up there?) My short list for other teams: BC - Joe Kapp, Lui Passaglia, Geroy Simon Edm - Warren Moon, Jackie Parker, James "Quick" Parker, Dave Fennell, Hugh Campbell Cal - Doug Flutie, Allan Pitts Sask - Ron Lancaster, George Reed Ham - Angelo Mosca Tor - Michael "Pinball" Clemons, Mike O'Shea Ott - Russ Jackson, Tony Gabriel Mtl - Sam Etcheverry, Mike Pringle, Anthony Calvillo So who springs to mind when you think of the Bombers? Well, Stegall for sure, and Ken Ploen, and Bud Grant. These are slam dunks for an outsider who has a passing knowledge of the club's history. Then you think of the Ring of Honour. Pecking order gives you a pretty good idea how much regard the football club holds them in. The first 4 there were Walby, Ploen, Gerry James (not on my list since he did not beat out Lewis and Roberts for running back glory), and Stegall. Dieter Brock (another non-qualifier since Ploen beat him out) was 5th, and Leo Lewis was 6th, so Lewis would be 4th on the mountain if that criteria was used. Then look at who has statues, streets, club suites, gates, or other honorariums named after them. Bud Grant and Cal Murphy have statues. Stegall and Ploen got street names. Ploen, Stegall, Brown, and Poplawski got gates named after them. Stegall (yet again!) and Brown have the club suites dedicated to their numbers. And speaking of retired numbers, which is supposed to be the ultimate compliment, the club "officially" does not retire them, but Ploen's #11 has never been worn again (Jeff Nicklin's #28 and Tommy Lumsden's #75 are supposedly also on that list). And Stegall's #85, Walby's #63, and Cameron's #6 were removed from circulation (only Cameron's was allowed back into circulation with his blessing, but is not generally passed out as an option without his permission). Roberts #1 and Brown's #97 were pulled but have been brought back in. All this to say that I see a combination of those factors kicking in. SO..... Milt Stegall checks the box in every criteria here, so up he goes. Easy. Bud Grant is synonymous with the greatest Bomber teams of all time, and if you have been immortalized in bronze outside the stadium, then why not in granite? He's my #2. Ken Ploen was not the best ever at his position, but he comes closest to Stegall when it comes to club recognition (street name, gate name, ring of honour order, retired number) and he is the QB other teams' fans would think of, so he is #3. If you doubt that, remember who the first person out of the tunnel was at the opening ceremonies when Investor's Group Field opened in 2013. Ploen in full uniform, handing the ball off to Stegall. Ploen gets the third spot. At this point it is easier to eliminate people than pick #4. If I haven't mentioned their name yet in this post, they are out. So I have Walby, Brown, Cameron, Gray, Lewis, Cal Murphy and Poplawski - 7 people vying for one spot. Gray's name has not survived the passage of time like Ploen or Grant in Bomber lore, so not him. When Poplawski had the gate named after him, some eyebrows were raised as to why he was picked over others (being on the Board of Directors at the time gave off a feeling of an inside vote rigging), and I was one of them, so I won't pick him. Cal Murphy was the personification of the team in the 1980's to the mid '90's, but he became a forgotten man for a long time after his unceremonious departure, so I don't feel the long time love and adoration from the club that other players got. Will leave him off. And Doug Brown never felt like a "lifer" as a Bomber due to his NFL stint and the fact he came in a trade from Calgary. Maybe I devalue the nose tackle position compared to others, or that he never broke any league records, but there is just...something....that makes me not think of him on the short list of best of the best. Lewis has a claim based on greatness (Bud Grant would have him up there) but 3 memebrs of the same team on one wall seems too dismissive of the rest of history, so with twinges of regret not him. Down to 2, Walby and Cameron. The two longest tenured Bombers ever, so this feels right from a historical perspective. Weird to think a punter and an offensive lineman rank over the sexier positions on the club, but we are a blue collar town. The edge here has to go to the one who was the better at his position compared to the rest of the league, and who was the first ever chosen for the Ring of Honour (I would not have had him first myself, but for sure in the top 4), and as a native Winnipegger, that just seals the deal. Chris Walby is my #4.

Pick the 4 all-time greatest Blue Bombers. Due to poll restrictions, had to combine Bastaja and Mikawos. Should you vote for either of them, please make a comment in the thread as to which one you are voting for.

One man's take: So my first 2 spots are easy here for me. The first is Jeff Nicklin. The man laid down his life for this country so we could enjoy our freedoms. I think WBBFanWest put it best: "Nicklin because there are all stars in games and then there are all stars in life. Greatest Bomber ever." Only Bomber to have a league trophy named after him. God bless. The second is Tom Casey. Did not get voted on to the all-time team, because he was too versatile to dominate at just one position and leave his mark there. He was a running back, receiver, punter, and defensive back and was an all-star at each position. Also placekicked and threw the odd touchdown pass. And just so he didn't define his legacy by his football prowess, he graduated in the same medical class at the U of M as my father and dedicated his later life to helping others as a dedicated doctor. I am tempted to just leave the third spot open, since an unsung hero comes up every game and deserves recognition, so I don't want to lock it down forever. But I'll throw out a few honourable mentions who, any one of them, could have the happy honker bestowed upon them: Pete Catan - for firing model rockets off his helmet into the stands during practice. I always thought this was the coolest thing growing up. Willard Reaves - for sharing his touchdown moments with the special needs children in the end zone, before the club commercialized it with non-game balls and corporate sponsorship. Another great sincere spontaneous moment that got re-packaged as a corporate branding opportunity. Cactus Jack Wells - for inventing the happy honker in the first place Bob Irving - how blessed are we to have this voice as our own for the past 45 years calling Bomber games? Whether I am in the stands watching the live action with my radio ear buds in, or listening to a short wave radio at the lake in mu childhood, or live streaming CJOB from across the globe, or even his foray into TV with the CFN, his call was the constant that brought me into that game and made me feel like I was "home", and was professional and top notch every time. Joe Pascucci - the unofficial club historian, thank goodness he had the foresight to save all the video from his time at CKND so we have a living video history of the club. "Carol" - Carol Barrott, but everybody knows her as just "Carol", and I swear she knows each and every fan personally in her role as ticket manager. She was born for that job, and has always gone the extra mile with any request, and is the not-so-secret engine that keeps the fan services and likely the whole club running. Dancing Gabe, Plungerhead, "Dave's Disciples", Jack Skelly, and every other "exceptional" Blue Bomber fan who stand out in a sea of Blue and Gold - also a shout out to any fans who have sat through 3 hour rain delays, or cut out of work to watch (and report on!) training camp. Diehards all, they are the lifeblood of this league.

The second task is not a vote, but just a nomination thread. After each game we put out a "3 stars and happy honker" thread, so I thought since we've identified the all-time stars, we need an all-time happy honker award, and keep 3 spots open for that. No voting, no rules, just offer your opinions - no wrong answers here. I just want people to voice their support for their favorites who have done "that little something extra special" as Blue Bombers.

So the team is virtually complete, with the QB voting window closing down and Ken Ploen in command at this time. Nice to see a bit of love for Jacobs, Brock, and Clements in the voting, a shame that Jonas and Jones could not have at least squeaked out one vote for how they each resurrected the franchise during their respective careers. But we move on to the final installment in our little off-season project. Before I get there, just wanted to give a shout out to a few members here who contributed to this endeavour. First to Rich, who helped with any technical difficulties I had with posts or polls that I screwed up (on more than one occasion), many thanks. To Stats Junkie, for insight into the history of the game and player positions from an earlier period which added immensely to making sure I got stuff right and made me look deeper into how to get the right players in the right categories, it was informative and educational, thank you.. To Speedflex, for being my unofficial auditor and catching my gaffes, and for being a champion of the entire 89 year history of the club, not just the last 30 years. Your input and enthusiasm for this topic was greatly appreciated, and thanks for keeping me honest with my efforts. And to everyone who took the time to vote or offer an opinion, thanks for keeping the board lively but civil during the long winter months. The final vote will be the "Mount Rushmore" of the Bombers - simply put, if 4 faces had to be etched into a mountainside to reflect the greatest of the great in Bomber lore, who would go up there. I will put out a list of 20 Bombers and you select four choices from that list. No bios to compare, this is just about who you think should be up there. The criteria are your own. Longevity? Exceptional play? Success? A Winnipeg icon? It's your call. I made 2 (controversial?) rules to keep the list manageable. The first is that the names are all selected from each position we just voted for in the MBB All-Time Blue Bomber team. I figure if a player is not good enough to make the squad at the top of their position, they won't make the rarified air of being immortalized in granite. So a Fritz Hansen, Tom Casey, or Jack Jacobs will not be included, despite their significant contributions and inclusion in the 75th anniversary team. If they can't beat out the likes of Ploen or Lewis at their position, why would they elevate above them on the mountain? I think as tough as it is, that is a fair way to do it. Secondly, to get the list down from the 34 selected positions to a more realistic number, I eliminated any player who had less than 8 years or 100 games of service as a Blue Bomber. I believe that longevity does play a part in a player's legacy with the club in a vote like this. The only player who in my mind might raise an eyebrow with this exclusion process is Rod Hill, who fell 10 games short. But honestly, I can say with confidence that as great as he was, I can pick 4 names I would place over his in a ranking order. Likewise for some who meet the criteria and who will make the nominations list but really won't be considered in the "top 4" (like Stan Mikawos, for example, no disrespect intended). But I needed an arbitrary starting point for the nominations list, so there it is. And although voting is not closed, I am going to be presumptuous and list Ken Ploen, quite confident he will win out in the QB spot at this point Any comments for "Mount Rushmore" can be confined to that voting thread.

Great post! You could add Jones as another QB you would want to start or rebuild a franchise, as that is exactly what he did here in 2000. I remember one game where he was playing with a bad throwing shoulder and generally "beat up", and the o-line guys (I think it was Matt Sheridan who told this story) just marvelled at him limping into the huddle holding his arm up with his other hand since he couldn't lift it on its own, wincing in pain, looking like he'd been in a car wreck, would call the play, get to the line, and from the cadence to the end of the play, all that pain disappeared and he would be humming the ball all over the place like his arm was totally fine, then he would again limp back to the huddle, call the next play, and again bury the pain, play after play. They say he carried the entire team that day and everyone brought their game to a higher level seeing how much he was willing to sacrifice and suck up to get the job done.

One man's take: A bit trickier than I thought it might be. This category will boil down to how one would define "greatness". If you are a stats head, Brock has the career numbers, Jones arguably had the greatest single season (even though he didn't win MOP that year), and the more recent QBs have the edge in that new fangled efficiency rating, for what it's worth (BTW Matt Nichols leads in that category, and in career and single season completion percentage). And Kevin Glenn had surprisingly comparable career numbers to Jones in his time here. But if greatness is defined by team success, then Ploen is a slam dunk. However, breaking down his numbers makes one wonder how much of his success was driven by him, versus having a stacked team around him, compared to say a Jacobs, Dunigan or Jonas who carried a team. Or do you weigh both aspects equally, in which case a guy like Clements checks off both boxes of strong stats and team success? And do you weigh these guys against each other, or compared to their contemporaries in the years they played? Let the debate begin. My case for each (loathe to put them in "rankings" for fear of slighting any of them, but consider this a sort of pecking order from bottom to top): Kevin Glenn: Like with every team in his career, he just went about his business and put up some very nice numbers, despite little praise for it. Probably should have beat out Kerry Joseph for league MOP in 2007 based on the stats that year (although Henry Burris may have been the proper choice overall), and how does his overall legacy look if he doesn't break his arm in the East Final chasing Charlie's goalline gaffe? How different is the team's legacy, for that matter, with a Grey Cup drought that likely would have ended 12 years ago instead of carrying into this year once more? But it's the little things about him that irk fans that knock him down a peg. How he'd point to the name on the back of his jersey after a score (like it was more important than the logo on the shoulder), he had a chip on his shoulder for sure - maybe justifiably so given the lack of respect he gets an all the moving around for a pretty impressive career - he has not hung around this long because he's no good - but his time in Winnipeg was marred by some knee problems, and he could always do just enough to get a team close and then break their hearts with a last drive mistake when it mattered most (fortunately his most egregious playoff failures happened in other uniforms). Clutch he was not. But respect is due for what he did accomplish here. I say he fully deserves to be on the nominees list, but nothing more than that. Matt Dunigan: So this is reason #1 why I fear ranking these guys. It is so subjective in how to look at things. But he was here the shortest time, and while he is now beloved, most have probably conveniently forgotten that when he was here he was labelled "the glass quarterback". Played QB with a linebacker mentality, the best running QB of the lot by a country mile (and given the state of our running game, he was like a 1A back beside Michael Richardson) and the best improvisational scrambler. His ability to extend plays and ad lib made Mike Kelly's offence look better than it maybe was, and unlike a Stegall who made his QBs look better in some cases, Dunigan elevated the play of his receiving corps. And of course, the 713 game is one of the greatest singular moments in 89 years of Bomber history (ranks #2 in games I have ever seen live). But the injuries at crucial times (playing hurt in the '92 Cup, out with an Achilles tear in '93 with our best shot at the Cup) and playing second fiddle to Doug Flutie in that era, coupled with his short tenure, keep him down the list. Oh, but what could have been......... Don Jonas: Resurrected the team from the scrap heap in the 1970's and was the first real star following the dynasty years. Shocking stat: he is still the last Bomber quarterback to start a Western Final playoff game in Winnipeg, 47 years ago. Had Mack Herron as his engine, but really the team rallied around him, and bonus points for early mentorship of Brock, and for arguably the expansion of Winnipeg Stadium because of his play. He was always willing to cede the starter's role and finish in Winnipeg as a senior back-up and guiding hand to Dieter, but management had other plans, one of the biggest injustices in Winnipeg's sporting history when you discuss trades. His shorter time here and no trips to the big dance keep him lower down on the list, but his MOP award squeaks him past Dunigan in my unscientific ranking. Khari Jones: Boy, again I hate ranking these guys, he should be higher. A supernova when he took over from Kerwin Bell, he may be regarded as the biggest steal in Bomber trading history when he was a throw-in on a deal with BC. Legit question: did he make Milt or did Milt make him? Legit question #2, has any player on any team had a better season and not been his team's MOP than Khari in 2002 (maybe Sapunjis or Pitts in Flutie's heyday)? Again. father time and concussions brought an inglorious end to a great career here, had the "quiet room" been around when he played, all one would need to do was see the wide-eyed glaze and he would be sitting rather than throwing that ill-advised wide-side "pick-6 on a silver platter" toss that became all too frequent in his final year here. And he will always be saddled with the "Unfinished Business" group of '01-'03 that keeps him from moving higher on the list. But what a joy to see him just stare at Milt at the line, and they both silently knew the pass was going over the top to the vacated safety spot for a TD with the blitz in his face, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Jack Jacobs: A QB for a different era, "Indian Jack" transformed the passing game in the CFL. The first QB ever to go over 3,000 yards in a season when formations were basically set up to run the ball on most of the plays. Some can say Milt made IG Field happen, and Jonas was the reason behind the upper deck addition, but Winnipeg Stadium will always be "the house that Jack built" without question, and I can't think of a more lasting legacy for a player than that. I did not include rushing stats for him because they were actually hundreds of yards in the negative (I can only assume sacks were considered "negative gain rushes" at that time). Tom Clements: I have a massive bias for him as my favorite QB, but I would see it as a stretch to call him the "greatest ever" to line up under centre for the Bombers. BUT....if you wanted someone who checks ALL the boxes, he is the only guy who does. MOP award? Check (only Jonas, Brock, and Jones join him as QBs on that list). CFL all-star QB? Check (Jacobs, Ploen, Dunigan, and Glenn cannot say that). Big stats? Check. (His 4686 yard season is 4th best in club history, only Dunigan and Jones have more TD passes in a single season, and at the time his 67% completion rate was a league record) Team Grey Cup success? Check. (Only Ploen stands with him here). "The Professor" or "Clark Kent" was the most cerebral of the Bomber QBs on this list, and as was said before dragged us to heights we had not seen in 22 years, something so many others on this list could not do. His 1987 team was described by Bob Irving as the best Bomber team ever, maybe the best CFL team ever, to not win the Grey Cup. To be traded for one of the iconic Bomber players of all-time and come out best says something, so yeah, maybe he does rank on top. Dieter Brock: Has all the metrics to be #1. The only Bomber ever to win 2 MOP awards (back-to-back). Has all the career records, and a healthy number of the single season marks at one time (some of which are still his). And is it his fault that he never got to the big dance only because was the league's best QB playing on a team that had to go up against the all-time greatest dynasty the CFL has ever seen? "The Birmingham Rifle" (yes, bonus points for a cool nickname, which elevates one's status) was an elite talent. "Could throw a football through a car wash without it getting wet". "Could throw a ball while on his knees at centre field and split the uprights". Just could not win the big one, sigh..... Ken Ploen: So here is my dilemma. If you crunch the numbers. He is not a "wow" player (although that 118.2 effeiciency rating in 1962 is eye-popping, I had to check that number twice). The offence revolved as much around Leo Lewis as anything (as evidenced by his 5 team MOP noms compared to Ploen's 2 over the same time frame). Jim Van Pelt had better passing numbers with the club than Ploen did when they played together. He never ever led the league in passing yards or TDs in any single season. And compared to his contemporaries of that era (Joe Kapp, Sam Etcheverry, Russ Jackson, Robin Tote, and Eagle Day) it's hard to say he ever ranked ahead of them all at any time. But, those 4 rings. And with each passing year of futility with this franchise (a past 22 year drought and now a 29 year famine!), those championships loom larger for his legend. If I am ranking the "best" QBs on how they carried their team alone, or how they stood out as the top player in the league, or how they put up amazing numbers, he falls down this list a lot. But when I think of the "Mount Rushmore" of Bomber players and who deserves to be on that monument (and yes, that will be my final installment next week), how does Ken Ploen not end up on that group of 4 ultimate legends? So I leave it to you to decide without publicly naming my guy. I know who I want up there, who "should" be there, and who "deserves" to be there, and they may all be different people, and I know another could make a better case for someone who isn't one of those three to be the top dog. So don't be shy with those testimonials.

Last roster category is up with the QB nominees. One choice only, voting closes Sunday.

Here are the bios: Passing stats will be broken down into completions, attempts, completion percentage, yards, TDs, INTs, long, and QB efficiency rating (calculated using the US model out of 158.3 maximum) for the career, with the best single season total for each category in brackets with the corresponding year in parentheses, following the career numbers. The “best” year for INTs will actually be the lowest total, given a minimum of 200 pass attempts. Rushing stats will be attempts, yards, average, long, and TDs, career, then best individual season in brackets for each category. Jack Jacobs – 74 gp in 5 seasons (1950-54) Passing: 709/1330, 53.3%, 11094 yds, 104 TD, 53 INT, 100 long, 90.72 rating [204 (‘51)/355 (’51), 57.9% (’53), 3248 yds (’51), 34 TD (’52), 10 INT (’51), 100 long (’51), 107.76 (’51)] 2 time divisional all-star (1950, 52), 2 Grey Cup appearances (1950, 53), led West division in passing yards 3 times (1951-53), led CFL in TD passes 3 times (1951-53), CFL Hall of Fame Ken Ploen – 156 gp in 11 seasons (1957-67) Passing: 1084/1916, 56.6%, 16470 yds, 119 TD, 106 INT, 96 long, 82.7 rating [257 (‘66)/153 (’66), 65.9% (’62), 2323 yds (’66), 17 TD (’62), 4 INT (’62), 96 long (’66), 118.21 (’62)] Rushing: 588-3001-5.1-81-13 [100 (’57) – 541 (’60) – 8.0 (’60) – 81 (’63) – 4 (’60)] 3 time divisional all-star (1957, 59, 65), CFL all star (1965), 2 time team MOP (1957, 64), 6 Grey Cup appearances (1957-59, 61, 62, 65), 4 time Grey Cup champion (1958, 59, 61, 62), Grey Cup MVP (1961), CFL Hall of Fame Don Jonas – 54 gp in 4 seasons (1971-74) Passing: 821/1553, 52.9%, 12291 yds, 77 TD, 95 INT, 103 long, 70.15 rating [253 (‘71)/485 (’71), 56.4% (’72), 4036 yds (’71), 27 TD (’72), 26 INT (’72), 103 long (’73), 78.36 (’72) Rushing: 73-245-3.4-25-7 [27 (’73) – 81 (’72) – 4.5 (’72) – 25 (’71) – 4 (’71)] 2 time divisional all-star (1971, 72), 2 time CFL all star (1971, 72), 2 time team MOP (1971, 73), West/CFL MOP (1971), led CFL in passing yards 2 times (1971, 72), led CFL in TD passes 2 times (1971, 72), CFL Hall of Fame Dieter Brock – 149 gp in 10 seasons (1974-83) Passing: 2168/3777, 57.4%, 29623 yds, 187 TD, 129 INT, 98 long, 84.87 rating [354 (‘81)/566 (’81), 62.5% (’81), 4796 yds (’81), 32 TD (’81), 9 INT (’75), 98 long (’77), 97.31 (’81)] Rushing: 328-979-3.0-31-24 [62 (’77) – 220 (’77) – 4.8 (’75) – 31 (’75) – 6 (’77)] 3 time divisional all-star (1980-82), 2 time CFL all star (1980, 81), 4 time team MOP (1978, 80-82), 2 time West/CFL MOP (1980, 81), led CFL in passing yards 3 times (1978, 81, 82) and the West a 4th time (1979), led CFL in TD passes 3 times (1977, 80, 81), CFL Hall of Fame Tom Clements – 61 gp in 5 seasons (1983-87) Passing: 1075/1779, 60.4%, 14197 yds, 102 TD, 81 INT, 105 long, 85.83 rating [336 (‘87)/592 (’87), 67.6% (’86), 4686 yds (’87), 35 TD (’87), 11 INT (’86), 105 long (’85), 100.8 (’86) Rushing: 96-222-2.3-17-5 [31 (’87) – 101 (’84) – 3.7 (’84) – 17 (’85) – 2 (’87)] 2 time divisional all-star (1984, 87), 2 time CFL all star (1984, 87), team/East/CFL MOP (1987), Grey Cup appearance (1984), Grey Cup champion (1984), Grey Cup Offensive MVP (1984), led West division in passing yards (1984) and led CFL in passing yards (1987), led CFL in passing TDs 2 times (1984, 87), CFL Hall of Fame Matt Dunigan – 43 gp in 3 seasons (1992-94) Passing: 791/1442, 54.9%, 11504 yds, 84 TD, 49 INT, 79 long, 86.3 rating [334 (‘93)/600 (’93), 58.5% (’94), 4682 yds (’93), 36 TD (’93), 15 INT (’92), 79 long (’94), 97.65 (’94)] Rushing: 168-981-5.8-37-18 [84 (’93) – 517 (’93) – 6.2 (’93) – 37 (’93) – 11 (’93)] 2 time divisional all-star (1993, 94), team/East MOP (1993), 2 Grey Cup appearances (1992, 93), led East division in passing TDs 2 times (1993, 94), CFL Hall of Fame Khari Jones – 83 gp in 5 seasons (2000-04) Passing: 1416/2478, 57.1%, 20175 yds, 139 TD, 98 INT, 83 long, 85.85 rating [382 (‘02)/620 (’02), 61.6% (’02), 5334 yds (’02), 46 TD (’02), 8 INT (’04), 83 long (’02), 94.52 (’02)] Rushing: 260-1501-5.8-43-8 [64 (’00) – 424 (’00) – 6.6 (’00) – 43 (’01) – 3 (’03)] 2 time divisional all-star (2001, 02), CFL all star (2001), team/East/CFL MOP (2001), Grey Cup appearance (2001), led CFL in passing yards 2 times (2001, 02), led CFL in passing TDs 2 times (2001, 02) and East division a 3rd time (2000) Kevin Glenn - 92 gp in 6 seasons (2004-08, 16) Passing: 1330/2187, 60.8%, 18135 yds, 103 TD, 71 INT, 101 long, 89.48 rating [388 (‘07)/621 (’07), 64.6% (’08), 5117 yds (’07), 27 TD (’05), 14 INT (’04), 101 long (’05), 93.18 (’07)] Rushing: 170-656-3.9-18-5 [41 (’07) – 194 (’06) – 4.8 (’06) – 18 (’05) – 2 (‘04, ’06) divisional all-star (2007), team/East MOP (2007), Grey Cup appearance (2007), led CFL in passing yards (2007), led East division in passing TDs (2007)

That strategy won Mike Reilly a most outstanding player award.

Also, White House is directing former counsel Don McGhan to ignore his subpoena requiring him to testify before Congress, saying as a former employee of the President acting in an official capacity for the government, he is immune from testifying. So I guess when Bill and Hillary Clinton had to testify, those rules didn’t count?

Sorry, link failed. Basically NYTimes reporting that Justin Kennedy (The son of Anthony Kennedy, the justice who surprisingly stepped down to clear the way for Brett Kavanagh’s ascention to SCOTUS) signed off on Trump financial deals for Deutsche Bank when no other bank would touch him.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Remember when Justice Kennedy retired suddenly from the SCOTUS w/Brett Kavanaugh waiting in the wings for <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>?<br><br>Guess who signed off on Trump’s suspicious loans <a href="https://twitter.com/DeutscheBank?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DeutscheBank</a> when no other bank would? <br><br>Justin Kennedy. <br><br>Justice Kennedy’s son. <a href="https://t.co/w6Jcl77Ryt">https://t.co/w6Jcl77Ryt</a></p>&mdash; Fernand R. Amandi (@AmandiOnAir) <a href="https://twitter.com/AmandiOnAir/status/1130213118934753281?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Nichols became the starter in 2016, went 10-3 and got us into the playoffs. Went 11-6 his next year as our starter, and in his “bad” year went 9-5. It’s time people got off his back, he has enough of a load to shoulder trying to carry the offence with Harris without these negative fan rankings about how our back up QB is always better. Everyone loved Streveler until he actually had to carry the team for an extended period in the Banjo Bowl, and we saw that he wasn’t really the saviour he was anointed as based on spot duty. Love Streveler’s game, but our best hope is that he has lots of mop up duty and the odd sequence to shake things up. A healthy Nichols is our best option, IMO.

Joe Mack: “Hold my beer” #Labour Day massacre. #52-0.

Cow catamaran! Bovine boat!

How can you hate "The Colonel"?

Always in 3's. Lipton, Day and now Conway. This one hurts. His dentist sketch or the elephant story are two of the best improv comedy bits of all time. And his Emmy awards moments with Harvey Korman are pretty hilarious too.

I did. Here it is, in fact. You can watch and critique the whole thing, but I looked specifically at the first 30 second intro here as a comparison: And here is a Fox news "personality" (host, whatever term you want to tag him with, even "radio host", but he does show up on TV and is likely better known for that) for comparison's sake: So I see a difference. You may not. It may be enough for you that each "newsman" is on stage with a political candidate at a partisan event (one calls itself a town hall but is acknowledged as being in front of "Democrats and Independents who are going to participate in the democratic primaries" and the other is a rally for the Republican President) and everything else is just semantics. I see differences in the intent of each event, in the approach taken by each newsman and their role, their level of personal interaction with the politician, and in how they "work the crowd" and in the message they deliver overall. And since this was an issue of "most biased", I'm not sure what can be said to explain the phrase "those people at the back are fake news, by the way" by a news personality, who is introduced as "someone who has been with us since the beginning, who has done an incredible job for us" when news reporters are not supposed to be about "us" and "them" or "doing jobs" for elected leaders, at least in my day. But I have my opinion , you have yours, so I will just let others see the unredacted clips and come to their own conclusions about what they believe.

Alas, like Highlander “there can be only one”.

If you mean “idiot” in the “stupid” sense, I would disagree. He is more opinion host than reporter (so much of cable news is these days, that downfall of straightforward reporting on all sides has led to this polarization). And his job is to enflame the passions of both sides. Since you have such a strong dislike of him, it sounds like he’s intelligent enough to push your buttons with his shtick. And if he is beyond biased, wouldn’t that make him unbiased based on the strict definition of your words? I’m pretty sure I get the point you are trying to make, but it gets lost in your hyperbole. Funny how that can happen and sabotage an argument. As for the worst, that’s a subjectively qualitative assessment, and certainly up for debate. I won’t get into a “pick your political side and defend it with name-calling” argument - there’s been a lot of that nonsense on both sides sprinkled into the last 3 pages of this thread in between the odd valid point. I will say this, I don’t recall Lemon climbing on stage and acting as the warm-up act for a sitting politician during a stump speech rally like another “newsman” has, so I personally would not rank him as the “worst” in terms of bias on that basis alone.

I am a huge Clements fan, and we won that one for one trade that sent Brock packing. Maybe the most cerebral QB we ever had. I think Clements had a better supporting cast offensively and defensively than Brock did, so I’m not sure they had the same team, and Brock had the misfortune to hit his zenith in the Eskimo dynasty, when neither he (or Clements in Hamilton) could get past Moon and Wilkinson. But a fun debate to have between those 2 for sure.

I haven’t done the bios yet. Will put them up later this week as the 5th Receiver vote winds down.