Courtesy the Calgary Herald:

Focused on leading his Calgary Stampeders to playoff glory, Henry Burris was hoping for some individual recognition Wednesday morning.

It didn’t come.

The Canadian Football League announced its award finalists and Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Kerry Joseph is the West Division’s most outstanding player nominee. Voting was done by the Football Reporters of Canada.

“Kerry’s a good friend of mine and I’m happy that he had a spectacular season,” Burris said Wednesday. “But if you look at the numbers and what a person needed to do to make it happen, I thought I did just that.

“Even though I missed three games, my numbers were still higher. So what does it take?

“But, hey, I’m happy for him.”

Burris leads the CFL with a 102.0 quarterback efficiency rating and 34 touchdown passes. He’s also second with 4,279 passing yards. Joseph trails Burris in each of those categories, but his 13 rushing touchdowns would have appealed to voters, in addition to Saskatchewan’s 12-5 record, compared to Calgary’s 7-9-1 mark.

B.C. Lions running back Joe Smith, who leads the CFL with 1,482 rushing yards and 19 majors, was the other top candidate.

“It always means something to be rewarded for going out there and working hard,” said Burris. “Especially the way this season started for this team. For us to rebound and play consistent football for such a long time, that’s what it’s all about.

“Truly, we thought somebody should be rewarded from the offensive side for the way we performed this year.

“But I thought it might go to the guys who had a better record because, usually, that’s where it goes.”

Of some irritation to Burris is the fact he was the league’s player of the month in August and September, while Smith and Joseph weren’t at all.

“I guess the player of the month thing doesn’t mean anything,” he said, while nearby teammates piped up in support.

While Joseph earned the top award, B.C. Lions claimed the other West nominations: Cameron Wake (rookie and defensive player), slotback Jason Clermont (Canadian), Rob Murphy (offensive lineman) and Ian Smart (special teams).

Division all-stars will be announced today and don’t be surprised to see the Lions earn 12 to 15 of the 27 spots.

“They’re a good team and they’ve got great players out there,” said Calgary slotback Nik Lewis. “You can’t complain about any of the awards (nominees) but one. Obviously. The MVP of the league is No. 1 from Calgary. Everyone knows that.

“He misses three or four games and he’s second in the league in passing and No. 1 in touchdown passes. I don’t know.”

Lewis is expected to be part of the West all-star team today, but the overall Red and White presence will be thin.

Stamps head coach Tom Higgins acknowledged the lack of top-shelf performances from his team and hopes for better things in the coming weeks.

“We’re under .500 and it’s not surprising that we don’t have anybody on the (awards) list,” he said. “Success of the football team also lends itself to who wins. If we switched our records around, Henry probably would be the guy. He has had an all-star season, but he will not be recognized.

“I’d use that a little bit as a carrot. I’ll have an opportunity to say something in a subtle way, ‘If you’d like to do something about it, here you go. Showcase your talent on a bigger playing field — the playoffs.’ ”

And that’s the next chapter in this story.

Burris and Joseph will square off for the West semifinal, Nov. 11 at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. The ‘Riders won last year’s West semi in Calgary.

“With this team we have, we know what we’re capable of doing and we know we’re going into their house, it’s intriguing enough as it is,” said Burris. “We’ve learned from the past couple of years and it’s time for us to take that next step. There’s no better place to do it than a historical event in Saskatchewan.”