The Toronto Argonauts struggled last season to have a consistent passing attack, Cleo Lemon was still learning the CFL game and his offensive line didn’t do a lot to help him out.

With the Argos bringing in Steven Jyles it just adds to the speculation that Lemon may not be the man in Toronto. Cory Boyd was the bright spot for the Argos last season but being a one dimensional team in the CFL doesn’t get you very far.

Prediction

7-11 and lose to Hamilton in the East Semi

Player to watch

Offence

Offensive line- If the offensive line can give Lemon or Jyles a chance to throw the ball they may be able to win some games in 2011.

Defence

Kevin Ebien is the veteran leader of this defense; watch for Ebein to put up numbers as well as help the young guys develop on defense.

The Argonotes are the official band of the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts.  As a volunteer organization, the largest of its kind in the CFL, the band takes part in game day festivities as well as off season promotion and the occasional road trip to opposing Canadian Football League venues.

The 2011 CFL season will be the 15th for the Argonotes, who began back in 1995, when the band was founded by Steve Hayman. The recruited players were mostly local alumni of area university bands, ranging from recent graduates to people who last played in the 1950s.

More recently, the Argonotes took part in a “CFL on TSN” commercial shoot on June 2, 2011 for the upcoming season. Here is some video footage of the event:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Argonotes band is known to play several pep band tunes that are recognizable by most sports fans, with a tendency to favour songs by Canadian bands.

One might also catch the Argonotes performing tunes such as Anchors Aweigh and Row, Row, Row Your Boat to coincide with the Argonauts theme.

The Toronto Argonauts original fight song, which gained popularity in the 1950s and 60s and recently rediscovered, is Go Argos Go:

Go Toronto Argos go go go
Pull together fight the foe foe foe
Scoring touchdowns for the blue on blue
The Argos will win for you

Full of fight and courage you can’t stop
They pile up the points until they reach the top
Pull together till the Grey Cup’s won
Go Argos go go go

Go Toronto Argos go go go
Pull together fight the foe foe foe
Scoring touchdowns for the blue on blue
The Argos will win for you

Full of fight and courage you can’t stop
They pile up the points until they reach the top
Pull together till the Grey Cup’s won
Go Argos go Toronto go
Go Argos go go go

So, next time you’re heading out to an Argonauts home game, have a glance down at the band and be sure to appreciate the talented and dedicated volunteers while you cheer on your team.

A deal to sell the Toronto Argonauts to David Braley needs only Canadian Football League approval to be finalized, according to TSN.ca.

David Cynamon and Howard Sokolowski, who been seeking to end their connection with the club, have reportedly been in negotiation with the B.C. Lions owner for weeks.

According to TSN.ca, the Argos are also expected to shortly announce that Jim Barker will take over as head coach, replacing Bart Andrus, whose contract was terminated on Dec. 14.

Courtesy Toronto Star:

The Toronto Argonauts have dealt another disgruntled player.

The Argos traded cornerback Byron Parker to the Edmonton Eskimos on Monday for future considerations.

According to two league sources, the Argos will receive a 2010 draft pick for Parker.

Parker becomes the second unhappy Argo player to be sent packing. Earlier this year, the team dealt slotback Arland Bruce III to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats after Bruce was publicly critical of first-year head coach Bart Andrus and quarterback Kerry Joseph.

Parker rejoined the Argos roughly four weeks ago after being released this summer by the NHL’s Philadelphia Eagles. The two-time CFL all-star saw duty as a kick-returner before the arrival of Dominique Dorsey but played sparingly in Toronto’s secondary since his return.

Last week, Andrus said Parker would play more once he became more familiar with the team’s defensive system. But Parker disagreed, telling the Toronto Star there wasn’t much to learn and he compared the Argos schemes to Pop Warner, the youth football system that’s based in the U.S.

“We wish Byron good luck and we want to thank him for his years of service as an Argonaut,” Argos GM Adam Rita said in a statement. “Like all of the teams, we are responsible for operating under a salary management system and we have many good young players competing for roster spots in our secondary.”

Parker, a former NCAA basketball slam dunk champion while at Tulane, joined the Argos in 2005 and appeared in 55 career games with the CFL team. He recorded 101 tackles and 18 interceptions for 561 yards, returning six for touchdowns and was named a CFL all-star in 2006 and ’07.

Also on Monday, the Eskimos also signed defensive lineman Jerome Haywood.

The move comes after defensive tackle Dario Romero suffered a season-ending torn bicep in Edmonton’s 23-20 loss to Saskatchewan on Saturday. The Eskimos have placed Romero on the nine-game injured list.

Haywood, in his eighth CFL season, has played previously with Ottawa (2002-05), Montreal (2006) and Winnipeg (2007-08) before being released by the Alouettes prior to the start of training camp. Haywood, 30, has appeared in 107 career games, recording 223 tackles and 29 sacks.

“Having Dario out for the rest of the season is a huge loss,” Edmonton head coach Richie Hall said in a statement. “The passion, skill and heart he brings to the game are unlike many others.

“Haywood does however bring a lot of the attributes Dario has to the Eskimos and we are looking forward to having him be a part of the team.”

The Eskimos also added linebacker Frantz Joseph to the practice roster.

Read more…

Courtesy Toronto Star:

The Toronto Argonauts might as well start building for next year.

While the Argos aren’t yet mathematically eliminated from the Canadian Football League season with six games left, for all intents and purposes the 2009 season ended horribly here last night.

Despite a furious late rally, the Argos lost to the team previously considered the league’s worst as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers won 29-24 before 22,446 delightfully stunned fans at CanadInns Stadium.

The Argos played horribly for three quarters in managing to lose to a team that had been the joke of the league, at least until last night.

At 3-9, and a long way from a playoff spot, the Argos now inherit the dubious mantle of the CFL’s worst team.

It was an error-filled game, with the Argos making most of the mistakes. Untimely penalties and three turnovers were enough to hand Winnipeg its first victory in four games.

To the Argos’ credit, they didn’t throw in the towel even after losing Zeke Moreno and Rob Murphy after a brawl.

Trailing 29-9 after three quarters, they got back into the game when rookie Kyle Jones blocked a punt and Andre Durie recovered it for a touchdown. Then Justin Medlock kicked a single on the ensuing kickoff.

Kerry Joseph, who replaced Cody Pickett at quarterback in the third, then marched the Argos 79 yards and scored on a four-yard run to pull the Argos within five.

But it was a matter of too little, too late.

Befitting a game involving the two worst offences in the league, there was no offence in the early going.

As was the case last week in B.C., the Argos couldn’t move the ball with any consistency and managed a paltry 127 yards of offence in the first half. Considering their inability to move the ball, they were fortunate to be down only 17-9 after 30 minutes.

Quarterback Cody Pickett had another nightmarish evening, failing to complete much more than short passes. Running back Jamal Robertson found few holes as the Winnipeg defence controlled the line of scrimmage.

The Bombers, as befitting a team quarterbacked by Michael Bishop, weren’t shy about going deep. Bishop developed an immediate kinship with newcomer Otis Amey for some big gains.

But the Bombers were 3-8 for a reason and found ways to mess up two good scoring opportunities with untimely penalties. Bishop himself gave the Argos a big break in the first quarter.

After Kevin Huntley sacked him on second down at the Argo 17, Adriano Belli was called for a foolish taunting penalty.

But Bishop blew his cool and was called for unnecessary roughness. The Bombers had to settle for an Alexis Serna field goal and a 7-3 lead.

The Bombers finally got something going in the second quarter.

Leading 7-6, they rode Bishop’s arm to the Argo 6. But Lin-J Shell and Jordan Younger broke up end-zone passes to force another Serna field goal.

Bishop wasn’t deterred and on the next Winnipeg series took the Bombers from their own 32 to the Argo 14.

After a holding penalty moved them back to the 24, Bishop hit running back Fred Reid, who ran through the Argo defence for the game’s first touchdown and a 17-6 lead.

As bad as the Argo offence was in the first half, it started the second ominously horribly when Robertson fumbled at his own 40 on the first play from scrimmage. But the defence held and Serna missed a 43-yard field goal.

On the next series, Pickett fumbled the snap on second down and was forced to throw out of bounds at the Argo 22.

Unimaginably, things got worse on the ensuing series when two unnecessary roughness penalties allowed the Bombers to keep alive a 62-yard drive that ended in a 12-yard touchdown pass to Adarius Bowman and a 24-9 lead.

Argo head coach Bart Andrus then turned over the ball to backup quarterback Kerry Joseph, who promptly turned it over to the Bombers with an interception.

Read more….

Courtesy Toronto Star:

When Byron Parker returned to the Argonauts a month ago after being cut by the Philadelphia Eagles, he talked about how much fun it was being back with his old team.

The veteran cornerback doesn’t look like he’s having much fun these days.

The two-time CFL all-star has played in only two games, seeing most of his action at punt returner – a job that now will be the property of fellow NFL refugee Dominique Dorsey.

Parker was even left off the roster when the team went to Vancouver last week, a move he said shocked him.

“It’s very frustrating,” the 28-year-old Kentucky native said after practice yesterday. “I’m a CFL vet and considered to be one of the better corners in the league. It’s hard to come out here and practise every day, work hard and just not reap any benefits from it.”

Head coach Bart Andrus said Parker will get into the lineup eventually, but first must learn the new defensive system.

“Right now, he doesn’t have a full understanding, but he’s working real hard to try to gain the trust of the defensive staff,” Andrus said. “He’s doing all the right things and it’s just a matter of time before he becomes a staple.”

Andrus said Parker will be re-evaluated this week before the roster is set for Saturday’s game in Winnipeg.

“Last week, at the end of the week, he was not there yet,” he said.

Parker, however, is not buying that explanation.

“This defence is not hard,” he said.

“It’s very elementary. What we played with (former defensive coordinator Rich Stubler) was way more complicated than this.

“This is Pop Warner.”

Parker said he knows the real reason, but wouldn’t elaborate because “it’s in-house.”

“I don’t want to pull an Arland Bruce, but that’s not the reason. It’s basically that I’m a new guy in a new system. If it were my old coaches, I’d have been starting right away.”

Parker believes a veteran with his credentials should be playing.

“I see it like this,” he said. “When Michael Jordan came back, what did the Chicago Bulls do? He started and he hadn’t played in two years. What was Phil Jackson going to say? He didn’t know the offence?”

Parker said the 3-8 Argos could use his experience.

“We have a lot of talent on this team,” he said. “This is the most athletic defence we’ve had since I’ve been here, but you can’t replace knowledge with athleticism. A lot of the guys are getting their feet wet with the CFL games, including the coaches.”

NOTES: Receivers P.K. Sam (shoulder) and Reggie McNeal (knee) are unlikely to play Saturday. … One guy who could see more action is Dorsey, who was restricted to returning kicks last week. “I’ve been able to grasp the concepts and understand the offence a little better this week,” said Dorsey, who started taking some reps at running back yesterday. … Offensive lineman Cliff Washburn is back after being released by the Houston Texans.

Read more…

Courtesy Toronto Star:

The highlight of Dominique Dorsey’s first game back with the Toronto Argonauts was a nifty 51-yard return of a missed field goal with the game tied at 17 early in the fourth quarter.

Head coach Bart Andrus is anxious to get that special teams explosiveness into the Argos offence.

“We’re trying to get him up to speed as fast as we can,” Andrus said yesterday of Dorsey, his backup running back and the reigning CFL outstanding special teams player of the year, who returned last week after being a late training camp cut by the Washington Redskins. “The biggest hurdle is how fast he can absorb the offence.

“When guys miss training camp and they miss all that time (10 games) they miss the detail.”

The 26-year-old Dorsey, who averaged 222 all-purpose yards in 13 games last season, finished with 157 yards in his 2009 Argos debut, all on kickoff, punt and missed field goal returns.

But Andrus is looking to have the California native spell off and compliment starting running back Jamal Robertson, who rushed 18 times for 86 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 22 yards as the Argos (3-8) fell 23-17 to the B.C. Lions (5-6) in Vancouver on Saturday night.

“He’s an intelligent kid and he’s been in an offence that uses similar terminology down at Washington, so I think he’ll come along pretty quickly,” said Andrus. The coach noted Dorsey has already been working on plays in the backfield during practice and “it won’t be too much time before he’ll actually get it going and take some reps in a game.”

Andrus said it’s too early to say if that will be Saturday night when the Argonauts travel to Winnipeg (3-8).

Dorsey, who at 5-foot-7, 170 pounds is one of the smallest players in professional football, last season had 410 yards rushing and 286 yards receiving as part of his CFL-leading 2,892-yard total. He would no doubt add spark to an offence sitting ahead of only the Blue Bombers in most key offensive categories.

Andrus, who said Saturday’s game in B.C. was not a bad offensive performance by the Argos but more about “two good defences slugging it out” and his team making some key mistakes, is also not looking to change quarterbacks.

While noting that Cody Pickett made some “bad decisions” on Saturday – including an interception deep in B.C. territory and a couple of sacks where he should have thrown the ball away – Andrus said “he’s got a long career ahead of him in this league. He’s really just beginning to crawl.

“On the other hand, he gets more and more comfortable with things every week,” Andrus said of Pickett, who fell to 1-4 as a starter in place of original No. 1 Kerry Joseph.

Read more…

Courtesy Toronto Star:

Despite a game that was eerily similar to the one that sent Kerry Joseph to the bench, Cody Pickett’s job as the starting quarterback of the Toronto Argonauts is safe.

“Cody is our quarterback,” head coach Bart Andrus said yesterday, only hours after Pickett had the worst game of his short tenure in the Argos’ 23-17 loss to the B.C. Lions Saturday night.

Statistically it was a rough enough night for the third-year Argo. He completed only 11 of 23 passes for only 166 yards, produced but one offensive touchdown and was sacked six times. But while Pickett was under siege a good portion of the game, his inability to get rid of the ball played a big role in at least half those sacks.

“Cody had some time a few times and didn’t let it go,” Andrus said. “We’ve got to get him to get that clock in his head to where he pulls it down or throws it away.”

To his credit, Pickett didn’t point the finger at anyone but himself, especially for a second-quarter interception at the B.C. three-yard line.

“I can’t turn the ball over when we’re in scoring position,” he said after the game. “I tried to throw to the corner and I should have just thrown it in the stands. I tried to force it and I can’t do that.”

If there’s one area that has shown improvement since Pickett took over after Joseph was sacked six times in Montreal last month, it’s the matter of turnovers. Pickett had been intercepted only once in 156 pass attempts prior to giving up two Saturday, while Joseph had coughed up 10 in 182 tries.

Despite that improvement, the Argos are averaging only two points a game more under Pickett than they did with Joseph at the helm. They’ve also won only once.

Andrus is going to have to find a way to get his offence producing more points or the Argos are headed for another season out of the playoffs. At 3-8, they’re tied with Winnipeg for third place in the East, six points behind Hamilton.

But with the Lions now 5-6, they’re four points ahead and could grab a playoff spot in the crossover.

Another thing the Argos will have to start doing is finishing games. Led by a solid defensive effort, they staged an impressive comeback from a horrific start Saturday and erased an early 14-0 deficit to take a 17-14 lead in the third quarter.

But the offence stopped moving after that as B.C. started keying on running back Jamal Robertson, and the the punt coverage team had trouble covering punts. On consecutive punts in the fourth quarter, they allowed Ryan Grice-Mullen returns of 45 and 54 yards to set up the winning field goal.

That took the shine off a night when the special teams scored their first touchdown of the year after rookie James Green blocked a punt and Jordan Younger scooped up the ball for an 18-yard TD run.

Andrus believes his team is making progress despite the loss.

“We were behind at halftime and then we went ahead,” he said. “That was a big step in the right direction.”

Read more…

Courtesy Toronto Star:

The Argonauts arrived here an extra day early in hopes of beating both the B.C. Lions and jet lag.

Based on the way the Argos played in the first quarter last night, they could have saved themselves the extra hotel costs.

The Argos couldn’t overcome a disastrous start and fell 23-17 to the B.C. Lions before 27,515 at B.C. Place. The loss dropped the Argos to 3-8 and temporarily put them in last place in the CFL’s East Division.

The defeat extended the Argos’ winless streak in Vancouver to seven seasons. It also means they’ll soon have to go on a winning streak if they’re to have any hopes of making the playoffs.

With former coach Don Matthews in the building to witness B.C. head coach Wally Buono’s record-breaking 232nd career victory, the Argos failed to show the guy who resigned at the end of last year that he had made the wrong decision.

While they battled valiantly after digging themselves an early hole, they simply didn’t have enough offensive thrust to pull out a victory.

Argo quarterback Cody Pickett had the toughest night of his 2009 season, coughing up his second and third interceptions of the season and getting sacked six times. Most of those were coverage sacks as Pickett struggled to find open receivers all night.

Three of them were courtesy of York University grad Ricky Foley.

Pickett failed to complete 50 per cent of his passes.

The Argos got a strong game from their defence, which kept things close in the first quarter when the Argo offence seemed determined to give the game away.

The defence came through big in the fourth quarter when B.C.’s Ryan Grice-Mullen returned consecutive punts a total of 99 yards with the game tied 17-17.

But the defence held and all B.C. could manage was a 32-yard field goal by Sean Whyte to give the Lions a 20-17 lead.

The Argo offence went back into sputter mode after that and couldn’t make up the difference.

A third-and-seven effort came up two yards short at their own 47 in the final two minutes to kill any hopes of a miracle comeback.

While much of the pre-game talk focused on B.C. quarterback Buck Pierce’s concussion problems, the Argos started the game as if they were the ones with concussion issues.

Pickett was sacked for an 11-yard loss on second down on the game’s opening series, setting the stage for a punt from the Argo 19. But long snapper Steve Schmidt hit upback Bryan Crawford with the snap and Jason Arakgi recovered for the Lions at the Argo eight.

A Kevin Huntley sack forced the Lions to settle for a 15-yard Whyte field goal.

Things didn’t get much better on the next series as Lion defensive back Korey Banks intercepted a Pickett pass and returned it to the Argo 34.

Five plays and one roughing-the-passer penalty later, Martell Mallett ran in from the one for a touchdown and a 10-0 Lions lead barely seven minutes into the game.

Read more…

Courtesy Montreal Gazette:

When the Alouettes won the Grey Cup, in 2002, Ben Cahoon celebrated by drinking cherry Gatorade out of the chalice; alcohol never having graced his lips.

He has never tasted coffee, either – nor has he had a craving for caffeine – although admitting, when he’s tired, he believes he might be missing that adrenaline rush. And when he was a teenager, and all those other hellcats were going around the corner during their lunch breaks to smoke, he never thought that to be an appealing option.

But perhaps nothing is of more distress to the veteran slotback than Sunday football. The Als play the second of four Sunday home games tomorrow (1 p.m., TSN, RDS) when they entertain the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Molson Stadium.

Cahoon’s consternation has nothing to do with having caught only one pass in each of Montreal’s last two games. Cahoon is a Mormon – one of a handful of players scattered throughout the Canadian Football League, including Als offensive-tackle Jeff Perrett – and believes Sunday should not only be a day of rest, but also a day of worship.

Attempting to build on the Als’ 8-2 record, while adding to his Hall of Fame statistics, means Cahoon won’t be able to attend services at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Cahoon estimates he makes it to the Kirkland temple, located on Hymus Blvd., only about 50 per cent of the time during the season.

Indeed, when head coach Marc Trestman gives his players their monthly schedule, Cahoon immediately seeks the number of Sundays the team has off.

“Truth be told, that’s the thing I hate most about this job,” the 12-year veteran said during an interview this week. “Sunday is a special, sacred day. I don’t think you should work on Sunday, if you can prevent it. It should be a day of rest – a day which is different from every day of the week. I feel guilty when I don’t go to church and have to work. I justify it by saying it’s my job and I’m providing for my family.

“It should be a day you rest from the cares and worries of the world. I really enjoy attending church. It recharges my batteries and allows me to get refocused on the important things. And I enjoy the people. I need that.”

Cahoon’s religion isn’t the soapbox from which he preaches. Those who follow the team and league have learned of his faith, but he

only discusses the issue when prompted. Similarly, it appears nothing more than coincidence he and Perrett room together – paired only recently – on Als’ road trips; religion, according to Perrett, never discussed in the privacy of their room.

And yet, before tomorrow’s kickoff, Cahoon will probably venture over to Bombers receiver Brock Ralph – a fellow Mormon – to exchange pleasantries. They share a common bond, Cahoon said, so he follows their careers and quietly roots for them to succeed.

“There is a difference being Mormon,” Cahoon said. “It’s a special thing. It makes me who I am and makes me different. It provides me with a different perspective and standards I set for myself.”

But those standards, it should be noted, don’t prevent Cahoon from augmenting his income and lifestyle wherever possible. Much like his battery-mate, quarterback Anthony Calvillo, Cahoon has become a spokesperson for a Montreal-based auto dealership. If shilling for a company – in this case Volvo Pointe Claire – somehow seems unlike Cahoon, he suddenly grows obstinate, making it clear he’s doing nothing untoward. Indeed, his sponsorship deal, established three years ago, was borne out of necessity.

In an attempt to save money, Cahoon transported his car to Montreal one season – at a cost of more than $3,500 – from his home in Utah. At the end of the season, the car was shipped back, arriving three weeks late and, he claimed, broken. And then, over a five-year span, the family rented a mini-van during the season, “wasting thousands,” he said.

Realizing the family – Cahoon is the father of four girls – required two vehicles, he decided to start knocking on doors, attempting to get a car deal by any means.

“I begged for a deal at several spots,” he said. “Volvo Pointe Claire called back – and they’ve been awesome.”

Cahoon gets the use of a vehicle during the season. In exchange, he records radio commercials for the dealership, wears a hat promoting the company and, slightly more than a week ago, spent hours outside the showroom, signing autographs and posing for pictures during a barbecue for West Island-based minor football organizations.

Cahoon left an indelible impression, as he has since arriving in Montreal in 1998.

“His calm, unassuming, gentle and accommodating personality came through in spades as he mixed and mingled with everyone, signing autographs and posing for pictures; the hamburger he was trying to eat long gone cold,” Susan Farley, one of those in attendance, wrote in an email. “He’s a class act … a genuine role model … a hero. It was an immense pleasure to meet him.”

Bernard Leclerc, the dealership’s general manager, said Cahoon’s request was not the first he has handled; the majority being denied. But Leclerc said he immediately understood there was something different about this unassuming man.

“I was surprised,” Leclerc said. “I expected him, as a football player, to be rough. But he’s a family man, and he fits our team like a glove. He convinced me. He’s a great person, honestly. He gives his time and speaks to everyone. It’s always good to have a good spokesperson – and he’s one of the best in the CFL.”

Read more….