Courtesy Calgary Herald:

John Hufnagel sent the message the day he was hired as head coach and general manager of the Calgary Stampeders.

The team that takes the field for the June 26 Canadian Football League season opener against the visiting B.C. Lions, Hufnagel vowed in December, will be faster. It will be more disciplined. And it will hold on to the football.

This morning at McMahon Stadium, we will see just how productive the past six months have been in terms of reaching those ambitions.

Because, let’s be blunt, there isn’t a team in the CFL that doesn’t have the same goals when it opens a training camp.

But in the Stampeders’ case, coming off a 7-10-1 season and a third consecutive first-round playoff exit that ultimately cost Tom Higgins his job, the numbers didn’t lie.

Calgary had the league’s worst defence last season because it couldn’t stop opposing running backs.

The Stamps committed the most turnovers in the league, with a particularly appalling 31 fumbles while their defence managed to force just 34 turnovers in total, second to last in the league.

And no team was penalized more often a year ago — all factors that offset a splendid offensive campaign during which the Stamps lead the league in total offence last season.

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