2nd Half - Mike O'Shea
The evidence piled up over the years will show it’s always been this way with Mike O’Shea: Shine the spotlight directly at him and he’ll always duck away from the attention or ask that the beam be pointed somewhere else.
It was that way during his days as a player so accomplished, he was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. It’s been that way over the last two years when he was named the winner of the Annis Stukus Trophy as the Canadian Football League’s Coach of the Year.
And he most certainly made sure to deflect attention away from him even as fans did their singsong ‘O’Shea, O’Shea, O’Shea’ chants after the Winnipeg Blue Bombers captured two of the last three Grey Cup championships.
We bring this up because late Friday night – not long after the Blue Bombers had rallied for a 24-11 win over the Calgary Stampeders – O’Shea was once again stiff arming to the ground the attention, this time after moving into a second-place tie with Cal Murphy in franchise coaching wins with 86. Only Bud Grant, with 102 victories during his storied coaching career, racked up more victories with his squads.
Yet when the accomplishment came up in his post-game address with the media, O’Shea worked instead to mention everyone around him.
“We’ve got so many good people down here – in the organization – but down here that you work with every day that just do so much,” he said. “Like any other business, if you surround yourself with excellent people that love to work hard, some people look good. I’m thankful.”
O’Shea then shrugged and chuckled. Seconds later as he left the podium, it was noted that with both Grant and Murphy having statues outside IG Field he might be next. Without missing a beat, he quipped, “Maybe a snowman.”
Let it be known here that O’Shea has a deep reverence for the history and tradition of the Blue Bombers, it’s just that he’s clearly not entirely comfortable with discussing his place in it, even as significant as it is. O’Shea’s reaching the 86 win total comes early in this season, with 13 games still on the horizon. And with the three-year contract extension he signed last December meaning he’ll lead the club through 2025, it’s all but a given he’ll move past Grant. Interestingly, O’Shea has already moved past three other coaches on the CFL’s all-time list this season, climbing past George Brancato (Ottawa, 1974-84, 82 wins), Jack Gotta (Ottawa, Calgary, Saskatchewan, 1970-86, 83 wins) and Tom Higgins (2001-15, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, 84 wins) into 12th place. Next up on that list is Murphy again, who had 99 total wins including his days leading B.C. and Saskatchewan.
So, as much as the attention might make him squirm because of his humility and always-team-first approach, the spotlight beam is going to continue to find him in the weeks, months and years ahead.
More on the Blue Bombers win over the Stampeders in this week’s edition of UPON FURTHER REVIEW…
CONDOLENCES AND A TIP OF THE HAT TO ADAM BIGHILL… who lost his father on June 27th and still managed to join the club for the win in Montreal after being with his dad in his final days.
We did speak to Bighill after Friday’s win, with a bit of that conversation mentioned in our game recap.
But what’s worth expanding here is Bighill’s singular focus, and how he managed channelling all his emotions into one of his best games as he finished with a team-high seven tackles.
“It’s the guys in this locker room,” he said. “I’ve got to put it on the line for them, and I can’t let anything distract me from that. My dad wouldn’t have wanted me distracted. Like I said, he was the most unselfish guy in the world. He wouldn’t want him not being here slow me down. Game days you’ve just got to lock it in.
“It’s not easy. The last couple of game days have not been the same. But I know what the guys in this locker room need from me and how to move in that direction. It’s being the best I can be for them.”
Bighill said he thinks of his parents before the game, usually during the national anthem.
“That’s my time to honour them,” he said. “After that, it’s the game.”
Bighill will be returning home for a memorial for Andrew Bighill during the club’s bye week later this month.
TIME OF POSSESSION ISN’T ALWAYS THE BEST BAROMETER… of a team’s performance in a game. After all, a team can score quick-strike TDs and be off the field in seconds, while another squad’s long drive might end with a turnover or a field goal.
That said, the TOP numbers were very telling in Friday’s win. Consider this: in the first half as the Stamps built an 11-1 lead before the Blue Bombers came back to tie it at 11-11 at the intermission, Calgary held the ball for 18 minutes and 17 seconds to Winnipeg’s 11:43. But in the second half as Winnipeg wrapped their mitts around the game and squeezed, the club held the ball for 21 minutes and 18 seconds to Calgary’s 8:42.
Critical in that was the drive – a fourth-quarter killer that saw the Blue Bombers piece together a 15 play, 99-yard drive which began at their seven-yard line and resulted in a Sergio Castillo field goal while taking an incredible nine minutes and 29 seconds off the clock.
“That felt good to be in that situation and be able to run out the clock,” said centre Chris Kolankowski. “The coaches trusted us to call runs, runs, runs (10 in total) and just let us be physical up front. We were all on the same page in getting off the ball, move the (defensive) front and let Brady (Oliveira) do his thing.
“He runs very physical, and we just have to put him in the position where he can get going for a couple of yards and the rest is up to him.”
Oliveira finished the night, FYI, with 73 yards on 15 carries as the Blue Bombers racked up 101 yards along the ground. It didn’t start out so well, however, as Calgary shut down Winnipeg early, particularly on first down.
“They were just being Calgary,” said Kolankowski. “They bring a lot of stuff and they run it very well. We just had to settle in, get going and get back to what we’re good at.
“We said, ‘All right, let’s get back to doing what we do which is be physical. When in doubt, be physical.’ That’s what was missing in the first quarter. We needed to get back to bully ball and setting the tone of the game and making it happen.”
THREE NUMBERS FROM FRIDAY’S WIN:
- Blue Bombers cornerback Demerio Houston had three tackles, a pass knockdown and his third interception of the season – the pick coming in the third quarter and with the game tied. Seven plays later Zach Collaros completed a short pass to Rasheed Bailey for a nine-yard TD and the Blue Bombers had their first lead of the game. Houston now has three picks and three fumble recoveries – remember, he also missed a game to be home for the birth of his twins – in just four games.
- Castillo went 3-for-3 in field goals – from 47, 17 and 12 yards – and has now hit 11 straight to start the year. He has a streak of 21 straight dating back to last September.
- A number the Blue Bombers coaches won’t like: they were flagged seven times in the game (two were declined by the Stamps) for 47 yards, with five (one declined) coming on special teams.
FYI:
Great stats here from TSN’s Jon Perlberg on the numbers for Collaros at home:
Zach Collaros at home
with @Wpg_BlueBombers20-2 record
71.1 completion %
5,416 yards
40 TDs
12 INTs
115.5 QB Rating
*postseason included#ForTheW @ZCollaros7— Jon Perlberg (@jonperlberg) July 8, 2023
No word post-game on the status of return man Janarion Grant, who was injured on a rushing play and replaced by Greg McCrae. That update likely won’t come until the team returns to practice next week.
AND FINALLY…
My compadre Darren Cameron and I recently sat down for an engaging chat with Oliveira for our latest installment of our ‘Handled Internally Podcast’, now brought to you by PlayNow.
Check it out here:
