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John Hufnagel or Chris Jones for Coach/GM?

Nov 21, 2015 | 8:01 AM

So as we adjust to winter, it only makes sense that with two weeks left in the season the Saskatchewan Roughriders are threatening to upstage the CFL playoffs with a couple of interesting developments in their search for a general manager and/or a head coach.

John Hufnagel gave an interview in Calgary that was interesting in what was not said as opposed to what was being said. Hufnagel said he was “interested” in visiting Regina and amidst news that Hufnagel is not happy with the treatment of the Stampeders at the hands of Calgary Flames owner Ken King, it would not be surprising to see the Riders get permission to talk to Hufnagel after the Stampeders season is over.

Hufnagel is being eased out as coach to Dave Dickenson because the Flames/Stampeders don’t want to lose Dickenson. They are worried about losing John Murphy, their player personnel guy who is probably cheaper than Hufnagel but other than a disastrous stint in Winnipeg, seems able to identify talent. However he is not necessarily proficient at the other things involved with being a GM like managing a salary cap. The Flames/Stampeders probably don’t want to lose Murphy so they have an incentive to let Hufnagel explore other possibilities, but there is the public perception of us stubble jumpers getting the jump on the big wonder Calgary sports world where everyone wants to go to and no one wants to leave.

Screw them. The Riders have the money and if they bring in Hufnagel, they can still retain Jeremy O’Day who can learn from a GM who knows what he is doing and be ready to replace Hufnagel when he decides he is finally finished coaching and general managing a team.

The other interesting scenario is Chris Jones in Edmonton and the feeling is if Jones wins a Grey Cup this year, he would be interested in doing the GM/Head Coach duties in Saskatchewan due to some underlying dispute with Eskimo GM Ed Hervey. That would probably, but not necessarily include, Jones as defensive coordinator. That might be interesting but I have my reservations after Cory Chamblin let his ego do the walking this season.

So there will be no announcements during Grey Cup week and it is expected a GM will be announced in December and then a coach in January, unless of course one person takes both jobs. The Riders signed Canadians Carl Fitzgerald, Nathan Kanya, Kyle Norris, Levi Steinhauer and Matt Vonk. The Riders are looking to bolster their Canadian depth and with the list of free agents including receiver Ryan Smith, it’s probably a good idea to get their ducks in a row. Whether this solidifies Jeremy O’Day as a general manager is another question but I kind of doubt it despite the drum beating going on by the Rider media.

So this week we have two games the Western Final featuring two potential GM/Coaches of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the eastern final featuring a potential GM.

Calgary goes to Edmonton and Edmonton has been waiting three weeks to play a football game thanks to a quirk in scheduling. While finishing first gets you a two week break, which is good for injuries, three weeks at the end of the season is good only for killing momentum.

Now Calgary has an injured ridden offensive line which would spell doom, much as losing two defensive linemen doomed them to the Glorious Saskatchewan Roughriders in their march to correct historic wrongs in the 2013 Grey Cup. However this is not the first time the Calgary Stampeders have lost two offensive linemen and improvised to win – case in point Toronto at Calgary where the Argos were unable to put pressure on an Calgary line made up of lepers and hobos. This is a hunch, but at this time of year, you have to like momentum and let’s be honest, finishing first in the west is maybe financially beneficial to the home team, but in terms of results on the field, meh, not much. The weather should be great, Environment Canada is picking a plus 7 and I have to like Jerome Messam to run like a truck with no brakes. Calgary 23-22.

In the Eastern Final we have the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, winners of the close but no cigar trophy versus the Ottawa Redblacks, the feel-good story of the year. Hamilton somehow won last week over a Toronto team that seemed to lose all the wheels off its offense at once. Ottawa swept the season series against Hamilton at the end of the season and Hamilton is down to its fourth or third string quarterback. The odds look tough against Hamilton…

But, the forecast looks like a 40 per cent chance of showers or flurries, which reduces the importance of the passing game and puts the onus on the ground game. Ottawa is looking at starting Jeremiah Johnson, which was a good movie starring Robert Redford, but I have no idea if the weather conditions are lousy in Johnson can pull it off. Hamilton’s offense would benefit from lousy weather conditions allowing their quarterbacks to run more, and while Henry Burris will be the Most Outstanding Player as a result of being last man standing, there will always be that question in my mind of if Henry gets off his game early, will he revert to bad Hank? And keep this in mind – Kent Austin coached him and got rid of him – Kent knows how to beat him – Hamilton 27-24.