RGONAUTS.CA STAFF

MISSISSAUGA--After the first day of major cuts it’s back to work for the players at 7:30 AM. And with these cuts fresh on the player’s minds you could feel a sense of urgency on the fields. A reminder that no ones job is guaranteed is a great way to get the best out of your players. After suffering an undisclosed leg injury yesterday, Andre Durie joined Jason Barnes in wearing only a helmet for drills but sitting out the 12-on-12’s.

The defence seems to be getting use to the looks they’re getting from the offence. The first play of 12-on-12 saw Anthony Cannon get to Ricky Ray quickly. They were getting a lot of pressure on the quarterbacks throughout the entire practice. The offence still looked good at times, completing passes to the usual suspects Chad Owens and Dontrelle Inman. Chad Kackert was running with the first team while Gerald Riggs was on the second team, giving Cory Boyd some time to rest before they start team run. Both running backs looked great; of course Boyd has nothing to worry about, but it’s a nice problem to have when you have two solid backups at the running back position. At the end of the first 12-on-12, Ricky Santos made a nice scramble pass to avoid the defensive line’s pressure, showing in the process that he can be a very versatile quarterback. 

Tristan Black found Boyd in the backfield on the first play of team run. The defence looked great throughout the running drill clogging holes and getting to the running 

backs early. Offensive line coach Stephen McAdoo wasn’t too pleased with his linemen, and once team run was over he took them aside and made sure they understood that it is crucial that they play hard on every single snap. 

Onto the skelly, where Pacino Horne picked off the first throw by Ricky Ray. This seems to be a recurring theme at practice these days, as Horne looks more and more comfortable in this defence as camp has worn on. Brandon Isaac made sure that the offence knew that they weren’t getting one past 'chino'. The defensive backs did well early in the drill keeping tight coverage and forcing the quarterbacks to be patient with their throws. But as it went on, receivers were using their speed to get open down field. Notably it was once again Owens and Inman who were giving them a hard time. 

The battle for 3rd string quarterback is beginning to pick up a lot of steam. Ricky Santos already looked much more comfortable in only his second practice, and Trevor Harris looks like a completely different QB than the one who showed up at the beginning of camp. His performance in Hamilton seems to have given him a boost of confidence, and more importantly, his teammates look like they're beginning to trust him. 

Practice was very quick today tempo wise, as players we’re going from drill to drill with few breaks in between. They quickly moved on to the second practice that was all special teams. They ended early, but coach Milanovich made sure to remind the players that although that may have been the last full practice of training camp, the camp isn’t over until they have played the last game. 

Tomorrow will be a closed walkthrough to make the final preparations for the game. Kickoff is at noon on Tuesday as the Argos play host to the Montreal Alouettes. Although the game is not broadcasted, we have got you covered on both Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you follow along.