Bryan Hall (4) and the Toronto Argonauts players during the 2016 Toronto Argonauts training camp in Guelph, ON. (Photo: Johany Jutras)
The Toronto Argonauts wrapped up their practices on the grass field at the University of Guelph on Tuesday, leaving just one day of practice and a walkthrough before their final preseason tune-up against the Montreal Alouettes.
In an effort to preserve players’ legs for the fast-approaching regular season, reps in practice have been cut back, making each and every rep that much more important for players on the bubble.
2016 Training Camp Prospectus: http://bit.ly/1TGT2tc
Kilgore named backup quarterback
A number of position battles continue to rage, but the one for the backup quarterback position has officially been decided with Logan Kilgore receiving the nod.
Kilgore, entering his second full season in the league, will serve as Ricky Ray’s primary backup when the season opens on June 23.
“Logan has won the position, and it’s up to him to determine whether he can hold onto it,” said Argos head coach Scott Milanovich.
In this past weekend’s preseason game, Kilgore solidified a good training camp with a great on-field performance under the lights. As the Argos starter against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the native of Sacramento, California completed 8-of-13 first-quarter pass attempts for 107 yards and a touchdown.
“He was able to make quick decisions, he was very accurate with the football, and obviously, being able to move the football and score points is huge,” explained Ricky Ray, who has seen Kilgore make strides in his development since his arrival in Toronto in September of 2014.
“He kind of picked up where he left off last year,” said Milanovich, who spoke to Kilgore’s year-to-year improvement on Monday morning. “You can see the level of comfort in his feet, the rhythm with his reads when he’s moving onto a receiver and when he’s hanging on a guy because it’s going to come open. He’s just a guy that looks comfortable running the offence.”
For Kilgore, the backup job was a goal coming into camp, but it won’t change his ultimate goal of supporting Ray.
“Our main mission is to help Ricky and be there for him if he’s got any questions or try to help him out as best we can,” Kilgore explained. “Ultimately there’s only one quarterback, but it was kind of a goal coming in to try and get that position and I’m thankful that I was able to do that.”
Kilgore will get the start in the team’s final preseason game on Friday in Montreal, leaving the remainder of the game for the other quarterbacks to put in their best audition for the third spot on the depth chart.
Training Camp Day 17 Anecdotes:
- Receiver Devon Wylie, who impressed at the team’s rookie-free agent camp in Bradenton, Florida in April, will get his first taste of CFL action against Montreal on Friday. Wylie was sidelined with an injury for the team’s previous preseason game and he’ll look to prove his playmaking ability in the upcoming contest. “[I want to prove] that the coaches can count on me to be a playmaker and a guy that will go as hard as he can every down,” said Wylie. “I’m really excited just to be out there with the guys and be a part of the camaraderie.”
- CFL teams have iPads on the sidelines this season, allowing players to instantly review film on the bench. It’s a change that quarterback Ricky Ray is thrilled about. “Most of the time you’re trying to trust what other people see and you’re guessing out there,” said Ray. “It’s going to help us out as far as knowing what they’re throwing at us and then what adjustments we need to make.”