OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA - May 20th: 2022 REDBLACKS Training Camp - Day 2 presented by TD on May 20, 2022 at The Stadium at TD Place in Ottawa, Ontario. (Photo by Jon Halpenny / Ottawa REDBLACKS)
“I feel confident as heck right now.”
Those were the words of veteran pivot and first-year REDBLACK Jeremiah Masoli on Thursday, his first scrum in an Ottawa practice jersey and fresh off a first upbeat training camp session of 2022. The marquee free agent acquisition looked just that eight hours of practice over three days.
The quarterback gave a nod of appreciation to the big men up front, as a fierce but cohesive battle rages for offensive line spots on opening night.
“There are only five (starting) spots and they’re all helping each other. It’s awesome,” said Masoli.
On the other side of the ball, veteran defensive back Sherrod Baltimore was showing a similar first-day confidence, ball-hawking his way to a few well-timed picks, a few dance moves quickly following as celebrations also got a pre-season workout. His defensive colleagues brought the energy every day as they battled during drills, one-on-ones and scripted game scenarios.
Around the perimeter of the TD Place field, the coaching staff – an impressive combination of experienced faces, both new and returning in 2022 – led the various position groups through the early on-field stages of a new season.
On Saturday, the deep REDBLACKS receiving corps added another face in Canadian and 2016 eighth overall draft pick Tevaun Smith.
“Since 2019 I was with Edmonton, they drafted me and I appreciate the opportunity they gave me,” Smith said after his first practice. “Hopefully I can make Ottawa my home, that’s definitely the goal. I’m young in the CFL, so I feel like I have a lot to learn and I haven’t got to my ceiling yet.”
Though Head Coach Paul LaPolice says players are being evaluated every day, the staff tries not to be what he calls “early evaluators”.
“We’ve got three days in now but we always talking about guys having staying power; can they do it for seven days straight and then in a game?”
Early moves
With just less than a week remaining before the REDBLACKS host Toronto in a pre-season game at TD Place on May 27, the REDBLACKS office made a few moves during the early days of training camp. Most recently, Ottawa added a handful of American players, including receiver Henry Litwin, offensive lineman Uzoma Osuji, defensive linemen Deonte Holden and Bryce Carter and defensive back Adonis Davis. The team also cut four players on Saturday.
Family time
Following Saturday’s practice, Head Coach Paul LaPolice had his three kids on the field for the post-practice “break”, as did Masoli and defensive lineman Cleyon Laing. Though teammates are like one big family, there’s nothing quite like having your kids cheer you on. Also cheering on their REDBLACKS on Saturday were a few dozen fans who took in a sunny morning practice following the cancellation of Fan Fest. A reminder to #RNation that all REDBLACKS practices are open to the public.
