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August 20, 2017

Harris Aiming for 1,000-1,000 Season

Andrew Harris (33) of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers during the game at New Mosaic Stadium in Regina, SK, Saturday, July 1st, 2017. (Photo: Johany Jutras)

It’s OK to stare. Andrew Harris, after all, has posted some absolutely jaw-dropping, eye-popping numbers that have rarely been seen before in the Canadian Football League.

And, if all goes according to his own plan, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers workhorse running back will be making history before the season is done.

Just to briefly recap, Harris is coming off a spectacular performance in Thursday’s 33-26 victory over the Edmonton Eskimos, in which he carried 11 times for 105 yards and pulled in eight passes for 120 yards.

It was the first double-triple in the CFL in seven years, dating back to former Montreal Alouette Avon Cobourne’s 115 rushing/116 receiving performance in a win over Toronto in 2010, and the first by a Bomber since Charles Roberts 15 years ago.

But here’s the historical component to those numbers: At his current pace, Harris would finish with 1,114 yards along the ground and 1,033 through the air and that would make him the first-ever to go over 1K in rushing and receiving.

The closest any back has come to 1K-1K is Robert Drummond, who had 1,134 yards rushing and 840 yards receiving for the 1997 Toronto Argonauts.

“I usually don’t talk about my goals, but I told Coach Bourgs (running backs coach Kevin Bourgoin) in the offseason that (1,000-1,000) was one of my goals this year,” said Harris Sunday following Bombers practice. “It’s one of those things that I’m on pace for it and so talking about it puts some pressure on myself to be able to achieve that.

“It’s within reach, I’m on pace for it. It’s something I want to try and get.”

Now, some may wonder this with such an ambitious goal: what ever happened the idea of ‘under promise/over deliver’? Well, just to be clear, Harris isn’t making his goals public as some sort of chest-thumping declaration.

Instead, it’s more an attempt to motivate himself through the next 10 games.

“It’s not about anyone else. It’s a challenge to myself,” Harris said. “I mean, if the team wants me to block more or catch more or run more, so be it. I just felt like with how our offence was last year, I saw the opportunities here. I feel like with me working on my route-running and being available for the pass is an asset to the offence.

“There might be games where I’m called upon to catch eight passes or 12 passes or… maybe one or none. I’ll do whatever I’m asked.”

“Sometimes you make goals that are tough to reach. It’s something I wanted to achieve. I just feel that I can catch the ball out of the backfield as an asset for our team and so far this season it’s been coming my way quite a bit.”

Yeah, you could say that. Through the first eight games, Harris has had 90 rushed and 50 receptions – the most offensive touches in the CFL by a mile (Calgary’s Jerome Messam is second at 128; 112 carries, 16 receptions).

Part of that is teams often dropping nine defenders into coverage against the Bombers. A lot of it is offensive coordinator Paul LaPolice recognizing that in Harris, he has a dual offensive threat than can cause matchup nightmares for defences.

“It’s really in LaPo’s hands. He calls the plays, he draws them up,” said Harris. “Whether it’s who we’re playing and the matchups we have… sometimes getting matched up against a linebacker is an advantage for us.

“It’s also just playing the checkdown game where we’re stretching the field and (defences are) falling back and I can get underneath the linebackers and chew up some yards that way.

“It’s been a healthy dose for sure,” added Harris. “That’s the biggest thing, continuing to stay healthy and take care of the body off the field and just coming back every week and trying to be explosive.”


BOMBERS REPORT – August 20, 2017

NOW THAT’S FOCUS

Bombers QB Matt Nichols offered up a funny bit on Sunday after practice that showcases how locked-in the man can get. Asked how he works in a new receiver after an injury – a reference to Matt Coates catching a pass not long after Julian Feoli-Gudino exited last Thursday’s game with an injury – Nichols grinned.

“Honestly, during the game I didn’t even know Julian got hurt on that play,” began Nichols. “We had gone two more drives and I actually had a completion to Matt. We were on the sidelines and Julian was on the (trainer’s) table and I went up to Matt and said, ‘Be ready to go, Julian’s on the table.’ And he said, ‘I’ve already been in there. You threw me the ball.’

“That just speaks to how I never lock into who’s who and who’s where. Our guys are in the right spots and I throw the ball to where the defence tells me to throw the ball.”

MORE PRAISE FOR 33

Nichols also weighed in on Harris and the vantage point he has in watching the Bombers tailback go to work.

“He’s a guy than can do a lot of things for you,” said Nichols. “He’s a team leader out here a guy that brings it every single day. After a game like that, you expect him to be limping around the next day and you come into the locker room and he’s one of the guys laughing, joking around, playing ping-pong. He’s just a different type of athlete.”

OUCH REPORT

Bombers left guard Travis Bond was absent from practice on Sunday as he is dealing with a personal matter back home.

Patrick Neufeld worked in his place with the No. 1 offence, but Bond is expected back soon as the club prepares for Thursday’s game in Montreal against the Alouettes.

The Bombers held a lighter walk-through type practice on Sunday and not participating were DB Brian Walker, S Taylor Loffler, WR Julian Feoli-Gudino and RB Timothy Flanders. Brandon Alexander was taking some reps at corner, with Coates in for Feoli-Gudino and Derek Jones working for Loffler.

“(Walker)… we’ve got to see for a couple of days before we make a decision,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “He said he’s feeling good. Taylor should be OK. Julian said he should be good to go.

“Brandon Alexander… we’ll get him running around a bit more tomorrow and evaluate him after tomorrow.”

Weston Dressler, who has missed three games, has also been running more of late and could be back within the next couple of weeks.

“He makes sure he runs around Al (Bombers Head Athletic Therapist Al Couture),” said O’Shea with a grin. “He does circles around him and runs in front of him to let him know he’s ready to go.”

TAKE A JOKE

Credit Bombers defensive back T.J. Heath for having a good sense of humour. Heath feels he dropped a couple of potential interceptions in the win over Edmonton and he has heard it from his defensive backs coach Tony Missick.

To that end, Heath tweeted this out after the game:

 

 

“The past couple of weeks I’ve been dropping picks,” said Heath. “We have fun with it because we’re winning games. But obviously, if we had been losing games I would be the most upset about it. We decided to have a little fun with it. Coach has been saying for the last couple of weeks he was going to let me borrow his hands. I told him the other day before the game I didn’t need them and then I ended up dropping two (potential interceptions). So, he came back in the meeting the other day and he had some Mickey Mouse gloves.

“Everybody got a kick out of it. I guess I was the laughing stock of the day. It’s all in fun.”