Chalk up another day of Bombers training camp, as the club inches closer to Friday’s home pre-season date against the Edmonton Eskimos at IG Field. Here are our daily collection of notes and quotes from Monday’s session…
ALL SMILES:
Brady Oliveira just can’t stop grinning. He was all smiles on draft night when the Bombers used their second-round pick to select the Winnipeg product 14th overall. His face lit up on the first day of rookie camp earlier this month.
And he was beaming on Monday, knowing that he’ll be wearing Bombers colours in a game in a few days.
“For me, I’m just looking forward to that game and finally to put on that jersey with my last name on it and to finally go against an opponent rather than my teammates,” began Oliveira after a late Monday afternoon practice.
“To get the pads banging a little bit, it will be fun coming out here. I’ve played here before in high school and growing up when I played with the North Winnipeg Nomads, so coming back here and being a pro and playing for the Bombers… it’s going to be crazy when I look around and see all the fans and know that I’m not playing for the Nomads anymore, I’m not playing for Oak Park. I’m a Winnipeg Blue Bomber and playing in the stadium as a Bomber. It’s definitely going to be a surreal time.”
GRINDING:
Training camp is both a mental and physical battle for players, including veterans and newcomers alike. And it’s those who not just survive but thrive at this point of the grind that often help their cause the most when a roster is selected. Case in point: receiver Kenny Lawler, who has been working with the starters over the last couple of days and continues to shine.
“He’s caught a lot of footballs that have been around him… and some of them sometimes aren’t near him and he still catches them,” said head coach Mike O’Shea. “He’s shown everybody here that he’s got exceptional focus and very good hands. Those are obviously very positive things for a receiver.
“He looks really good. We liked him last year when he came in part-way through and he’s improve on that, even.”
CENTRE STAGE:
The Bombers still have some roster decisions to make before their 2019 debut on June 15th in B.C. against the Lions. Two pre-season games could be the difference as to who earns a starting spot at certain positions, including centre, where Michael Couture and Cody Speller are in a battle to see who will replace Matthias Goossen.
Both Speller and Couture had the chance to learn under Goossen, one of the best pros among a group of them on the Bombers O-line.
“It’s been awesome. Goose did the right way,” Couture said. “He came in early in the morning and watched more film than probably everybody in the room. He was great to see how he does it and mold it into how I’m going to do it. What we’ve got going on here is a great thing and I’m happy to be a part of it going on my fourth year now.”
Couture worked to add more weight in the offseason – the proper weight – and a steady diet of steak, fish and potatoes helped him do just that, as he went from 290 at the end of last season to 303 at the start of training camp. He also spent the winter coaching occasionally, working with a group of 12-year-old O-linemen and then the O and D lines at a high school in Surrey.
Asked why he thinks he is ready after three years of grooming, Couture offered this:
“It’s the confidence level in myself, the knowledge and the game film I’ve watched. Physically I’ve gotten larger and being around this group and under this coaching staff, it’s like everything has come together right now. When I first got here it was follow the leader. I was just trying to absorb everything I could. It was see the other guys leading by example and then do what they do.
“We’re a physical, tough offensive line that knows what it is doing. It plays as a unit. I’ve seen it from 2016 and with how little change there’s been they’ve been able to keep that standard high. It’s something I’ve loved being a part of and want to help uphold.”
NEXT: The Bombers are scheduled to practice Tuesday morning from 8:50-11:20 a.m. Practices are open to the public, but the times are subject to change.
