Andrew Harris Chases History

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Blitz
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Andrew Harris, whom our Leos defense will soon see again, is within reach of two long held CFL records.

Harris leads the CFL in receptions and is second in CFL rushing. Its good to see the former Leo, whom Wally was not interested in signing again, playing very well in Winnipeg. He is not only contributed to the Bombers offence on the ground and in the air but also positively impacts their ratio.
Andrew Harris chases history: Winnipeg Blue Bombers running back is within reach of two long-held records.

You get the sense the Bombers would like to see Harris get the records, but won’t let it get in the way of their ultimate goal: winning the Grey Cup


WINNIPEG — If Andrew Harris is unaware of the numbers, he has plenty of people to remind him.
“I should probably log off Twitter, ’cause that’s where I see most of it,” the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ star running back said Tuesday.

Harris is on pace to break a couple of longstanding CFL records this season while playing for his hometown Bombers. He says he’s trying not to focus on it, but fans and the press have a way of keeping it in his consciousness.

“People mention me on Twitter and keep me updated as to where I’m at,” Harris said.

The 30-year-old has 88 catches through 14 games this season, which puts him on pace to shatter the record for receptions by a running back of 102, set by Craig Ellis of the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1985.

He’s also on track to become the first player in CFL history to record at least 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving. With four games left, he’s on pace for 1,053 rushing yards and 1,006 receiving yards.

Only one player in CFL history has had more than 1,000 yards rushing and 800 yards receiving. That was Robert Drummond of the Toronto Argonauts in 1997 (1,134 yards rushing, 840 yards receiving).

Harris has 819 rushing yards through 14 games and 783 receiving yards.

Not that he pays too much attention to those numbers.

“If I’m on pace, great,” Harris said. “But I’m just trying to be out there making plays for my team and trying to get us into a good situation for the playoffs.”

He may or may not get a chance to hit the 1,000-yard milestones down the stretch, depending on how badly the Bombers need him. They are 10-4 and need just one point to clinch a playoff spot, and are also narrowing in on a home playoff date.

It’s possible Harris will be rested toward the end of the season.

Either way, you get the sense the Bombers would like to see him get the records, but won’t let it get in the way of their ultimate goals of making the playoffs and winning the Grey Cup.

“I don’t think it’s a distraction at all and I don’t think we have to avoid it,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said Tuesday. “I think his teammates want the most for Andrew, more than Andrew would want for himself. Andrew wants more for his teammates than he would ever want for himself.

“I don’t think it’s a situation that we have to manage at all. Not surprisingly, Andrew is a selfless teammate, and that’s one of the things that makes him so likeable and so enjoyable to come to work with.”


The Tiger-Cats and B.C. Lions could be eliminated from playoff contention as soon as this weekend if they lose to the Stampeders and Blue Bombers, respectively.

The 6-8 Lions need help as it is, as they are four points out of a playoff spot with four games left in the season. If they lose Saturday and both the Edmonton Eskimos and Saskatchewan Roughriders win, B.C. will be eliminated.

Winnipeg will clinch a playoff spot with a win or a tie against the Lions, while the Riders and Eskimos will clinch at least a crossover playoff spot with wins and a Lions loss.

The Stampeders have already clinched a home playoff game and can lock up first place and a first-round bye with a win and a Winnipeg loss.

Despite being just 7-8, the Argos can clinch first place in the woeful East Division with a win at Edmonton and a loss by the Ottawa Redblacks at Saskatchewan.

If 4-10 Hamilton loses to the Stampeders on Friday night, the Argos will clinch a playoff berth and a home playoff game, even if they lose this week.

If 6-9-1 Ottawa wins at Saskatchewan and Hamilton loses to Calgary, the Redblacks will clinch a playoff berth and a home playoff game and the Tiger-Cats will be eliminated.

The 3-12 Alouettes were already eliminated from playoff contention last weekend.
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TheLionKing
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Early contender for MOP and top Canadian IMO
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David
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I've read the same thing in the media TheLionKing but to me, Alex Singleton deserves Top Canadian, hands-down.

IMO, Harris is having an exceptional season but benefits from a very progressive LaPolice offensive scheme and a strong offensive line. He sees the ball a lot as he's the check-down option for Nichols, and his rushing average is 5.5 yards per carry. Respectable, but 4th in yards per carry among running backs with 100+ rushes (7th if you include running backs with 50+ touches).


DH :cool:
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Alex Singleton is very deserving as well.
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“I don’t think it’s a distraction at all and I don’t think we have to avoid it,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said Tuesday. “I think his teammates want the most for Andrew, more than Andrew would want for himself. Andrew wants more for his teammates than he would ever want for himself.

“I don’t think it’s a situation that we have to manage at all. Not surprisingly, Andrew is a selfless teammate, and that’s one of the things that makes him so likeable and so enjoyable to come to work with.”
Andrew Harris. One of my all time favourites. :thup:
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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WestCoastJoe
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Re Alex Singleton ...
Calgary Stampeders[edit]

Singleton was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 CFL Draft. He became a Canadian citizen in October 2015 and qualified for dual citizenship because his mother was born in Toronto. He signed with the team on May 17, 2016. Singleton made his CFL debut on June 25, 2016 against the BC Lions.[4] Singleton had an exceptional first season in the CFL and quickly became one of the Stampeders important players on defense.[5] Over the course of the season, he played in all 18 regular season games, and the Stamps two playoff games. He contributed 65 defensive tackles, 9 special teams tackles, and 3 forced fumbles.
Born in California. Played high school football in California. Played college football at Montana State.

His mother is Canadian, as she was born in Toronto.

He qualilfied for dual citizenship because of his mother.

He became Canadian in October of 2015.

Because of his upbringing in the US, this CFL fan is not sure about him being top Canadian in the CFL, although he is certainly Canadian by citizenship. It gets technical, and it seems to me the point of the top Canadian award is, amongst other things, about learning your football in Canada.

In regards to technical, I seem to recall that way back in the day, CFL teams could designate a small number of top Americans as Canadian. LOL I seem to recall that for CFL purposes we did that with Joe Kapp for a time. (This is from recollection of decades ago. Not sure if this came to be, or was merely discussed by the league.)

Whatever, Alex Singleton is one helluva player. And welcome to Canada. Good move. :thup:

As has been discussed in some articles, the issue has some complexity. The CFL wishes to deepen the talent pool, thus some American players (and others) qualify as Canadian as the standards change. Conversely, with the increase in Canadian football talent, many Canadians make their mark in the NFL. The CFLPA wishes to protect Canadian jobs for Canadians. Et cetera ...

Dwayne The Rock Johnson, who was with the Calgary Stampeders briefly, has a Canadian father and a Samoan mother. By today's standards he would qualify as a National for the CFL.

I am not suggesting a rule change. But, given a vote between the two players, I would vote for Andrew Harris. Harris himself would probably not be upset if Singleton got the award.

As Don Cherry would say: "A couple of good, Canadian kids." :thup:

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John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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DanoT
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 6:52 am
“I don’t think it’s a distraction at all and I don’t think we have to avoid it,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said Tuesday. “I think his teammates want the most for Andrew, more than Andrew would want for himself. Andrew wants more for his teammates than he would ever want for himself.

“I don’t think it’s a situation that we have to manage at all. Not surprisingly, Andrew is a selfless teammate, and that’s one of the things that makes him so likeable and so enjoyable to come to work with.”
Andrew Harris. One of my all time favourites. :thup:
During his time as a Lion, Harris was under utilized by the unimaginative Wally. Except for the brief time that they had Harris and Logan in the backfield at the same time...they both had great stats but two RBs in the same backfield was way to avant-garde for Wally so the Lions never stuck with it even though it was very productive. :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang:
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 7:00 am
In regards to technical, I seem to recall that way back in the day, CFL teams could designate a small number of top Americans as Canadian. LOL I seem to recall that for CFL purposes we did that with Joe Kapp for a time. (This is from recollection of decades ago. Not sure if this came to be, or was merely discussed by the league.)

Whatever, Alex Singleton is one helluva player. And welcome to Canada. Good move. :thup:

As has been discussed in some articles, the issue has some complexity. The CFL wishes to deepen the talent pool, thus some American players (and others) qualify as Canadian as the standards change. Conversely, with the increase in Canadian football talent, many Canadians make their mark in the NFL. The CFLPA wishes to protect Canadian jobs for Canadians. Et cetera ...
A bit of history on the CFL's brief use of naturalized Canadians in the 1960s, courtesy of a 2011 article by Jim Mullin at cfl.ca:
A landmark decision was made in 1961 with the ‘Naturalized Canadian’ rule, a.k.a., the ‘Canadianized American’. The rule granted non-import status to players who had acquired Canadian citizenship after five years of residency in the country. Essentially this meant that rosters were set at 34, with 15 imports.

Of course, teams started to take advantage of this rule, so in 1965 number of Naturalized Canadians on each roster was limited to three. However, one player who was released due to this new quota went marching off to the Ontario Human Rights Commission, which ruled that it was unlawful to discriminate employment based on citizenship, threatening all roster management.

Cue Bora Laskin, who was the Dean of Law at Osgoode Hall in Toronto, and later the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. Laskin found a way out for the newly formed Canadian Football League. The solution was to base any distinction not on a player’s nationality, citizenship or residence but on his early football training.

If the training was received inside Canada, he was a “non-import”. Outside of Canada, he was an “import”. The definition has withstood challenges from the Canadian and Ontario Human Rights Commissions since 1965.
MULLIN: CHANGING THE GAME – THE RATIO

Frank Cosentino covers the topic more thoroughly in his book, A Passing Game: A History of the CFL (Bain and Cox, 1995).
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WestCoastJoe
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Cue Bora Laskin, who was the Dean of Law at Osgoode Hall in Toronto, and later the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. Laskin found a way out for the newly formed Canadian Football League. The solution was to base any distinction not on a player’s nationality, citizenship or residence but on his early football training.


Thanks for that, BCFAN.

That would seem to lend credence to my opinion that football training in Canada is the key point in the CFL top Canadian award.

Whatever. We welcome Alex Singleton for his wisdom in becoming Canadian and for his football prowess.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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B.C.FAN
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 11:07 am
Cue Bora Laskin, who was the Dean of Law at Osgoode Hall in Toronto, and later the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. Laskin found a way out for the newly formed Canadian Football League. The solution was to base any distinction not on a player’s nationality, citizenship or residence but on his early football training.


Thanks for that, BCFAN.

That would seem to lend credence to my opinion that football training in Canada is the key point in the CFL top Canadian award.

Whatever. We welcome Alex Singleton for his wisdom in becoming Canadian and for his football prowess.
For the same reason, I would favour Andrew Harris over Alex Singleton as the West's top Canadian but I would support Singleton for defensive player of the year.
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DanoT wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 8:59 am


During his time as a Lion, Harris was under utilized by the unimaginative Wally. Except for the brief time that they had Harris and Logan in the backfield at the same time...they both had great stats but two RBs in the same backfield was way to avant-garde for Wally so the Lions never stuck with it even though it was very productive. :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang:
Agree

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Harris has also metioned on TSN that the level of coaching is much higher in Winnepeg then it ever was in BC
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leo4life wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 8:26 pm
Harris has also metioned on TSN that the level of coaching is much higher in Winnepeg then it ever was in BC
Ouch !
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leo4life wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 8:26 pm
Harris has also metioned on TSN that the level of coaching is much higher in Winnepeg then it ever was in BC
be real surprised if he said it the other way around, considering that he is playing in Winnipeg now.
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KnowItAll wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 11:39 pm
leo4life wrote:
Fri Oct 13, 2017 8:26 pm
Harris has also metioned on TSN that the level of coaching is much higher in Winnepeg then it ever was in BC
be real surprised if he said it the other way around, considering that he is playing in Winnipeg now.
^^^True, but Harris is an outspoken guy who is not afraid to say what he thinks. So if he thought the coaching was equal or Lions were better he probably says nothing or very little. Besides, we all know that he is correct.
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