Crew hosts hour-long championship rally at Maple Leaf Sq. exterior Scotiabank Enviornment
You’ll have by no means guessed this was Mike (Pinball) Clemons’s eighth Gray Cup celebration.
From his seat on stage left, Toronto’s common supervisor wore a large smile, pumped his fists, stomped his toes and appeared to just about fall off his chair with puppy-like pleasure all through the Argonauts’ hour-long championship rally at Maple Leaf Sq. exterior Scotiabank Enviornment on Tuesday.
“(Grey Cups) are so hard to get,” Clemons mentioned. “There’s no promise. Some guys go through and never get that opportunity to hold the Cup. The unpredictability of it is what makes it special.”
Unpredictability is maybe essentially the most apt descriptor of the Argonauts’ latest championship — a 41-24 victory over the favoured Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Vancouver’s B.C. Place on Sunday.
Hours earlier than the rally started, a crowd of diehard followers started to type across the stage. The group sang intermittent “Let’s go Argos” chants collectively on a cool and principally gray day within the metropolis.
Lots of them donned Argos jerseys, with names like Doug Flutie, Henoc Muamba and McLeod Bethel-Thompson represented amongst them.
However there have been no Nick Arbuckle threads in sight — becoming for a whirlwind season that noticed the backup quarterback take over as starter within the Gray Cup, resulting in the workforce to its CFL record-extending nineteenth title and incomes MVP honours within the course of.
Toronto spent its first 9 video games of the season ready out a suspension to star QB Chad Kelly. It eked out second place within the East by a half-game over the Ottawa Redblacks earlier than beating them within the East semi.
Then, late within the division remaining in opposition to the top-seeded Montreal Alouettes, Kelly went down with harm. The Argos held on to win, however they have been considered as underdogs within the Gray Cup in opposition to a Blue Bombers squad making its fifth straight journey to the title sport.
That’s when Arbuckle — a participant who was investigating teaching alternatives within the low season — stepped in and threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns in opposition to the stout Bombers.
“I’ve tried to make a lot of plans based on things I’ve done in the past and those plans never really seem to work out,” mentioned Arbuckle. “And the plan that did work out, which was God’s plan, ended up being a lot sweeter and a lot greater. I never thought this would have happened, so I’ll just let him to take the reins.”
Arbuckle mentioned his week main as much as the Gray Cup seemed like most others, aside from a couple of extra first-team reps.
“I always prepare the same exact way for a game, whether you’re the starter or the backup. I always prepare to play every down except for the first one, so this is the only difference — I get to play the first one,” he mentioned.
The CFL journeyman added that he now hopes to maintain enjoying into subsequent season. As a free agent, although, it might not be with Toronto.
Kelly, in the meantime, will nonetheless be beneath contract with the Argos.
The 30-year-old, who two years in the past stepped in from the backup position to guide the Argos to a championship, joined his workforce on stage on the rally on crutches and provided an exuberant speech that includes many proclamations of “best in the world” and quite a lot of swear phrases.
“That was awesome to see him here and take part and be such a part of the spirit and direction of our team,” Clemons mentioned.
When Kelly was nonetheless wholesome almost two months in the past, the Argonauts visited the Lions at B.C. Place — the positioning of the Gray Cup. Toronto picked up an vital victory in that sport, however it was one other second throughout that journey that will stay on eternally.
Head coach Ryan Dinwiddie taped a toonie within the customer’s locker room, with the promise of returning to select it up throughout the Gray Cup.
“I felt like it was a good message to our players to let them understand we did take that step in B.C. in a tough game. I don’t know when’s the last time we won in B.C. We had to get that done — now we can get it done in a few weeks,” Dinwiddie mentioned.
Dinwiddie mentioned he now has the toonie safely in his home — although there was a scary second on the flight house from Vancouver by which it slipped out of his pocket and into the depths of his seat.
However the coach, who’s signed with the Argos by way of 2026, recovered the coin and is planning to immortalize it in a trophy case alongside his Gray Cup ring.
Along with Clemons, Arbuckle, Kelly and Dinwiddie, Toronto mayor Olivia Chow, MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum, president Keith Pelley and 4 different gamers spoke on the rally.
Chow declared Nov. 19 as Double-Blue Day in Toronto.
Pelley, a former Argos president who just lately returned to MLSE, mentioned when he spoke to the workforce forward of the East remaining he implored six extra hours of fine soccer — and his gamers delivered.
Veteran receiver DaVaris Daniels, who’s spent the previous 4 seasons with the Argos, was the primary participant to take the microphone.
Daniels held a bottle of champagne that he sprayed into the group as he walked to the lectern. He spoke of the nobody-believes-in-us mentality his workforce carried all through Gray Cup week.
“Never underestimate an underdog,” Daniels roared. “You just might get bit.”
