It has been a whirlwind first few months for new Westshore Rebels head coach Charly Cardilicchia.
After weeks of putting together his staff and recruiting players to fill holes left behind by the departure of star players like Jamal Lyles, Trey Campbell, Aarmin Purewal and Lorenzo Ihanza, Cardilicchia will begin to see the fruits of his labour as the defending Cullen Cup champions opened spring camp on Friday.
鈥淭his is the first chance for me to really put it on the field and see the product,鈥� said Cardilicchia. 鈥淚t has been a little bit of a crazy last few months. Careful what you wish for, they say.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a busy time, but a real fun and exciting time. It鈥檚 been heavy recruiting and heavily establishing some of the things off the field that we needed to fix up like billet programs and jobs.鈥�
As for the on-field losses, that comes each and every year.
鈥淭here are definitely some big losses, but with that comes opportunity for other guys to grow,鈥� said Cardilicchia. 鈥淭hose are difficult players to replace, no matter what you鈥檝e got coming in. They were very talented individuals, but we will have a very solid group. We will be deep from top to bottom 鈥� the whole weakest link cliche will be very true with this team.鈥�
Cardilicchia has recruited across the country with players from Halifax to Victoria slated for the roster. Many will not be here as they have already committed.
鈥淲e will have more coming in. It鈥檚 difficult to fund all of it so we will bring the others in closer to the season,鈥� said Cardilicchia. 鈥淲e鈥檒l know where we stand and this will give us a nice chance to evaluate this weekend.鈥�
The biggest hole to fill will be at running back where Lyles and Campbell have moved on to university.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to shift into a more balanced attack. We鈥檒l throw the ball more and I expect to be a lot more proficient in the pass game, with a lot more completions,鈥� said Cardilicchia, who added his receiving corps will be young, but very talented.
Coach Shane Beatty鈥檚 defence will be solid, led by Jeremie Drouin, Byron MacKinnon and Kent Hicks. Offensive linemen Christian Krause and Tyson Thompson are back, as is quarterback Ashton MacKinnon. Gabe Olivares, a QB from UBC, is also on board.
鈥淲e鈥檒l start to see what we have to work with this weekend. I guess it will be a bit of a teller for the season,鈥� said Krause, who will miss having Purewal along side the O-line as he left for York University.
鈥淢y brother leaving hurts, but that鈥檚 OK. It鈥檚 good for him and I鈥檓 proud of him,鈥� said Krause, 21, who was an all-star on the O-line along with Purewal last year. 鈥淔ootball is football. I鈥檓 here to play for my city. Every year you鈥檙e going to go through the turnover of guys 鈥� that鈥檚 football. You always have to fill holes.鈥�
Being sa国际传媒 Football Conference champions should help make it easier.
EXTRA POINTS: CFLers Dexter Janke (Calgary), Aaron Crawford (Hamilton), Quinn Van Gylswyk and Greg Morris (both Saskatchewan) are all guest coaches this weekend. All but Janke are Rebels alumni Van Gylswyk and Morris played two years together here. . . . The Rebels will be on the field at Westhills Stadium today from 9:30 a.m. to noon and again from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Camp continues Sunday with an 8:30-11 a.m. session.
