As another day in the calendar flips, football season inches closer and closer. Hamilton has long been waiting for the opportunity to redeem themselves and give the Steel City faithful something to cheer about it at Tim Hortons Field. At the helm, returning coach June Jones has brought in a winning recipe through the draft, free agent signings, and a trust in quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.
Under Jones, Masoli had a breakout season last year torching the skies for a career-high 3177 yards all while being a threat on the ground, racking up 446 rushing yards. With Masoli now being the confirmed starter for the 2018 season ahead of Vernon Adams Jr, Dane Evans and Bryant Moniz it is a different feeling for him “I think going in (to the season) the success of the offence kind of depends on how I do…you want to make sure you can be when camp starts”
With camp starting on June 20th, Coach Jones is finding offensive comfort in Masoli, “he had a great finish under an adverse situation…he’s just going to get better and better”. Getting better was exactly what Masoli did in 2017 as his numbers grew exponentially as the season wore on. Week 6 of the CFL season marked the appearance of Masoli against the Calgary Stampeders. Masoli, throwing for 77 yards, a touchdown on 15 attempts was just a glimpse of what he would be capable down the road.
As week after week passed by in the CFL season, Masoli looked more and more comfortable with the weight of TigerTown on his shoulders. This, did not go unnoticed by Coach Jones “he’s going to get better and better and I believe in doing what you do better than the other guy and I believe he has all you need to be a very good player.” Masoli has the reputation of being a calming sense under center that he finds natural from great family support “my dad always told me never get too up, never get too down during a game” which speaks volume about the level of maturity Masoli is approaching the new season with.
Coach Jones has instilled tremendous faith into the back after making the switch which stemmed from nothing more than “we just needed to make a change…timing is everything and Jeremiah was on cue when he got his chance. He didn’t have one game where I thought about putting Zach (Collaros) in”.
Confidence and comfort are two things that Masoli has gained since being given the keys to the offense. The locker room atmosphere and cohesion have become the best fit Masoli has experienced “I’m surrounded by a great team with a great talent and that difference makes us feel comfortable… I think after having this minicamp and having a little taste, feel like I’m really comfortable”.
Having found success near the end of the year Masoli reflected on the positive outcome of the last 10 game of the season “It think it just kind of made us a little hungrier. We kind of got a taste of some of the success we have the potential of having and I think it’s a big reason why we got a lot of guys on offense back”.
Having strung together a 6-4 record in the final 10 games of the season, the team showed not only were they capable of winning, but they were capable of many positives. In the last regular season game, the Tiger-Cats shut out the visiting Montreal Alouettes 33-0 which showcased some remarkable personal highs and momentum that has seemed to carry over into this year’s training camp.
