Argos' rookie Reaves gets 1st CFL start vs. Als
Last Updated: Friday, November 6, 2009 | 6:20 PM ET
The Canadian Press
Als' quarterback Anthony Calvillo, left, is sacked by Argos' Jonathan Brown during an October game. The teams' next matchup is Saturday. (Darren Calabrese/Canadian Press)Stephen Reaves couldn't have picked a more difficult test for his first CFL quarterbacking start.
The rookie left-hander will be under centre Saturday, replacing Kerry Joseph, when the Toronto Argonauts host the Montreal Alouettes (TSN, 1 p.m. ET) in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Not only will Reaves be auditioning for a job next season with the Double Blue, but he will do so against a defence that's the CFL's best and ranked first in 20 of the league's 25 defensive categories.
But the former Southern Miss star — who has the same alma mater as NFL star Brett Favre — is unfazed.
"Yeah, Montreal does have a good defence," said Reaves. "But I haven't really looked at it like that.
" I think if we go out there and move the ball well, get completions and try to put some points on the board early, I think we got a good shot against them or any other defence we play against."
On paper, that would seem like a tall order.
Alouettes highly ranked
Montreal is allowing just 18.1 points against per game and is ranked first against both the pass (248 yards per game) and rush (79.5 yards).
Toronto counters with an offence that's ranked last in points scored (18.3 per game), yards rushing (87.4) and total yards (290), and seventh in passing (230.5).
The Argos have also allowed a league-high 52 sacks, not a good thing against a Montreal defence that's second overall in sacks recorded (39).
The Argos do have a few factors working in their favour.
First, the game means nothing to Montreal (14-3), which has already cemented top spot in the East and the right to host the conference final Nov. 22.
Also, quarterback Anthony Calvillo — the CFL's outstanding player last year and the club's nominee for the honour this season — made the trip but won't play.
Backup Adrian McPherson will start, with rookie Chris Leak serving as the No. 2 quarterback.
The Argos (3-14) will miss the CFL playoffs for the second straight year and their players are auditioning for jobs next year. But in Argos head coach Bart Andrus's mind, a Toronto win would be a fitting reward as the club has deemed the contest Fan Appreciation Day.
