CALGARY — Is this the year Henry Burris claims the CFL’s top trophy for an individual player?
It’s been a decade since a Calgary Stampeder won the league’s outstanding player award. Former QB Dave Dickenson — who now serves as Calgary’s quarterbacks coach — won in 2000.
The Stampeders put Burris’s name forth Wednesday as their candidate for this year’s honour. With his strong numbers this season, Burris is a virtual shoo-in to be the Western finalist for most outstanding player.
The virtual certainty ends there, however, as Montreal Alouettes counterpart Anthony Calvillo is the favourite to represent the East again after winning the trophy the last two years.
The CFL’s outstanding player is voted on by the eight CFL head coaches and the Football Reporters of Canada (FRC).
Burris has put up the numbers to warrant consideration at the awards ceremony Nov. 25 in Edmonton.
With 4,890 passing yards and a league-leading 37 touchdown passes, Burris has the Stamps on the verge of scoring over 600 points in one season for the first time in 10 years. He also has three rushing touchdowns and almost 500 rushing yards.
If Calgary wins Friday in Winnipeg, the Stampeders will match their 13-5 record of two years ago when they won the Grey Cup in Montreal. Calgary will host the West final Nov. 21 and attempt a return to the CFL’s championship game Nov. 28 in Edmonton.
Since Burris signed with the Stampeders as a free agent in 2005, he has won at least 10 games in all but one season (2007). While Calvillo is considered the model of quarterback consistency, Burris has also kept Calgary a perennial contender since his arrival.
“We wouldn’t be in this position we’re in without his performance,” Stampeder running back Jon Cornish said.
“With more voters in the East, Anthony Calvillo benefits from that, but he’s a great player too. It’s going to be very interesting this year to see how it works out because I really think Henry has a great chance.”
Each of the eight CFL cities gets six FRC votes. The remaining 15 FRC votes go to national media outlets such as The Canadian Press, The Globe and Mail and TSN.
Burris says he covets the most outstanding award only for how it reflects on his team’s success.
“If I am able to achieve it, it shows we had an excellent season that year and that’s something you strive always to do, is to be the best in the league especially at your position,” Burris said. “Quarterbacks are notably picked out as far as when this award is given out, so if I can be the best, that’s definitely something I’m striving to be.”
The 35-year-old from Spiro, Okla., was a finalist for the award for the first time two years ago, when Calvillo won it with 27 of a possible 46 first-place votes. While it was difficult to argue with Calvillo’s league-leading 43 touchdown passes, his team was 3-5 against West Division clubs that season.
Calvillo, in his 17th season, is considered the more consistent pivot of the two. Despite missing two games with a bruised sternum, the 38-year-old pivot enters the last weekend of the regular season only 51 passing yards behind Burris. Calvillo has thrown 32 touchdown passes and has a slightly better completion rate percentage.
Burris is more of a gambler, and his powerful arm can make for a spectacular show. He demonstrated that this season at home Oct. 1 when he threw for 412 yards and four touchdowns in a 46-21 win over Montreal.
Cornish, the backup to star running back Joffrey Reynolds, is Calgary’s nominee for most outstanding Canadian, although he acknowledged Wednesday that Saskatchewan’s Andy Fantuz is the overwhelming favourite there.
Juwan Simpson was the club’s choice for top defensive player, punter Burke Dales for special teams, Ben Archibald at offensive lineman and defensive lineman Edwin Harrison for rookie.
The Stamps were shut out of the CFL’s six individual trophies when they won the Grey Cup in 2008. The last Stampeder to win one was lineman John Grace, who took the defensive honours in 2005.
“Last year kind of rubbed it in more when people said Montreal was the best team, which they were last year, so they deserved all the awards,” Burris said. “Well, in 2008 we were the best team, so why didn’t we?”
As for league MVP, Burris wasn’t endearing himself to the eastern chapter of the voters Wednesday.
“The eastern media, they think a football is a round puck still,” he laughed.