Dickenson, Fajardo and Judge up for CFL Awards
Published: Thursday, Nov 7th 2019, 6:11pm
By: Stephen Safinuk (@Safimod)
On November 21st in Calgary, 3 members of the Saskatchewan Roughriders will be up for awards.
As leaked yesterday, Cody Fajardo will go up against Brandon Banks for the Most Outstanding Player Award, but he will be joined by Head Coach Craig Dickenson (Coach of the Year) and Linebacker Cameron Judge (Most Outstanding Canadian).
Most Outstanding Canadian
Cameron Judge will go up against former Rider Henoc Muamba in a tight battle for Most Outstanding Canadian. While Muamba had more tackles (which is to be expected in a middle linebacker vs outside linebacker), Judge had more sacks (5) and interceptions (2) including the interception to seal 1st place last week.
Prediction: Cameron Judge
Coach of the Year
In a year that saw numerous first year head coaches get their chance, it seems appropriate that the Coach of the Year would come down to a pair of Rookies. Craig Dickenson lead the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a 13-5 record, while being pushed in to the position late in the offseason after Chris Jones’ departure to Cleveland. He has done a masterful job of taking a team many predicted to finish third/fourth in the west, to a first place finish in a difficult West Division.
On the flip side, Orlando Steinhauer has taken a Hamilton team that many thought would walk away with the East, and made them even better. He also did so with a multitude of injuries throughout the season.
While 13-5 is great, 15-3 is a record that deserves recognition.
Prediction: Orlando Steinhauer
Most Outstanding Player
Cody Fajardo and Brandon Banks will go head to head for Most Outstanding Player in a battle that I believe is closer than the pundits would have you believe. While Banks did have himself a great year, leading the league in receptions, touchdowns, and yards, so did Cody Fajardo. Where Fajardo gets the edge, is rushing yards. 611 yards and 10 touchdowns (2 QB sneaks) is a solid season from a QB who lead the league in passing yards.
On the flip side, Banks gets the edge for his special teams’ work, with multiple return touchdowns to go with his league leading 13 touchdown receptions.
Prediction: Brandon Banks
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