Reilly embracing return to B.C., playing closer to home

“I do believe it’s a unique opportunity for me,” said Reilly. “You don’t get that chance very often, come back to a team that you started your career with, come back to a GM [Ed Hervey] that you’rewon a championship with, and come back to the part of the country where you were born and raised.”

The 34-year-old pivot was raised in Kennewick, Washington, he played his college football at Central Washington, and his wife and two daughters live in Seattle.

So as much as the Lions are happy to have him back, Reilly is relishing the opportunity to be closer to home. The opportunity to be the team’s franchise quarterback is something he never could’ve imagined when he arrived in Kamloops for his first training camp in 2010.

“When I was here originally, I was trying not to drown,” Reilly noted. “You’re trying to learn the playbook. It’s sink or swim, and you’re just trying to get a spot on the team. During that time, if you would’ve told me I was going to go and be the franchise player for another team for six years and win a Grey Cup, win an MOP, and then end up back here, I would’ve been really curious how that road was going to turn out.”

His one and only goal in coming back to B.C. is to help bring the Lions back to glory and become legitimate Grey Cup contenders every year.

“Being here in 2011 and part of that Grey Cup team (as a third-string QB) and getting to see what the fan base is like, what the city’s like with a championship-caliber team, it was an awesome experience and a great opportunity,” he said. “Watching Travis on the field and bringing that championship home, that’s something that I always wanted to be a part of, and I got to experience that with Edmonton, of course.”

“But knowing what it was like in 2011, and watching Travis go through it, I want that for this city and this fan base.”

Newcomer Duron Carter already feels the impact of Reilly’s presence at training camp. He’s also seen what Reilly can do, having played on the other side of the ball against him for a short time.

“That was very hard. Having him as my quarterback, I’m just super thankful every day,” said Carter, the son of NFL Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter. “It makes me come out here and work even harder, just to be in the right spot for him, just to be at my best, to be blocking for him, just to be everything, to be a better leader because I know he’s going to take us where we need to go.”

New Lions head coach DeVone Claybrooks, who schemed against the Reilly-led Eskimos for the last three seasons as Calgary’s defensive coorindator, says as great of a player that he is, Reilly is an even better leader.

“He demands the respect of the team and he gets it and they follow,” said Claybrooks, a first-year CFL head coach. “That’s probably the best thing because as a head coach and as a coach, you don’t play, so you want to trust that you’ve got leaders on your team that understand the message and the direction you’re going.”

Reilly’s arrival has the Lions as early favourites in training camp to win the Grey Cup, and while there’s a long way to go until November, you can feel the exciting building within the team.

“I was just talking to Ed Hervey and this is the best [team] I’ve been on offensively,” noted Carter, who’s on his fourth CFL team. “We started the first three days, we’re throwing touchdown after touchdown, and Mike is making it look effortless, and it’s just the beginning. We’ve got something special.”

Reilly added, “A lot of these guys that are veterans that have been in B.C. for a little while now, guys like Bryan Burnham. He hasn’t been part of a championship team, but he’s one of the best players in our league. So I’m just here to try and help these guys, try to build something special. But not just do it once, try to build a dynasty. That’s what you’re always after.”

by Chad Klassen

Reilly embracing return to B.C., playing closer to home

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