By Adam Donnelly

BC Lions vets excited to be a part of Buono’s final training camp

May 22, 2018 | 5:17 PM

KAMLOOPS — The BC Lions rolled into town on the weekend to begin their 9th CFL Training Camp in Kamloops with a whole host of new faces taking to the field at Hillside Stadium. This year marks Wally Buono’s 46th CFL Training Camp. If all goes according to plan, it will be his final one as head coach of the BC Lions, a fact which many of the veterans on the Lions are well aware.

As BC Lions Training camp began Sunday at Hillside Stadium, Head Coach Wally Buono was struck by the physical size of the some of the new faces he’s getting to know.

“I thought I was small years ago, I felt a lot smaller today,” Buono quipped. “The spirit was good, and hopefully the veteran players see the talent that’s here and we work to get better.”

There have been plenty of changes within the organization, beginning with new GM Ed Hervey. He’s brought in a number of new players to compete for spots are training camp this year, which has infused some new energy into the team, according to some of the vets.

“We’re excited,” LB Solomon Elamimian said. “It’s all about competing, everybody getting better.”

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“You bring in somebody like Odell [Willis] – hated playing against him, so glad he’s on our team,” QB Jonathan Jennings said.

“You can see, there’s a new energy in the room,” Travis Lulay said.

Of course, if everything goes according to plan, this will be Buono’s final season as bench boss for the BC Lions. He’s already a Canadian Football Hall of Famer, winning two Grey Cups as a player and five as a head coach and amassing the most regular season coaching wins in his 25 seasons on the sidelines.

Buono says he’s happy to be back in Kamloops for the start of another training camp – he has plenty of names to put to faces, and lots of old faces to reacquaint himself with.

“This is, I don’t know, my 9th or 10th year [in Kamloops]?” Buono said. “I always look forward to coming to Kamloops,  it’s a tremendous setting, the weathers always really good, and there’s a lot to look forward to.”

But for Jennings, who’s played for Buono for his whole pro career, they’re hoping to make this final year a special one for Wally.

“He’s someone who’s been very instrumental in my life,” Jennings said. “It’s exciting to a part of this last chapter for him.”