It’s uncharted waters for the Toronto Argonauts skipper.
Head coach Ryan Dinwiddie has coached for a dozen seasons in the CFL, the last five as the head coach of the Argos. After being eliminated from playoff contention last week, this marks just the second season he won’t be involved in post-season play, the first coming exactly a decade ago when he was the running backs coach and co-offensive coordinator in Montreal.
The coach will get two more chances to see his team on the field this season, the first coming Friday night in Regina against the Roughriders. His message should guarantee the Argos will show up on game night despite the game meaning nothing in the standings to them.
“You tell the players and the coaches that they’re playing and coaching for jobs,” Dinwiddie told Argonauts.ca. “We’ve got some young players who have some opportunities for us to evaluate them and put some play on tape. Anytime you get out and play football your competitive spirit’s got to come out, our love for the game’s got to come out, and just some pride.”
Two major contributors to the Argos are out of the lineup this week, and likely next. Wynton McManis and Nick Arbuckle are battling injuries, leaving the door open for Isaac Darkangelo to get more reps at middle linebacker, and Jarret Doege, Tucker Horn, and potentially Max Duggan to see time behind center.
Doege has essentially played two games for the Boatmen this year, while Horn and Duggan have yet to see CFL game time. Dinwiddie is eager to see more of his backup signal callers.
“Doege needs the valuable reps,” the coach explained. “He’s got some playing time this year but hasn’t gotten to see the field a lot and didn’t see it a lot in Edmonton. It’s great for his growth and his comfort in the offence. And we’ll get a chance to put Tucker out there, he’s a young kid, and we’ll get to see him manage a football game.”
Also watching the new players will be general manager Michael Clemons. He’s anxious to see the younger athletes execute, but his eyes will be on more than just the youthful on-field performances.
“These next couple of games are important for each of us,” Clemons told Argonauts.ca. “Not just the young players, but each and every one of us because this begins the process. As we step on the field we want to see growth, we want to see the younger players who have the opportunity to play show themselves, but we also want to make sure we play to the whistle, that we’re not giving up, we’re preparing for next year.”
A pair of young players will get the chance to start on Friday night. Offensive lineman John Bosse will get an opportunity to bounce back from a rough night in BC, this time at right guard, while Delonte Hood checks back into the lineup and will start at field corner.
From a player evaluation standpoint, Dinwiddie is thankful for the opportunity to see some of the younger players get a chance to play and show how much they’ve been able to learn from mistakes they may have made in previous outings.
It’s giving him something to look forward to in the short term, but at this stage the more important aspect is to look forward to the 2026 season and this will give him and his staff a bit of a running head start in terms of player evaluation.
“It’s going to be great,” Dinwiddie said from a standpoint of assessment, “You’re probably going to bring some of these guys to camp, so this gives us a head start on next year and helps us in free agency. We might see some young guys we really feel comfortable with – obviously we’re going to bring competition to camp – with some guys you feel could be starters and that might change our mindset or how we approach free agency.”
While Dinwiddie, Clemons, and company would rather be preparing for two games with playoff implications, that’s not the case. But the group will take the opportunity to try to find a silver lining in a season that hasn’t provided as many as hoped.