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THE CANADIAN PRESS \/ CFL<\/p>\n
Hamilton Tiger-Cats general manager Ted Goveia.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a pillar in the organization that helped us get to where we wanted to get to,\u201d said Bombers head coach Mike O\u2019Shea after Wednesday\u2019s closed practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d turn on the tape to watch U Sports players and invariably I\u2019d see Ted on the sideline walking up and down. And that always made me feel good that when he gave us information, there was always going to be a nugget that somebody else didn\u2019t have because he was going to be right there within earshot when a guy made a play or didn\u2019t make a play and he was going to hear the conversation that the kid had with his coach or teammates.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s still Ted\u2019s fingerprints all over our roster.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bombers (6-6) will reunite with Goveia in Hamilton on Friday night (6 p.m. CT kickoff) to take on the Tigers-Cats (7-5). The Tabbies have labelled it the \u201cTeam Ted Game\u201d as they\u2019re planning to celebrate his five decades of contributions to Canadian football, while also showing support for Goveia who was diagnosed with a serious form of cancer in the spring.<\/p>\n
The Ticats, as well as others across the league, have been sporting \u201cTeam Ted\u201d shirts all season.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wish you\u2019d never have to have a game like this but it\u2019s a great tribute,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
\u201cTed means a lot to Canadian football. He\u2019s donated time, money and effort to things we don\u2019t even know to make sure Canadian kids have opportunities. Ted\u2019s always been wired that way, and it didn\u2019t matter what level\u2026 He takes his job so seriously and understands that getting kids opportunities and opening doors for kids that might\u2019ve been closed is pretty powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n
Goveia opened one of those doors for centre Chris Kolankowski. The offensive lineman\u2019s career was hanging on by a thread when the Toronto Argonauts released him prior to training camp in 2019. It got to a point where those close to him advised that it might be time to hang up the pads as there wasn\u2019t a single team that had reached out to obtain his services. Months went by until Kolankowski got a call from Goveia urging him to drive down to Cincinnati from his home in Etobicoke, Ont., to show the Bombers what he could do at a free agent camp.<\/p>\n
The rest, as they say, is history.<\/p>\n
Kolankowski made 15 starts for an injured Michael Couture in 2022 before becoming the Blue and Gold\u2019s full-time starter in 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe won\u2019t take the credit, but Ted means a lot to me. I might get emotional thinking about it,\u201d admitted Kolankowski.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat connection we had with him saying, \u201cHey, you should come to this workout\u2019 is pretty much the only reason why I\u2019m here. I was a sixth man, a PR (practice roster) guy in Toronto. I started in Winnipeg as a PR guy, but it was an opportunity to keep working. But honestly at that moment, I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d still be playing at 33. I was hoping to get a little more time in the league, but the way its gone has been amazing and Ted\u2019s the one that gave me that opportunity. My career might\u2019ve been dead in the water if it wasn\u2019t for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are others in the locker room with similar stories.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t MIKE DEAL \/ FREE PRESS files<\/p>\n Blue Bombers centre Chris Kolankowski credits Ticats\u2019 GM Ted Goveia with reviving his career after Kolankowski was released by the Toronto Argonauts.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of guys on this team that have the same feeling that I have,\u201d said Kolankowski.<\/p>\n \u201cMe and another player the other day I was like \u2018Oh, are you a Ted guy?\u2019 And he was like \u2018Yeah, I was a Ted guy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Goveia wasted no time bringing some of his guys to Hamilton with him. The Ticats feature 15 former Bombers on the roster, with notable names such as receivers Kenny Lawler and Drew Wolitarsky, offensive lineman Liam Dobson, running back Johnny Augustine, defensive lineman Miles Fox, and linebacker Brian Cole II being among those who signed this past off-season.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got a lot of ex-teammates over there, so it\u2019ll be a cool moment before the game. But once the ball is snapped, all that goes away,\u201d said Kolankowski.<\/p>\n \u201cBut in pregame, post-game, whenever it happens, I hope I get a chance to shake Ted\u2019s hand and give him a hug. It\u2019s nice to go back there, that\u2019s been something in the back of our mind to go see Ted.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t COLLAROS UPDATE<\/p>\n Quarterback Zach Collaros (head) is officially ruled out for Friday night. Chris Streveler will start for the Bombers.<\/p>\n O\u2019Shea was asked if Collaros \u2014 who was in the locker room with teammates and working out in the weight room on Wednesday \u2014 will play again this season.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I would assume so,\u201d was O\u2019Shea\u2019s response.<\/p>\n taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Taylor Allen Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree\/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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