THE CANADIAN PRESS
VANCOUVER — Having won a Grey Cup championship with the Montreal Alouettes has mellowed Davis Sanchez some.
Not so much that the B.C. Lions cornerback won’t be looking to do a little rear-end alignment when he faces his old team in a CFL game Friday night at Empire Field.
"Because we have won a championship together I think I have a special bond with those guys," Sanchez said Thursday. "It’s pro sports and we all try to make a living.
"That’s my job tomorrow to try and kick their asses. I’ll do whatever I have to do and try and get a win for my team."
Sanchez, a native of North Delta, B.C., played seven of his previous nine CFL seasons with Montreal. He was part of the Alouettes team that sipped champagne from the Grey Cup in November.
Over the winter Sanchez left the Als and signed with the Lions. Part of the reason for the move was he wanted to come home to be close to his family, especially his mother Linda who has twice beaten cancer in the last four years.
"She’s got a clean bill of health," Sanchez said with a wide grin.
Returning home has been "a big life change" but something Sanchez is enjoying. He recently asked longtime girlfriend Veronica Bailey to marry him.
Stepping on the field against his old friends will be different.
"It’s going to be weird to play against the guys I have played with for so long," said Sanchez. "I miss my guys in Montreal and that’s been my team forever.
"I will try to be focused on the game and not worry about that stuff. I’d like to say I won’t laugh and mess with them, but I probably will."
Veteran Montreal slotback Ben Cahoon said it will be mind over muscle when he lines up against Sanchez.
"We have a good respect for him," said Cahoon, who has 10 catches and 94 yards in the Als’ first two games this season.
"We have a good familiarity with him as he does with us. It will be kind of a chess match."
B.C. and Montreal both have 1-1 records but bring different mental attitudes into the game.
The Lions were pounded 37-18 in last weekend’s first regular season game at Empire Field. The B.C. defence was dissected and the offensive line allowed four sacks.
Montreal rallied for 15 points in the fourth quarter for a 33-23 win over Edmonton on Sunday.
It will be a battered group of Lions who face the defending Grey Cup champions.
Quarterback Casey Printers left last week’s game in the first half after suffering a quadricep strain when sacked. He will start against the Als.
Another former Alouette, defensive lineman Keron Williams, will miss the game with a groin injury. Linebacker Anton McKenzie is out with a sprained ankle while slotback Paris Jackson will play on a sore knee.
Despite the injuries, Printers said the Lions won’t be intimidated.
"It’s another team we have to play," he said. "They are a damn good football team we have to be prepared for."
Lions’ slotback Geroy Simon refused to call the game a must-win.
"I don’t think we need to put too much pressure on the game where we say it’s a must-win," said Simon, who had two big touchdown catches in last week’s loss. "We just need to go out and win because we want to be 2-1.
"They are a very good team. We want to come out and play well because if not, it could get ugly."
During Thursday’s new conference the Lions unveiled their 1970’s retro uniforms. They have orange jerseys and grey pants. The helmets are black with a mountain lion logo.
The Lions will wear the uniforms three times this season, beginning with their Aug. 7 home game against Calgary.
At five-foot-nine and 188 pounds, Sanchez isn’t the biggest Lion in the secondary and at 35 he’s far from the youngest.
That doesn’t mean the Als will be overlooking him.
"He’s smart," said Cahoon. "He’s a cerebral player.
"He knows his limitations. He plays in a position where he takes advantage of what he does well. He eliminates the things he doesn’t do well. That experience more than anything is what makes him good."
Sanchez has practised against the Montreal receivers and knows their tendencies. But Alouette wide receiver Kerry Watkins said that familiarity cuts both ways.
"It’s a balanced playing field," said Watkins, who has eight catches for 158 yards and three touchdowns this season.
"We both know everything about each other. It becomes more mental than physical. You study a guy so much you know his weaknesses, you know his strengths."
The Alouettes stayed the week in Edmonton instead of making two flights across the country.
Cahoon said the wisdom of that decision will be tested.
"It’s a short week which presents a ton of challenges," he said. "We’re not sleeping in our beds and we’re eating restaurant food.
"It’s a big question. Hopefully we will be adjusted to the time change."
Whether it’s the time change or playing indoor at B.C. Place Stadium, the Lions have enjoyed a huge home-field advantage over Montreal.
The Als’ last win in Vancouver came in 2000. They are hoping that nine-game losing streak will end playing outdoors at the temporary stadium the Lions are using while a new, retractable roof is being installed at B.C. Place.
"We are going to come in and play our best football and bring everything we have," said Watkins. "We know they are going to bring everything they have.
"We’re not concerned about what happened in the past. All that matters is what happens Friday. That is all we are concerned about."
