After an off-season which saw a massive retool of the roster by general manager Ed Hervey, the Edmonton Elks will look to put forth a good impression on Friday night when they welcome the B.C. Lions to Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium.
The Elks lost their first pre-season game 31-4 to the Stampeders in Calgary last Saturday. It was a young lineup who played in Calgary. On Friday, the Elks will roll out their starters led by fourth-year quarterback Tre Ford who signed a three-year contract extension in December.
Ford is coming off a 2024 CFL campaign where he would play in eight games — starting in six of them, passing for 1,137 yards and throwing for 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. Ford would also rush for over 200 yards, recording nine yards per carry.
Ford is now the team’s starting quarterback and says he is ready to embrace the pressure of that role.
“It does feel like a little bit of pressure with the change, but at the same time, football is my job,” Ford said.
“I come in here every day and my job is to learn. That’s my job — I’m here to learn, and I’m going to go out and try to execute on the field.”
Tre Ford speaks at news conference after re-signing with the Elks
The coaching staff will be watching several battles for positions. The kicking game saw change in the final week of training camp with the release of Canadian Campbell Fair and the signing of American Brayden Narveson, who has seven NFL games under his belt with the Green Bay Packers and the Tennessee Titans.
Narveson will compete with Elks 2024 draft pick Vincent Blanchard for the place-kicker role.
The Elks are looking for their fifth receiver and both American Arkell Smith and Canadian Zach Mathis are competing for the job. The Elks will also be looking at their depth along the offensive and defensive lines along with a couple of starting spots in the secondary.
Two projected starters won’t play on Friday as defensive lineman Jarret Brinkman and receiver Alex Hollins are nursing lower-body injuries.
The following are the projected offensive and defensive starters for the Elks:
Offence
Quarterback: Tre Ford
Running back: Justin Rankin (Fullback: Tanner Green)
Offensive line: Martez Ivey, Mark Korte, David Beard, Gregor MacKellar, Brett Boyko
Receivers: Steven Dunbar, Kurleigh Gittens Jr., Arkell Smith, Kaion Julien-Grant, Zach Mathis
Defence
Defensive line: Brandon Barlow, Tomari Fox, Jake Ceresna, Robbie Smith
Linebackers: Nick Anderson, Nyles Morgan, Kordell Jackson
Defensive backs: Devodric Bynum, Manny Rugamba, Royce Metchie, Kobe Williams, Tyrell Ford
You can hear Friday’s pre-season finale between the Elks and Lions on 880 CHED starting with Countdown to Kickoff with Courtney Theriault at 6 p.m. The opening kickoff from Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium will be at 7:30 p.m. with Morley Scott and Dave Campbell calling all of the live action. Hear analysis from former Edmonton Football Team offensive lineman and two-time Grey Cup champion Blake Dermott. Former EE offensive lineman Gord Hinse will provide analysis from the Elks sidelines.