2008 Edmonton Eskimos season

Last updated
2008 Edmonton Eskimos season
General managerDanny Maciocia
Head coach Danny Maciocia
Home field Commonwealth Stadium
Results
Record10–8
Division place4th, West
Playoff finishLost East Final
Team MOP Ricky Ray, QB
Team MOC Kamau Peterson, WR
Team MOR Tristan Jackson, KR/DB
Uniform
CFL EDM Jersey 2008.png

The 2008 Edmonton Eskimos season was the 51st season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 60th overall. The Eskimos finished fourth in the West Division, but made the playoffs because of the "crossover" rule. Edmonton became the first West team to win the East Semi-Final. The Eskimos attempted to win their 14th Grey Cup championship, but they lost the East Final to the Montreal Alouettes.

Contents

Offseason

CFL Draft

In the 2008 CFL Draft, 48 players were chosen from among 752 eligible players [1] from Canadian universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The first two rounds were broadcast on TSN.ca with host Rod Black.

RoundPickPlayerPositionSchool/club team
211 (via Calgary) Greg Wojt OL Central Michigan
319 (via Calgary) Tim St. Pierre LB Saint Mary's
323 (via BC Lions via Winnipeg) Justin Cooper DLManitoba
425 (via Hamilton) Sammy Okpro DB Concordia
426 Jonathan Hood DB St.FX
534 Dante Luciani REC Laurier

Transactions

DateTypeIncomingOutgoingTeam
February 8, 2008Trade Fred Perry (DE)
*2nd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Fernand Kashama (DE)		 Steven Jyles (QB)
2nd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Jonathan St-Pierre (OL)		 Saskatchewan Roughriders
February 13, 2008Trade Brock Ralph (WR) Michael Botterill (LB)
Chris Thompson (LB)		 Hamilton Tiger-Cats
February 15, 2008Trade Jordan Younger (DB) Tyler Ebell (RB)
T. J. Acree (WR)		 Toronto Argonauts
March 20, 2008Trade Rob Pikula (K/P)
3rd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Justin Cooper (DL)		3rd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Justin Shaw (DL) British Columbia Lions
April 30, 2008Trade John Comiskey (OL)
Kevin Challenger (WR)
2nd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Greg Wojt (OL)
3rd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Tim St. Pierre (OL)		1st-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Dimitri Tsoumpas (OL)
2nd-round pick in 2008 CFL Draft – Fernand Kashama (DE)		 Calgary Stampeders
May 27, 2008 [2] Trade Duncan O'Mahony (P)4th-round pick in 2009 CFL Draft – Spencer Armstrong (WR)Calgary Stampeders
May 31, 2008Trade Noel Prefontaine (K/P)**1st-round pick in 2009 CFL Draft – James Yurichuk (LB)
2nd-round pick in 2010 CFL Draft – Grant Shaw (DB/K)		Toronto Argonauts

Preseason

Schedule

#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTAttendanceRecordPts
AJune 13Edmonton Eskimos14–39 Calgary Stampeders 27,5800–10
BJune 19 Saskatchewan Roughriders 7–37Edmonton Eskimos33,5081–12

Regular season

Roster

2008 Edmonton Eskimos roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Receivers

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Inactive list

Practice roster

Italics indicate import player.
Roster updated 2008-10-11
Depth Chart • Transactions
46 active, 10 inactive, 7 PS.

Season standings

West Division
TeamGPWLTPFPAPts
Calgary Stampeders 18135059542026 Details
Saskatchewan Roughriders 18126050047124 Details
BC Lions 18117055947922 Details
Edmonton Eskimos 18108051253620 Details

Season schedule

WeekDateVisitorScoreHomeOTAttendanceRecordPts
1June 28Edmonton Eskimos13–34 Saskatchewan Roughriders 28,8000–1–00
2July 3 Calgary Stampeders 31–34Edmonton Eskimos32,7061–1–02
3July 10 Toronto Argonauts 28–47Edmonton Eskimos31,7072–1–04
4July 20Edmonton Eskimos31–35 Toronto Argonauts 28,5222–2–04
5July 25Edmonton Eskimos19–13 Hamilton Tiger-Cats 21,4023–2–06
6July 31 BC Lions 24–35Edmonton Eskimos35,0084–2–08
7August 8Edmonton Eskimos34–40 BC Lions 30,8634–3–08
8Bye4–3–08
9August 21 Saskatchewan Roughriders 10–27Edmonton Eskimos48,8085–3–010
10September 1Edmonton Eskimos37–16 Calgary Stampeders 35,6506–3–012
11September 5 Calgary Stampeders 38–33Edmonton Eskimos46,0146–4–012
12September 13 Hamilton Tiger-Cats 33–38Edmonton Eskimos37,5007–4–014
13September 21Edmonton Eskimos4–40 Montreal Alouettes 20,2027–5–014
14September 26Edmonton Eskimos23–30 Winnipeg Blue Bombers 29,7947–6–014
15October 4 Winnipeg Blue Bombers 22–36Edmonton Eskimos40,4538–6–016
16October 10Edmonton Eskimos27–20 BC Lions 34,7789–6–018
17October 17 BC Lions 43–28Edmonton Eskimos34,3429–7–018
18October 25Edmonton Eskimos9–55 Saskatchewan Roughriders 30,9459–8–018
19October 31 Montreal Alouettes 14–37Edmonton Eskimos29,91110–8–020

Total attendance: 336,449
Average attendance: 37,383 (62.8%)

Ron Lancaster

On Thursday, September 18, Ron Lancaster, 69, died from an apparent heart attack, less than two months after being diagnosed with lung cancer. [3] Despite working in television, Lancaster returned to football as the Eskimos' head coach in 1991. [4] During his seven-season tenure as Edmonton's head coach, the Eskimos won the 1993 Grey Cup. [4] Lancaster resigned as the Eskimos' head coach after the 1997 season to become the Hamilton Tiger-Cats' head coach and director of football operations.

Player stats

= Indicates team leader

Passing

PlayerGPAttComp %YdsLGTDsINTRating
Ricky Ray (QB)1860542269.85,661662617101.8
Jason Maas (QB)3442659.1340800174.1
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)111100.0191900158.3
Stefan LeFors (QB)174125.0990171.9

[5]

Rushing

PlayerGPAttYdsLGAvg.TDFumbles
A. J. Harris (RB)1199557365.661
Calvin McCarty (RB)1888490345.644
Ricky Ray (QB)1875258153.4513
Ronald McClendon (RB)21364194.910
Damien Anderson (RB)21757163.401
Jason Maas (QB)33301610.001
Mathieu Bertrand (FB)17132842.240
Tristan Jackson (CB)17218139.003
Kamau Peterson (SB)181131313.000
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)171101010.000
Kelly Campbell (WR)151666.000
Stefan LeFors (QB)11222.000
Kamau Peterson (SB)180000.003
Tyler Clutts (DE)180000.001
Jason Goss (HB)170000.003
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)170000.003
Kelly Campbell (WR)150000.003
Andrew Nowacki (WR)130000.001

[6]

Receiving

PlayerGPNo.YdsAvg.LGTD
Kamau Peterson (SB)181011,31513.0664
Kelly Campbell (WR)15541,22322.6537
Fred Stamps (SB)145075115.0466
Calvin McCarty (RB)18705838.3271
A. J. Harris (RB)113742211.4390
Maurice Mann (SB)73142013.5444
Andrew Nowacki (WR)132836913.2312
Jason Tucker (WR)51423516.8362
Kevin Challenger (WR)5816620.8800
Brock Ralph (WR)61316412.6460
Mathieu Bertrand (FB)17221617.3290
Greg Prator (WR)379613.7270
Ronald McClendon (RB)28678.4140
Damien Anderson (RB)27578.1150

[7]

Defence

PlayerGPTKLSTTKDSacksIntsInt YdsInt LGInt TDFumb R.Fumb YdsFumb LGFumb TDFumb F.
Agustin Barrenechea (LB)186821321612000000
Siddeeq Shabazz (LB)1863603144013302
Kenny Onatolu (LB)1460833000023301
Jason Goss (HB)175206151829423553400
Jordan Younger (CB)1552080155000000
Jonté Buhl (CB/HB)164944144627000000
Shannon Garrett (DB)18451411303001252510
Keith Williams (DB)636110199010001
Lenny Williams (HB)93521022316000003
Dario Romero (DT)1630006000010001
Jim Davis (DE)1426036000000001
Montez Murphy (DE)1224043000000000
Brandon Guillory (DE)1321026000000000
Tyler Clutts (DE)18211620000012200
Fred Perry (DE)717011000010001
Eric Taylor (DT)617011000010000
Bradley Robinson (DB)71412035230000000
Tristan Jackson (CB)1711140212389100001
Joe Anoa'i (DT)39000000000001
Scott Coe (LB)126110000000000
Darrell Robertson (LB)26010000000000
Trey Young (LB)25000100000001
Kamau Peterson (SB)184000000000000
Wale Dada (CB)34100000000000
Calvin Armstrong (OG)174000000000000
A. J. Harris (RB)114000000000000
Calvin McCarty (RB)1831100000000000
Patrick Kabongo (OG)182000000000000
Ricky Ray (QB)182000000000000
John Comiskey (OG)182000000000000
Patrick Kabongo (OG)182000000000000
Kelly Campbell (WR)152000000000000
Brock Ralph (WR)62000000000000
Justin Cooper (DE)1811200000000000
Pierre-Luc Yao (RB)181800000000000
Mathieu Bertrand (FB)1712100000000000
Andrew Nowacki (WR)131100000000000
Fred Stamps (SB)141000000000000
Dan Comiskey (C)81000000000000
Maurice Mann (SB)71000000000000
Jason Tucker (WR)51000000000000
Jason Maas (QB)31000000000000
Chris Ciezki (FB)1802400000024401
Adrian Baird (DE)1801400000000002
Derrick Doggett (LB)40700000000000
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)170500000000000
Taylor Inglis (LS)180400000000000
Tim St. Pierre (LB)180300000000000
Mike Maurer (FB)20300000000000
J. R. LaRose (DB)80210000000000
Kevin Challenger (WR)180100000000000

[8]

Kickoffs

PlayerGPKO Att.YdsKO Avg.LGSingles
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)17774,63660.2730
Derek Schiavone (K/P)1525851.6530

Kicking

PlayerGPFGFG Att.FG%LGSGXPXP Att.XP%PTS
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)17354676.15474848100.0160
Derek Schiavone (K/P)133100.028044100.013
Calvin McCarty (RB)18010.000000.01

[9]

Punting

PlayerGPPuntsYdsAvg.SGLG
Noel Prefontaine (K/P)171034,83146.91175
Derek Schiavone (K/P)1310936.3041

[10]

Returning

PlayerGPK. Ret.KR YdsKR Avg.KR TDKR LGP. Ret.PR YdsPR Avg.PR TDPR LGMFG Ret.MFG YdsMFG Avg.MFG LGMFG TD
Tristan Jackson (CB)173583924.01947980910.2267514228.4640
Fred Stamps (SB)141429721.2049000.000000.000
Kelly Campbell (WR)151329122.4051100.000000.000
Tyler Clutts (DE)186376.2012000.000000.000
Lenny Williams (HB)949924.8039000.000000.000
Bradley Robinson (DB)745914.80246335.509000.000
Damien Anderson (RB)235618.7020000.000000.000
Mathieu Bertrand (FB)1733411.3016000.000000.000
Jason Goss (HB)17000.000155.005000.000

[11]

Awards and records

All-Star selections

[12]

Milestones

Playoffs

The Eskimos advanced to the East Division playoffs as "crossover" being that they had a better record than Toronto. By defeating Winnipeg, Edmonton became the first crossover team from the West to win an Eastern semi-final.

WeekDateVisitorScoreHomeOTAttendance
Division Semi-FinalNov 8Edmonton Eskimos29–21Winnipeg Blue Bombers27,493
Division FinalNov 15Edmonton Eskimos26–36Montreal Alouettes38,132

East semi-final

Date and time: Saturday, November 8, 12:00 PM Central Standard Time
Venue: Canad Inns Stadium, Winnipeg, Manitoba

TeamQ1Q2Q3Q4Total
Edmonton Eskimos 3188029
Winnipeg Blue Bombers 870621

East final

Date and time: Saturday, November 15, 1:00 PM Eastern Standard Time
Venue: Olympic Stadium, Montreal, Quebec

TeamQ1Q2Q3Q4Total
Edmonton Eskimos 7601326
Montreal Alouettes 31610736

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References

  1. ↑ "Draft List for Year 2008" (PDF). Canadian Football League. 2008-01-28. Retrieved May 6, 2008.[ permanent dead link ]
  2. ↑ Kicked to the curb [usurped]
  3. ↑ "CFL fans remember Ron Lancaster". CBC News. September 19, 2008. Archived from the original on September 23, 2008. Retrieved September 23, 2008.
  4. 1 2 "CFL legend Ron Lancaster dies at 69". Archived from the original on 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
  5. 1 2 "CFL.ca". Archived from the original on 2009-03-18. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
  6. ↑ "Rushing 2008 | Statistics | CFL.ca | Official Site of the Canadian Football League". Archived from the original on 2015-10-22. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
  7. ↑ "Receiving 2008 | Statistics | CFL.ca | Official Site of the Canadian Football League". Archived from the original on 2015-10-20. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
  8. ↑ "CFL Statistics – Sportsnet.ca". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  9. ↑ "CFL Statistics - Sportsnet.ca". Archived from the original on 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  10. ↑ "CFL Statistics - Sportsnet.ca". Archived from the original on 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  11. ↑ "CFL Statistics – Sportsnet.ca". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  12. ↑ "CFL.ca - 2008 East & West Division All-Stars". Archived from the original on 2008-12-06. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
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