OTTAWA — Tyler Crapigna has enjoyed his homecoming.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders’ kicker is from Nepean — a one-time suburb of the nation’s capital that now is part of Ottawa — so he has savoured the CFL team’s weeklong visit to the region.
“It’s always nice to see friends and family,” Crapigna said after Wednesday’s practice at MNP Park on the campus of Carleton University. “When we’re here, a bunch of people come to the game and stay afterwards.
“This year, we had the two bye weeks early in the year. To come here now, it’s not technically a bye week, but it kind of is for me. To be back in familiar surroundings is like hitting the recharge button and I can go from there. It feels great to be back.”
Crapigna played at Nepean’s St. Paul High School before attending McMaster University in Hamilton. He was selected by the Calgary Stampeders in the fifth round (40th overall) of the 2014 CFL draft, but completed his fifth season of university eligibility that season.
The Roughriders acquired Crapigna in October of 2015 and he has handled their kicking duties full-time since last season. That has given him two opportunities to return to the Ottawa area to visit with his parents, brother, grandparents and friends — among others.
“To me, family is everything,” Crapigna said. “It’s the way we’ve grown up, with a real close-knit situation. My grandpa (Aldo Crapigna) came to the game (Friday’s 18-17 victory over the host Ottawa Redblacks) and he’s 87 years old. He braved the cold weather probably better than I did and he was there after the game.
“He probably won’t be able to come to a game in Saskatchewan, so it’s always nice to see them and for them to be able to see me play.”
The Roughriders arrived in Ottawa on Sept. 27, played the Redblacks on Friday and then saw the sights over the weekend. The Roughriders practised Tuesday and Wednesday and will hold a workout Thursday before boarding buses for Toronto, where they’re to play the Argonauts on Saturday.
Crapigna has remained focused on his job, but he also has spent as much time with his family and friends as possible.
“I don’t think I’ve stayed at the Delta (Hotel) that much,” he said with a chuckle. “I’ve been at home, going to family dinners, seeing my grandparents and things like that. It has not been as relaxing as I wanted just because I’ve been everywhere, but it has been fun.”
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Emmanuel Adusei has been back at school this week.
The Roughriders’ rookie two-way lineman played his U Sports football at Carleton, so he returned to familiar territory when Saskatchewan practised at his former home.
“Last year (the Roughriders) were there for a week and I saw them practising, not knowing that I’d be here now as a Roughrider and doing the same thing,” Adusei said recently.
“My ex-teammates are going to be watching practice and my coaches will be there. Now I’m more of a role model being in the pros, so it’s going to be a great feeling.”
Adusei was working on his undergraduate degree in law at Carleton, but he put off his final year of studies to begin his CFL career. The Roughriders selected the 21-year-old product of London, Ont., in the seventh round (57th overall) of the 2017 draft.
“I didn’t think I was going to be in the (scouting) combine or anything, so I was starting to focus a lot on my schooling,” Adusei said. “As soon as I got the email that I was in (the combine), I was like, ‘OK, whoa. Let me focus more on my football right now, finish this year of school and put everything on hold.’
“I talked to my parents about it and they said it was OK — as long as I knew school was No. 1 for them. I had to focus on that.”
The 6-foot-2, 357-pounder actually took two classes during Saskatchewan’s training camp, so he had to return to Carleton to write exams after camp ended. When he was done, he returned to the Roughriders.
And how did the exams go?
“Not as well as I expected,” Adusei said with a grin. “Training camp took a big toll on me. I was (working out) on offence and I’ve never played offence in my life, so I was really focusing on that. It took a big toll on my academics, but it happened.”
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The Argonauts have the CFL’s most potent pass rush, having posted 42 sacks through 14 games.
Their leader in that category is Victor Butler, who had seven sacks through Toronto’s first three games before he got hurt in the team’s fifth game.
After missing six contests due to injury, Butler has returned to the Argos’ lineup — and he has registered six quarterback pressures and one sack over his past three games.
“Early in the season, he was really hot,” Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones said. “He’s working his way back right now, but he has been a guy who has shown he’s got the ability to go get the quarterback.
“(The Argos) lead the league in sacks, so our offensive line has got a big task at hand.”
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Jones is more than a little familiar with Toronto’s defensive co-ordinator.
When Jones was a graduate assistant at Tennessee Tech University, he got a defensive back named Corey Chamblin to attend the school and play for the Golden Eagles.
“I recruited him to Tennessee Tech and then I worked with him,” Jones said of Chamblin, a former Roughriders head coach who joined the Argos this season. “He was our DB coach in Calgary (with the Stamps), so I’ve known him for a long, long time.
“I’ve known him since he was 18,” Jones added with a laugh. “He’s a big spoiled kid. His momma spoiled him when he was young.”
