Cold Tub Chronicles: Part 2.
Earlier this week, the dousing of Saskatchewan Roughriders Head Coach Corey Mace in a liquid therapy device was documented on Riderville.com.
Even before that — in advance of water displacement that followed Saturday’s 29-16 home-field victory over the Ottawa REDBLACKS — another prominent member of the Green and White had taken a bath.
An assortment of beefy teammates picked up 6-foot-6, 285-pound defensive lineman Anthony Lanier II — no easy feat — and kindly deposited him in the water.
The reason?
“Well,” Lanier II began on Wednesday, “the offensive line has this funny way of showing their dominance, so they have violations.
“We do a run after practice and, as they were running, I mooed as if they were cows. That was my consequence — getting set up to be thrown in the cold tub.”
Thanks to the bovine reference, I have granted myself permission to shamelessly milk this angle.
Ordinarily, Lanier II is recognized as someone who deposits others where they do not wish to be.
Quarterbacks, for example, often end up losing their footing due to the towering defensive lineman’s pass-rushing prowess.
(The list of toppled quarterbacks includes New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees, who was felled for Lanier II’s first NFL sack — with Washington in 2017.)
Lanier II’s skills were on display once again this past weekend, when he returned to the Roughriders’ lineup after missing seven games with a knee injury.
“It was wonderful,” he said. “God has blessed me with another chance to be out on the field with my brothers and it’s amazing.”
Lanier II was a starting defensive tackle for the Roughriders’ first four games of the 2024 season. He moved to end for the next two games before shifting back to the interior of the defensive line.
After being activated from the six-game injured list, he started at end on Saturday.
There is, it seems, no end to his versatility.
“He’s just such a disruptive human,” Head Coach Corey Mace said.
“Us asking him to play defensive tackle and defensive end, he has done that in his career before — not so much within the same year.
“To have the utility to be able to do that, specifically if you have injuries up front at any position, (Lanier II’s flexibility) can get you out of it.
“I’ve talked to many people across the league about the guy. Some coaches are nervous about him when he’s a 3 technique (defensive tackle) and others are more nervous when he’s out there (at the end).
“We’re happy that he’s out there on game days playing for us.”
Lanier, for his part, is delighted to be back in the lineup.
“It changes your perspective all the way around, because you realize how much you really love it,” he said.
“It becomes a part of your identity. It’s not the full thing, but it makes you realize how much football really means to you.”
His presence was not only felt, but heard.
Lanier II let loose with his trademark barking at various junctures in Saturday’s game.
“I think they were a little surprised,” he said of the REDBLACKS, “because I took it up a couple of octaves.
“I’m always barking and keeping the energy happening.
“I was barking at everybody. It was like, ‘Hey, don’t forget. I’m back!’ ”
The question remains: Will the Roughriders’ offensive linemen, having deposited Lanier II in the cold tub, experience his bite as well as his bark?
“I always have my payback,” he vowed. “It’s better left unsaid.
“But they do have to go against me every day in practice, so that’s payback enough.”
