The Heat is on for three former Rider Quarterbacks

As the Barrett Shivers era began in Riderville in 2000 and 2001 three very promising young quarterbacks with impressive stats galore joined the team and the feeling was that one and maybe two were surefire winners who would help turn the fortunes of the team around.

The exciting and charismatic Henry Burris a Temple University graduate who had toiled with the Stampeders as a backup to Jeff Garcia and Dave Dickenson became a free agent and joined the Saskatchewan squad for the 2000 season and thrilled everyone with his accuracy ,laser like arm strength and overall leadership ability completing 308 of 576 attempts for 4647 yards for a 53.5 passing percentage and twenty five touchdown passes.He appeared to be the Riders quarterback of the future.but alas Henry had a desire to play with the big boys in the NFL and left Saskatchewan high and dry going into the 2001 season when he signed with Green Bay in the off season.

He returned to the Wheat Province in late 2003 but was very ineffective and it was not till the 2004 season that Rider fans saw what he was really made of as he led the team to the Western Final in BC before losing a heart breaker to the Leos. In the regular season he completed 322 of 544 attempts for 4267 yards and twenty three touchdowns and was intercepted 18 times.

Once again in the off season Burris broke Rider fans hearts by taking advantage of his free agent status and joined the Calgary Stampeders and although his stats have been impressive in Cowtown he has not directed the Cowboys to the promised land throwing a couple of key interceptions against the hated Edmonton Eskimos in the 2005 Western Final which cost Calgary the game at home and last year he lost to the Riders at home in the Western Semi Final when he again threw a couple of untimely interceptions.Henry has thrown 78 interceptions in total in his CFL career but the appalling statistic is that he thrown 30 of them in the last two years as a Stampeder and so many are at a critical juncture of the game.

The new Calgary ownership group laid out the Red carpet in its full glory in February of 2005 when they initially signed Burris giving him a reported three year contract at around 350 K per year plus signing bonus dollars and a beautiful mountain view condo.To say the least the Stampeder hierarchy are not happy with Henry,s performance to date in lieu of the dollars he is being paid and to say that 2007 is a make or break year for smilin Hank is an understatement.

To the East in Winnipeg the ever improving Bombers feel that the key to their 2007 season will be whether their number one man behind the center Kevin Glenn can finally put it all together and be consistent and remain healthy.Glenn came on the Saskatchewan scene in 2001 after a stellar career at Illinois State and was a backup for most of his Saskatchewan stay but did show enough when he had a chance to play that when the Blue and Gold had a chance to grab him from Toronto who the Riders had traded him to in the winter of 2004 waisted little time in acquiring him and anointed him as their starter.

He has had flashes of excellence in Bomberville to date but his propensity for injuries and inconsistencies still have the Bomber brass shaking their heads and wondering if they made the right move back in February of 2004.His best season as a Bomber was 2005 when he completed 231 of 403 attempts for 3571 yards and 27 touchdowns. To say the least as Kevin starts his fourth year in the Manitoba Capital as the number one QB on the depth chart anything less than a year where he leads the Manitobans to the Eastern Final would be deemed intolerable.

Then there is the case of Ian [Rocky] Butler out of that Football factory Hofstra University who joined the Green White and Black in 2002 after a sensational career at that school.Rocky stood an impressive '6' 204 lbs and he two had a rocket for an arm and had the ability to scramble effectively when the situation warranted it .However his talent seemed waisted here and he saw very little action as he was always the third man on the QB depth chart but on any occasion where he had a chance to play he displayed the ability to be a starter in this league none more so than when he threw for over six hundred yards and five TD passes in back to back Rider trouncings of Hamiltom last year which prompted the Tabbies to trade for him in the off season with a view to him giving their incumbent Jason Mass a run for the number one pivot position.,anything less than that as the Hamilton media indicate and Rocky will be toast.

So there you have it three guys who came to the Wheat Province supposedly dripping with talent , confidence and the ability to read defences now have their collective backs against the wall with no tomorrow.in site if they fail.to deliver big this season.