Brady Oliveira Highlights CFL Awards with Two Wins Including MOP
Thursday night saw the final presentation of the top awards in the CFL, and one Canadian stole the show.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers running back Brady Oliveira was the big winner of the night, winning Most Outstanding Canadian and Most Outstanding Player. Oliveira finished as the league's leading rusher with 1,353 yards and caught for 476 receiving yards.
“Even having my name mentioned with those legends is bizarre to me. It’s a little bizarre but it’s an incredible honour,” Oliveira said after winning MOP. “To be up here with two of the most prestigious awards in this league that I’ve been watching since I was a kid…it’s awesome."
One of the other big winners of the night was Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive Rolan Milligan Jr. who unsurprisingly won the Most Outstanding Defensive Player award. Milligan led the CFL in interceptions with eight.
The Toronto Argonauts had a good showing with two of their players winning individual awards. Offensive lineman Ryan Hunter won Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman and returner Janarion Grant won Most Outstanding Special Teams Player. Hunter started 17 games, playing guard and tackle. Grant led the CFL in kickoff return yards (1,000), punt return yards (989) and total returns for touchdowns (four).
One bright spot to the Edmonton Elks season came with the emergence of rookie linebacker Nick Anderson who won Most Outstanding Rookie. Anderson dominated on defense, leading the league in total tackles with 116.
Despite a disappointing end to the season, Montreal Alouettes head coach Jason Maas still won Coach of the Year in the CFL. Maas led the Alouettes to a league-best 12-5-1 record and a home East Final.
The CFL season ends Sunday night as the Toronto Argonauts face the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
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