CATES MOSTLY TO START SEASON

Saskatchewan Roughriders' Wes Cates

REGINA — A faction of the Saskatchewan Roughriders' fan base is mad about Hugh.

The good name of Hugh Charles has been strenuously advanced by people who advocate the relegation of Wes Cates — the Roughriders' featured tailback for the past three CFL seasons.
Charles is younger, faster, quicker and flashier. At this stage, however, he is not demonstrably superior to Cates — leading head coach Ken Miller to lean toward the incumbent as the starter for Thursday's regular-season opener against the visiting Montreal Alouettes.

"My gut instinct is that it will probably be Wes in this particular game because, in order to replace someone, somebody has to demonstrate that they're significantly better, not just the same or as good,'' Miller said after the team practised Monday.

Miller made that comment after Cates fielded questions about his status from a merry triumvirate of media types, consisting of this scribbler, CKRM's Rod Pedersen and CBC's Dean Gutheil.

Early in the yak session, it became evident that Cates is tired of speculation about whether he is still a front-line tailback. Given that such chatter is in the ether, one would suspect that Cates has a little extra to prove in the opener.

"It seems like from the way people talk that, no matter what I do, I'm going to have something to prove every week,'' Cates responded. "So I'm just going to go out and do my best to prove it and we'll take it from there.

"I can only do what the coaches ask of me. If it's blocking, I'm going to do that. If it's running with the ball, I'm going to do that. If it's receiving, I'm going to do that. We'll just let Thursday come and see how it plays out, and you guys can talk good or bad about me based on how you feel.''

At that point, I attempted to recall any recent media story in which Cates was disparaged. There have been reports of the Cates/Charles competition, but that is an unavoidable storyline when the returning starter does not receive an unequivocal endorsement from the coach. Failing to pinpoint an example of a critical story, I asked Cates if we had really talked badly about him.

"I wouldn't say you talked bad about me, but the speculation's in the air,'' the 6-foot-0, 215-pounder responded. "There's good and bad talk. You just take it with a grain of salt. I appreciate the people who talk good about me, and 'whatever' to the people who talk bad about me. That's as far as it goes.''

Gutheil followed up by inquiring as to the origin of the speculation.

"You guys know,'' said Cates, 30. "You guys write this stuff. It hasn't come out of my mouth, and I really don't read the papers and the blogs. I just get third-person hearsay — Cates is this or that, or washed up, or he shouldn't be the starter. Whatever the case may be, I'm not worried about it. I'm just out here to be the best human being and the best football player I can be.''

Cates has been one of the best football players on the Roughriders since he joined the team in 2007. As a first-year Roughrider, he helped the Green and White win the Grey Cup. He was named the team's most outstanding player the following year before his statistics declined in 2009. Last year, Saskatchewan was the only CFL team without a 1,000-yard rusher. He would have reached that milestone, however, if not for shoulder surgery that forced him to miss the first two regular-season games.

The end of the season provides a fairer appraisal of Cates. In the 2009 Grey Cup against Montreal, he rushed 13 times for 91 yards, caught two passes for 34 yards (including a 26-yarder over the middle) and blocked with typical effectiveness. If not for a key block by Cates, a 16-yard touchdown run by Darian Durant is perhaps a six-yard gain.

The latter play is most illustrative of Cates. His varied contributions are not always reflected by the statistics. Even when the numbers are flattering — such as the 1,229 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns Cates produced over 15 games in 2008 — the manner in which they are compiled isn't always dazzling.

If you are looking for a 90-yard touchdown run, Cates is not the first choice. But if long-distance runs were the sole measure of a running back, Pete Van Valkenburg and Tommy Reamon would be in the Plaza of Honor.

Wes Cates will be enshrined someday. And he will help his cause in 2010.
rvanstone@leaderpost.canwest.comRead more: