OverDrive - OverDrive - August 15, 2025 - Hour 2

Episode Date: August 15, 2025

Join Bryan Hayes and Dave Feschuk for hour two of OverDrive! The guys get more into the Rangers-Jays series before being joined by 2025 NBO Champion Vicky Mboko. The guys are then joined by TSN Football Analyst Luke Willson to discuss the Argos playing three home games on the road in 2026.

From managing successful careers to raising families, women today are busier than ever. Thinking about their needs, including their own financial planning, often falls by the wayside. Yet at some point in their lives, 90% of women will have sole responsibility of their finances, whether they're divorced, widowed, or single. It's never too early or too late to start planning for your future financial security. Call Calvin the Money Guy, 416-457 plan, or visit askkelvin.ca.cai. Breaking story from Alpine News Network. Firefighter Finn McHose, that's a nickname, right?

Needed help contending with a blaze of debt. He called Alpine Credits and a superhero was sent his way. Summoning water, she extinguished the fire and consolidated his debt into one low monthly payment. His floors may be wet, but his debt is under control. Own your home, need alone, Alpine Credits can help. Alpine Credits, where homeowners get approved. Fisrael License 12-6-16-Hour 2 Overdrive continues, powered by Fanduel,

bringing you everything from the opening line of the final score. Brian Hayes, Dave Fes, Chuck of the Toronto Star. We've got Vicki and Boko coming up in the next 10 minutes. Likely live from the Dome ahead of the game tonight, throwing out the first pitch, which will be awesome. Friday night, Jays are on fire. The Dome's going to be packed, dome open. Local hero, throwing out the first pitch, you can't beat it.

I was going to say, it might not be like the night that Mike Weezerer. Weir dropped the puck at the old air Canada center. It was after he won. It was in the playoffs, too, wasn't it? Yeah. Or was it just before the playoffs? Just before the playoffs. But what a moment.

That was incredible. Mike still talks about that as one of the great moments of his life. Well, rock in the green jacket. He shows up in the green jacket. Andy Frost was a build up. Oh, yeah. Andy Frost did a great job. And he was laying it on thick that night.

As he had to. Absolutely. And he, Andy understood the magnitude of the moment. Big time. And that place went nuts in a way that it rarely has, man. Like the Leafs haven't gotten it that loud. And certainly weren't getting it that loud at that time. And, man, what a moment.

But, I mean, I think Vickie and Boko is going to get a hell of an ovation tonight. As she should, for sure. And, you know, they're still wrapping up down in Cincinnati, but it's almost go time at the U.S. Open. Yeah. Which, like, New York's got something set up here because they've got the U.S. Open, which they obviously host every year. but in the Ryder Cup later in September.

Yankees and Mets, the Mets are a mess. Oh, like they are a mess. I was watching last night, man. They just look like they never going to win again. Yeah. And that city is completely turning on Juan Soto. Completely turning on them. But they're lucky because like everyone hates Aaron Boone a little bit more.

And the Yankees are a little bit bigger and more important and get a little bit more play. And the Yankees aren't necessarily helping themselves right now either. You know, they're like Cleveland's right. Right behind them. I know. Right behind them. There's no guarantees they even make the playoffs. What a story that would be if the Mets and the Yankees both missed considering how hot their start was.

Exactly. You know? Yeah, no. I mean, there's a lot of people that just are starting to believe the Yankees won't make it. I mean, and there's a lot of reason to believe that they maybe won't. Like, there's a real tailspin, and Judge can't carry him like he was carrying him earlier in the year. Now with this elbow injury and he's not what he was. and, I mean, the weird thing is Stanton's been pretty good.

You know, they've had some decent performances from a lot of their guys, but the pitching has been great, and they're just not, they just don't have any sort of magic going. It's just a, it's been an absolute grind for the Yankees. Well, it is, you know, one of the big topics in baseball the last month or so has been how loud the lockout kind of rumors are and what could be happening in that somewhat infamous, you know, face-to-face meeting with Manfred and Bryce Harper and Philly and Harper

telling him to get the hell out of the clubhouse if he's going to talk about a salary cap and I guess then Max Scherzer said we haven't seen him yet but I'm looking forward to catching up with Rob too and meanwhile like Scherzer likely is done and retired by that point he will not be getting locked out two years from now I don't think he will still be playing but still Scherzer is a pretty passionate guy clearly they're all union guys and they love the players and the association and all that and you know that's it's it's It's deeply rooted in the economics and they sell it as it's best for the fans and it's fair for everybody. But if you look at like baseball right now, the Yankees and the Mets, it's the biggest market in pro sports,

maybe the biggest market in the world in sports in New York. Yankees have a half game lead on Cleveland. Yeah. And the Mets have a half game lead on Cincinnati. So there's a chance the city of New York is punched out of the playoffs collectively by, Cleveland and Cincinnati. The state of Ohio is going to knock New York out. Yeah. And then you get the

Mariners red hot. You got the Jay's red hot. But you got the Cubs in there, the Dodgers in there, the socks in there. Like it's what else do you want if you're baseball? Like I get it's deeper with the economics and there's certain owners that are powerhouse owners and there's other guys who are crying poor and all that kind of stuff. I get it.

And it's not that the league is perfect. But look what's happening. You have the Yankees, the Mets, the Red Sox, the Dodgers, The Cubs, all in playoff spots, are fighting for playoff spots. And then conversely, you have markets like Milwaukee, in Cincinnati, in Cleveland, and Toronto, which is a massive market, but it's Canadian, you know, compared to the Americans, clearly. So it just seems like a beautiful balance.

You got Detroit, Houston, like, look at what's going on in baseball right now. I agree. What a setup. No, like, what a stretch run we're going to have. I mean, there's, yeah, we all know what the salary cap's all about. It's not about parity. No. It never has been.

There's been plenty of parody in baseball. Look at the Tampa Bay Rays have been a great example of parody, how they've been operating on a minuscule budget relatively and always finding ways to become relevant, right? And maybe a little less so this year, but they've had great, great years. And it's the money. But protecting the owners.

The owners protecting themselves from each other. It's obviously about the owners having cost certainty, and it's about the owners looking at the other sports and envying what the NFL's built with a salary cap, what the NBA is built with a harder and harder salary cap that has suddenly really changed the economics of basketball and what Gary Betman has done with the hardest of all the salary caps where player salaries have been so suppressed.

It's kind of laughable how little NHL players make compared to their brethren in the other three major sports. That's what it is. It's about the baseball owners looking at the other leagues and saying, why can't we have that? Right. And a lot of them are crossover owners, right? that own in other leagues. And they're like, I can see the books.

Like the guy in Toronto is a great example. He's got access to every book possible outside of the NFL. Benway Group in Boston. They own the Red Stucks. They own the penguins. They know everything. They know the way it works in these other sports and how they benefit maybe from that salary cap.

And yeah, like I get it. I understand where the owners are possibly coming from. It's just it's somewhat disappointing that there is this kind of doomsday looming, which again, it's still a couple years away. but I don't think you could pencil a better scenario. There's no, maybe you'd want one team to look, you know, be chasing 116 wins or something like that. Like maybe you'd want that and who knows?

Maybe the Brewers just never lose again and they actually do that. But in reality, you've got the best of every possible world. You've got New York, L.A., Boston, Chicago. Those are your biggest markets in terms of sports and in terms of, you know, legacy teams. and then like I just said, you've got Cleveland, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, Toronto, Detroit.

Detroit, you got everyone else. I mean, it's just a great setup right now. The Jays, you know, they've got Milwaukee coming to town later this month. That's possibly a preview of the World Series. Could be? Like we could have a Blue Jays Brewers World Series. And that would be a beautiful thing up here. I don't know how everyone in the States would feel, but who cares?

nobody cares nobody wouldn't no it's but I mean hey I mean if the Dodgers don't snap out or whatever's ailing them I mean a lot of pitching injuries and and a lot of other woe down in Chavez Ravine maybe it'll be the Padres I mean there's a lot of

baseball to be played yes and there's been a lot of turnover I saw Jeff Passant tweet out yesterday I think it was when you compare the standings on June 14 compared to August 14 so that's two months it's a lot of baseball but there's an all-star break in there. There's a trade deadline in there.

And the Dodgers are out, Padres are in terms of leading their division. The Cubs are out, the Brewers are in, the Mets are out, the Phillies are in, and the Yankees are out, the Js are in. The only two teams that are still consistently holding

on to their top spot in their division is the Astros and the Tigers. The Tigers are clear cut, they're gone, but the Astros are not. Seattle's right behind them. That's right. There's a chance by the end of the weekend, the Mariners have passed them. you know so there's been a lot of kind of crazy ebbs and flows to this season and I think the blue jays are a microcosm of that where they did not start strong

there was a lot of unpredictability and then all of a sudden they've been red hot for about two and a half months and now they're legitimately in a world series conversation and I think there'll be more in ebs and flows over the next month and a half yeah because I know there will be for sure they will because as Steve Phillips pointed out you know the one thing about the blue jays is there's someone's certainty of the bullpen. And the bullpen, it tends to define the way your win-loss

record goes in big games, right? I mean, let's be honest here. There's a reason why teams emphasize the bullpen so much nowadays and why so many great World Series championship teams have just had these bulletproof bullpens that have kind of carried them through playoff runs, right? So, yeah, the Blue Jays have got some work to do, as Steve pointed out, a lot of questions to answer in terms of how they're going to create that bulletproof bullpen. they're going to need if they're going to get the third world series flag hanging at the dome in franchise history but there's a plausible path to it happening doesn't it seem like it's more about Hoffman in particular yeah like that's really what it's about that's the one that scares you yeah it's

not you know like varland i think has been pretty good since he came over here and you know domingas got them out of a jam uh yesterday you know and he's he's had i guess a couple of you know A little bit of wildness here and there. A little bit of hiccups here, there, but for the most part, he's been pretty good. Little's been very good all year consistently. Like, it just, it feels like it's more about Hoffman. Well, that's what we were saying at the trade deadline, right? Could you find a reliever that could supplant Hoffman as the night thing?

And they did not do that. They did not. Which is why I think we still have the kind of reservations that we have. Right. Because Hoffman is still likely going to be the highest leverage pitcher you're going to go to. and his stats the last couple of months have actually been pretty good but he does

he is prone to giving up home runs and that performance he had in L.A. a few days ago was historically bad. That was really bad. And that was more on Schneider putting him back out there. I don't know what he, like it was a 7-8-9 hitters. We don't have to relive it,

but still it was kind of crazy. But then there's a scenario where Mason Flew Hardy comes in and strikes out Otani and Betts. I know. To end up finding way to win the game. That was a big moment. That was an incredible moment.

And I don't think Flew Hardy's going to be really a part of the program come October. You might be, but I think Little's your lefty, and maybe Flew Hardy's a part of that as well. But maybe Eric Lauer is a part of it. Hey, man, you put a couple more moments like that together in the way Flew Hardy did. That was a ballsy movement. You put yourself into the conversation, right? Because it's like Steve was saying, like I think at this time of year, you know, Steve was talking about Rios as a closer or, you know, high leverage guy. A high leverage reliever at the very least, right?

And his thing was like, he's got a belly full of guts, right? Like a lot of this is, it goes beyond the stats, right? Yes. It goes to situational belief. In this situation, do I believe in this guy? It's not about looking at his ERA. It's not about looking at his whip. It's not about looking at, I mean, now those things are factoring in.

This is what we talked about yesterday. Exactly. There has to be a human element to it. That's what, like the Bieber conversations is a perfect example of that. Right. They are trusting that if he's at his height, that he can be a killer on the mound for you. and more so than a guy who is consistently healthy and has been here every single day for years.

A guy like Bassett or a guy like Perrios. You know, possibly Gosman. You know, maybe if they're all healthy and Gosman's looking at this same, maybe I should be the game one starter. Probably not. Might be Shane Bieber, who has no history here. Still has not made it up here yet.

You know, he's starting tonight, I believe, down in Buffalo. And then maybe that's his last start down there, and then he does join the team. Maybe we have a different viewpoint of this. But you're right. A lot of that is going to be, I know he's got this type of stuff. But what kind of attitude is he going to bring to the mound

or what kind of, you know, approach is he going to have in terms of just having the stomach for the moment? And how is our big moments coming? And you know how it is when you're on a team? Like, how does everybody in this dugout and in that bullpen feel when that guy's on the mound with the game on the line? We'll find out. That's the beauty of it.

And, you know, Hoffman, he's going to continue to get opportunities like he did yesterday before he even gets there. And that's another thing Phillips pointed out, which is important. It doesn't, it's not who's the best on paper once you get to the playoffs. It's who's playing the best at that particular moment. Exactly. And if Hoffman stays healthy and keeps going,

maybe he's in that much better of a mindset come the end of September or in October. That's the glass half full, but it's been a glass half full season for the Js. It really has. Like everything is broken their way. Amazing. So why would you just expect it to blow up in their face now? Like just keep going and going and going.

There's no sign it's going to. I don't think there's any reason to. Speaking of everything breaking your way and having a dream season, I think that's a perfect way to describe our next guest and the season that she has had. We just saw at the National Bank Open, of course, in Montreal, winning the championship there. And 18 years old, on her way to the U.S. Open,

going to be ranked at the U.S. Open. Maybe more importantly, throwing out the first pitch of the Blue Jay game tonight. Here she is. The Canadian Open champ, Vicki and Boko, joining us here on Overdrive. How you doing, Vicki? Good. How are you? Doing very well. How does that sound to you being called a champion? You're forever a champion. How cool is that?

Yeah, it's kind of weird at first, but I mean, it has a nice ring to it, but it makes me a smile. Yes, as it should, absolutely. I mean, how often have you been reliving that whole tournament, and especially that championship point over the last week, week and a half? Oh, yeah, I mean, it's been kind of crazy, to be honest. I mean, kind of looking back at everything and watching a little bit of the highlight from past week and kind of reliving it, it's been a pretty hectic week,

but honestly coming home and relaxing and reflecting, it's a nice feeling overall. Thank you. There's been so much made of the way you've risen through the ranks of pro tennis so quickly. I mean, take us back to a year ago. You were ranked in the 300s in the world coming into the year. You were over on the developmental tour. playing smaller events, not necessarily winning a lot of them,

although you did get a streak going there. What, you know, what kept, what was it like back then and what kept your belief that you could get to this level? Yeah, well, I mean, having to play so many matches, especially on, like, the Challenger tour, kind of prepared me for this because, you know, I mean, playing on the WTA and playing against amongst the top 10 in the world, it's obviously a different feeling and of course they may be a slightly better level but

I think playing those kinds of matches and having so many matches under my belt has honestly prepared me for moments like these and I mean I'm really happy to compete at a higher level and I think just coming up there and showing what I can do and having good belief in myself definitely helps as well so after you win as you mentioned you came home You know, you got to kind of recalibrate a little bit. You're at the Jay's game tonight throwing out the first pitch. We'll get to that momentarily. But, you know, Cincinnati is currently ongoing,

and you've played so much tennis. You're still young. You're riding a high. Was it a difficult choice to decide not to go down to Cincinnati? Or was it a pretty obvious one that a break was in the best interest and just kind of soak in the win in Montreal, as long as you possibly can? Yeah, well, I mean, it was always in my plan to play Cincinnati.

You know, I've never played that tournament either. So I was really excited to go, but, of course, I never expected myself to be in the final. So that obviously kind of took a change of plans to kind of rest up. And, I mean, at the end of the day, these are all kind of, I'd say, warm-up tournaments for the Grand Slam. And, you know, I feel like all my focus is really on U.S. Open, and it's the last Grand Slam of the year. So it'd be great that I'm fully healthy and I have full energy and put all my attention. into that one. So how does winning in Montreal change your expectation for the U.S. Open?

Well, I wouldn't say that I have like a whole expectation for myself at the U.S. Open, but I'd say winning in Montreal definitely gave me a bit more confidence, playing against, I mean, former Grand Slam champions, of course, it's never easy, but it just shows that I can do it as well. and having played those matches, you know what level it takes to win those kinds of matches as well. So I think it helped me with my confidence and to get a lot of matches out of the way to kind of prepare for such a tournament. How great would it be to bring that crowd in Montreal down in New York? Oh, it would be great, of course, but I know some Canadian fans will make their way down and come to support as well.

Yeah, for sure. I mean, the crowd was incredible, and, you know, it's always going to be patriotic. Whenever there's a Canadian plan, the men's side, women's side, Toronto, Montreal, whatever it is. But did you pick up at any point, like, during the tournament, like a flip of the switch where it went from, okay, we're cheering from Vicky because she's Canadian to, we're cheering for Vicky because we think she's actually going to win this thing. Like, did you pick up on the confidence of the crowd as your tournament continued in Montreal? I'd say definitely, you know, I think at some point, I think, of course, at the start of the tournament, many people were cheering for me.

But as the rounds went on, there was more and more people. And all of a sudden, I think around the quarterfinals, there was almost no seats left, I guess, in the stadium. And I saw people holding these, like, posters and fines of me. And they were like, Ale, Vicky, and let's go. So, I mean, seeing that was really heartwarming. And I think it also had me super pumped to perform at the first. best I could as well. Well, speaking of great Canadian crowds, Vicki, you're about to step in front of one tonight

down at the dome. You grew up in Burlington. What's your level of baseball enthusiasm and how's your arm? I mean, I'm really excited. First of all, I remember actually going to my first ever Blue Jays game about 10 years ago. So, no, I think it's a little bit of full-circle moment. and I mean, I'm excited to throw the first pitch. I mean, it's going to be a first for me.

So I wouldn't say I'm not nervous, but, you know, it'll be fun. Yeah, oh, listen, just do whatever you can to throw a strike. That's all you got to just get it off the mound, right? Have you been warming up at all? Is you plan to get down there and warm up a little bit or what? Yeah, I'll probably head over there and have some warm-up pitches and we'll see. There's got to be some transfer between your powerful serve and a pitch.

I mean, they're kind of a similar motion, aren't they? Yeah, it's pretty similar, so I don't think it'll be too bad. Okay. Bring a racket out and just see what happens. Yeah, you could serve the pitch in. Maybe serve the pitch in. Oh, that's a new idea, too. That would, the break, I think that'd go viral pretty quickly.

Great. I don't know if the Jays would necessarily allow it, but do you know who's going to be catching tonight? Is anyone, is Vlad are you going to be behind a plate? Have you heard anything about who's going to be actually catching the first pitch? I have no idea. I have no idea. I'll be a little surprising, I guess.

I'll see when I get there. Absolutely, absolutely. With Vicky and Boko. So as you get prepared for New York, you know, how different do you expect a Grand Slam to feel compared to what you just went through in Montreal? Well, I mean, Grand Slam is kind of the highest level tournament in tennis you can possibly do. And I remember playing like the French Open in Wimbledon.

And, of course, the vibe and the ambiance is a lot higher. I know in the States, too, in New York, it's going to be much more electric. And I know there's going to be so many spectators and fans watching. So I think I'm also really excited for that. Yeah, that would be awesome. When you go from playing the Challenger tour, you were playing in places like, you know, Saskatoon and, you know, Tunisia and Croatia. And all over the world, you're playing in Portugal.

When you go from sort of doing that grind of playing those, you know, relatively smaller events to playing these bigger events and now winning a very big event at the level below the Grand Slam, like, what's the biggest difference to your day-to-day life? Well, I'd say you kind of travel more to the known places, I'd say. And, like, you kind of have a more clear schedule of what you're, what your tour is going to look like. So you're just playing more of the main

tour level tournaments, I'd say. And, I mean, I think I would say scheduling comes a lot easier. And, yeah, I mean, going to a place like New York versus Saskatoon would be pretty different. So I'd say that's pretty different for me. Yeah. New York and Saskatoon, pretty different town.

Oh, nice. Very nice towns. Very, very good people. Well, safe travels, and good luck tonight. We can't wait to see what you have in store on the mound this evening. Have fun with it. And congrats on what just happened in Montreal. We're all rooting for you once you get down in New York.

So best of luck, and thank you for doing this. Thank you so much. You got it. There's Vicki and Boko. National Bank Open champion, Canadian champion, and on a way to the U.S. Open. And rested, healthy, ready to go, high expectations. And, you know, slams are a different beast. Sabalank is going to be there.

And yet, you know, there's a lot of stories of the unheralded, relatively unknown, teenage prodigy that shows up and makes noise. And Vicky Mboko looks like a pretty good bet to do just that. Big time. Yeah. Especially, yeah, these Canadians over the last decade with Jeannie Bouchard into Bianca. Bianca Andrescue and Laila Fernandez. And now Vicki and Boko, why not?

Let's get down there and see what happens. You talk about toughness, man. You look at the places she had to play, you know, the crazy geography. You got to, you're flying all over the world and not on a big, like, it's expensive stuff, right? Yeah, it's a grind. The big grind, you got to go all over the place, you know, Saskatoon, Slovenia, Germany, small town, France, you know, I mean, in Georgia. I mean, you're talking about Manchester, Portugal. She's been all over the world trying to kind of climb the ranks as a world 300-something.

and then to get, you know, to now be World 25. Incredible. It's an incredible rise. And it really is, there's such a difference between, like, winning and almost winning. Yes. Because if you almost win, you're probably in Cincinnati. Right. Like, you lose, like, a heartbreaking three-set battle in the semis.

You're waving to people and you're on your way to Cincinnati. Because you can't afford to skip it. You can't afford to skip it. You win. You get all those points. You get all that money. And you can put your feet up a little bit, relax and try to, and you know, what you got to think people around her are saying like we got to capitalize on this celebrity it's

quick yeah you know like and hopefully it continues for the next 10 years on tour or 15 20 years but well that was the thing with the household name right now yeah that was the thing with genie bouchard when she when she made that wimbledon final becoming the first canadian to do that 2014 it was like she signed endorsement everything's worth millions within months she made a fortune way more money off the court than life changing stuff yeah and and rescue like listen and they earned it. They played great, and Vicki and Boko has earned whatever is coming her way.

She just supplied us with one of the really coolest original stories we've seen in a long time. But what comes with that is generally a lot of endorsement opportunities. And you've got to take advantage, man. Got it. But you also got to make sure that you keep playing and keep grinding and keep working. I'm not saying that Vicki's not doing that. I'm sure she is.

But, you know, the bottom line of the facts of the facts later, like Eugenie Bouchard, Bianca and Drescu, they both had incredible high points to their careers that would be the envy of almost anybody who's ever played the sport, right? I mean, obviously, the Drescue gets it over the finish line out of the U.S. Open in 2019. Houchard makes it to a Wimbledon final, but the facts are they had a difficult time sustaining that level after that happened, right? The high point remained the high point.

That's right. And it remains so for both of them. So I think it speaks to the grind. It takes to get to the top of tennis at the global level. because it's really hard to get there, and then it's even harder to stay there. Yeah, to stay, it's a real, real test, like a mental fortitude, of pure talent, work ethic, breaks, you know, like injury prevention. Injury prevention, who you play and when you play them, the bracket,

how it, like, there's so many different things that have to fall in line. But it is really cool that Vicki and Boka's on her way down there, and she will be ranked at the U.S. Open. That's incredible. Pretty cool story, considering what you just listed, and where she's been in the past, you know, 12 to 18 months. All right. He's not in Saskatoon, but he's in Edmonton.

Luke's out there for Elks Argos tonight. Two worst teams in football going at it in Edmonton tonight. Love it. Luke will be sidelined. So we'll catch up with him. We'll get his take on a game tonight. We're getting closer to the beginning of the NFL season. We'll get his take on that.

And, you know, what's going to happen with the Argos next summer? It's a big story. The World Cups coming. The Argos are going to have to put three games on the road. Three games on a road. not at Bimo Field. They're not really staying in Toronto or really the greater Toronto area. So we'll catch up with Luke and get his take on that.

What kind of reaction we might expect from the Argos as we get closer to that next summer? Overdrive continues. TSN 1050 and on TSN4. All right, Luke Wilson coming up. He is in Edmonton, ahead of Elks Argos tonight. Get us some deer hazy be in about an hour.

And Eddie Olchuk coming up. Pucks and Ponies with Eddie O'nob, about a half an hour. It's going to be great ahead of the Kings plate tomorrow. And still no McDavid contract. Like, Luke's out in Edmonton. I have to believe that's the daily conversation out there. Like, no one's talking about the Elks. The only conversation.

Yeah, like, you're not talking about the football team. They're terrible. So if I'm in Edmonton right now, the only thing I'm wondering is when is McDavid going to sign? And I'm not hearing anything. Like, some of the reports are like, well, maybe it's two years. Could be four, could be eight. It's like, all right, well, what's it going to be?

What's the number going to look like? No one's got a clue what this guy's going to do. That's the intriguing thing. That's what kind of makes it amazing. He might sign an eight-year deal. And if you're in Edmonton, you're begging for that, clearly. I mean, that would be an incredible sign of... You throw a freaking parade.

Yes. Now, there may be a contingency that comes with that and an understanding, I'm going to sign for eight. If I ever ask for a trade, you're going to trade me wherever I want to be traded. Yeah. I mean, his former agent does run the team. That is very true, Jeff Jackson. Yeah, so, you know, it's going to happen, I think, at some point.

But maybe just prior to kick off tonight, just burying the Elks-Argos buzz. Would that be something? That would be so disappointed. Here's Luke Wilson and beautiful Edmonton, Alberta. You hearing anything on McDavid out there? Boys, I'm going to be honest. I do believe that the biggest topic of conversation has been McDavid, but it's currently 12 degrees in raining in the middle of August.

And the abscess feels like eight. So I think most people at Edmonton are wondering, how was this a summer day? Yeah. I mean, it's doom and gloom out here right now. I'm beside myself. That is really disappointing, man. It's 30 and beautiful here right now.

Like, it's so nice. It's so nice in Toronto. Yeah. Must be nice. I got to navigate Pearson this morning with the big Air Canada strike just so I can head to Edmonton. Yeah.

And I don't think sports are great to Edmonton right now, you know? That's the general energy I get. I know obviously the Oilers had a good run, but not winning the cup. You mentioned McDavid. And although I think it'll be a tight one tonight, you know, the Elks have had their fair share of struggles this season.

Self-inflicted, I might add. But they've had obviously not a great record currently. Well, that's it. I mean, both teams have two wins. And I don't know. I mean, if you're either coach, can you give a pep talk that if you find a way to win tonight, that means you're launching back into playoff contention

or if you're being honest with yourself, is it someone has to win and it doesn't really matter because these two teams stink. So I'll tell you this, the strange one, I'll start with Evanton. The strange one, I would say that to a degree,

not this bad, but I was part of kind of this messaging my year in Detroit. It's very hard to buy in to whatever your coach is saying. When they go out and jam, you early in the year with roster decisions and who's playing and who's the hot.

If you're just an objective football fan, Cody Fajardo should have started for this team if you're trying to win. If you're trying to win now, I should say. But clearly else had, you know, different ideas when starting Trey Ford and perhaps it's because he's Canadian, perhaps

it's because they promise him. I've heard a million things. But as an adult, this isn't like high school ball, you know. You're putting your life on the line out here, injuries, et cetera. A lot of guys move their family in this area. It leaves a pretty sour taste when like you start the year like you did

and then all of a sudden it's like, okay, this has been a failed experiment. Sorry about that. We were a two-win team. Here's a better chance at winning football games. So it's hard when you're talking about a pre-game speech, and again, I kind of equate that to some of my time in Detroit. When you can

sit here and say, though you're blue in the face, we're trying to win. But in Detroit, I believe we traded Golden Tate, Week 6, who is our best receiver. It's like, well, I don't think we're really trying to win right now if we're going to trade away gold date. You know, so there's a, it's a bit of a strange, again, I'm not in the Alex Locker, but I can imagine it's a bit strange in that sense.

Now, the funny one is, Dinwiddie, the head coach of the Argos, might be my favorite head coach in the league. This guy's just raw emotion, very blunt, and he's very honest. And to be honest, it makes sense that he's won a couple great cups here. This guy is the man, and I think he's pretty frustrated. with how they performed. It wouldn't surprise me. I don't know if it'll be tonight if this team starts to write the ship a little bit because they've really

dropped some bad games. I'm not saying they should be a powerhouse, but Arbuckle has played a lot better recently and they should, their record is not as bad, excuse me, they're better than what their record is showing, in my opinion. Well, what did you make a Dinwiddie, Luke, going out and saying that the Argos have too many pretenders on the team? Yeah, I mean, I think it's great.

You do, yeah? What would you, like, you'd like that in the locker room? How would you interpret that in the locker room if you're a player? So, you know, and I got to be careful. I know you guys have kind of joked about this on how I say this, but like the CFL is a very unique league. And the NFL can really weed out pretenders just strictly based on how much, you know, time we are required to be in the facility.

You know, when you've got eyes on a guy, nine, ten hours a day, and you're seeing how he operates in the weight room, you're seeing how his diet is, you're seeing, you know, we were getting tracked with sleep scores the one year. Like, they pretty much have their fingerprints on everything you do. And besides that, like, you have a reputation, you know, but it starts the draft process where when you don't draft Americans, like I'm not saying, I'm not suggesting you draft Americans, but half of your team is not drafted. because of the rule situation, and you get one, potentially two days off a week, depending on the funky schedule, and you're only in there four and a half hours a day, you know, I get where he's, you know, got to kind of publicly call guys out because I think it's more of a challenge, you know, do the guys that potentially are not doing everything he wants, where I find that in the NFL, you can kind of figure that

all out yourself just because guys are in there all day and they'll show them. their true colors, if that makes sense. With Luke Wilson, Argos Alex tonight, Friday night football, CFL on TSN, Luke's out there in Edmonton. And the news broke today that the Argos next season are going to lose out on three home games at Bimo.

Hey, I'm so glad you asked for this. I couldn't be more beside myself. I'm ready to go through a wall. I'm not even like a huge Argo. I get into with the Argos people all the time. But this is the, it's insanity, Hayes. You're telling me that they're

Yeah. Yeah. I get it's the World Cup. It's the World Cup. Okay. I get that. The Argos are not touching Bimo Field when the World Cup comes to town. I'm not saying they should, Hayes.

But imagine any other league of being like, hey, your arch rival is Hamilton. You're going to go play a home game in their stadium. I know. You're going to go play Winnipeg and call it a home game. Like I'm telling you right now, okay, even if it's three games, go to, Queens for one of them. I was just there at seats 8,000. It's a very intimate setting. That could be a cool

atmosphere. Go to Western. I believe you can get that thing up to 10,000. What are they drawn? 12,000 a game anyways. They blow up alumni stadium there at Western and have a game in London. Like, they'll get, London is a

very, very good football craft. Yeah, it's like, come on. I agree with that. I agree with that. I think it's a Missed opportunity. Yes. They can't play there. I totally get there.

Yeah, they can't play there. But you can't go to Hamilton, your rivals, and you can't go to Saskatchewan and Winnipeg and play those teams and claim it's a home game, or whatever the situation is going to be, and expect your fans be happy about it. No, the fans are not. Yeah, well.

Correct. Yeah, and again, this is beside, like, there's nothing the Argos can do. The truth is that BMO was built for the soccer team, and when the Argos went in there, It was a huge fight. Soccer, TFC fans were going nuts that they didn't want to share it. And at that time, I said, shut up.

You're lucky you got the stadium. You're not the Leaves. You're not the Raptors. You're not the Blue Javes. You guys should be sharing that. It's a beautiful stadium, and it's perfect for soccer and football. But both sides hate each other, and they're both like it's ridiculous. But the truth is, the Argos, they're lucky they get to play up people.

They used to play at the Skydome. It was a disaster when they were there. You think it looks bad when they're not selling tickets at BMO. When there were 4,000 people at the dome, it was a mess. So it's a great setup that they get to play there. This is a rare scenario. The World Cup's coming to town. They're playing a BMO.

You can't play here. So that's just a reality. I agree with what you're saying. I think it is a missed opportunity for the Argos and for the CFL to try to find a different place to play within the city, ideally, if you can. I said play at varsity stadium, UFT. It's right in the middle of the city. It would be amazing.

Go up to York University and treat it differently. Understand that it's a different experience. Three games that are not. going to be at a pro level in terms of all the facilities and all the infrastructure but try to make them pop in a different way. Be creative and I totally agree with you there.

I think it's a massively missed opportunity to just say go to Winnipeg, go to Saskatchewan, go over here because they have the pro infrastructure that's going to make everyone else happy. I think it's a missed opportunity for fans to have something very, very unique and try to make some lemonade out of

the lemons that they're being handed here. that's all that's the exact vibe on hey so again i i under no circumstance do i am i surprised that the world cup is bumping anyone you know the world cup is the world cup no matter what the situation is i get that yeah but like you said it's just like and as a guy right now is a bit involved in like the youth community of football in ontario like that you know that would be there's so many options you'd be really cool you know maybe get some of the students out there if you can try and push that agenda be a really cool and that's a cool stadium like you said it is really

cool stadium really cool yeah you know but it's small i get it small i get it small but so yeah if you're willing to take the two hour drive go to london like that place can be rocking when it's done right and is it a full-blown professional stadium absolutely not but again uh you got to think that argos fans would appreciate that a little more than being like hey you want to come watch a game like fly to Regina and I know I've had a couple of runnings with vagina here but it's not an easy

no one's going from Toronto out there I can tell you right now nobody's going no one's flying to Regina but watch the Argos play out there but to be the devil's advocate Luke from a player perspective like how do you feel about how do you feel about the idea of going to a college

facility as opposed to going to another stadium that's actually in the league to play a home game that obviously won't be a home game, but there'll be a crowd there in Hamilton. There'll be a crowd in Winnipeg. There'll be a crowd in Regina. I mean, it'll be a CFL game with all the CFL trappings, except for the fact that you'll be playing as the home team in a different place.

Yeah, so it kind of works both ways. It depends to me as an ex-player, how much, you know, your team, the organizations are willing to put into, like, making things comfortable. So, for example, like Western, okay, they have decent locker rooms. is it a pro locker room? No, but that being said, like, I don't know every CFL facility, but I remember, like, for example,

going to the Coliseum, I believe I played in the first game, NFL game that the Coliseum had, the year that before the Rams had SOFI built, and since, whatever, it was like the first game they had in, like, it sucked. I'll be honest with you.

The locker room was a bloodbath. You could barely move in there. It was an early, again, I think I'm pretty sure it was the Rams first, game there. So it was a very, very early season game. It was a million degrees. But that being said, like the tradeoff is getting to say that I played a pro game in the Colceum was kind of fun. I'll be honest. Like, you know, pretty unique experience. So it's like, you know, even the year I did play at the University of Minnesota. The year, and it was freezing cold, one of the coldest

games ever, but the year that Minnesota had to play there due to the stadium stuff and like, is it the best from a law firm experience? No, but it is a little like, you know, off the beaten path kind of fun, like hey, we're going to a college vibe let's make the best of it. That being said in both scenarios,

you know, the team that I was with really made things very, very comfortable and so that helped. Yeah, that's a big part of this very bare bones operation. Right. The hospitality that the team is going to have to make sure they supply

and the league is going to have to make sure they supply, you know, will be significant. It's, yeah, it's tough, man. It's a completely random scenario. There's the World Cups coming here. I'll never be back. You're never going to be in this situation again unless there's an issue with BMO at some point for whatever reason.

But anyway, that's next year's problem. Was that game in Minnesota? Was that when Bud Grant came out in like a t-shirt and was he a part? Was that the game? Do you guys win like 10-9 or something like that, or what game was that? There were two that year there. We won the first one so-so, and then the second one was the 10-9 win

where Blair Walsh missed the 29-yard field goal. Yes. That was Bud Grant, man. Bud Grant came out in a golf shirt, like T-shirt. It was like minus 15 or whatever. It was absurd weather. Yeah, so what was crazy was I was actually concussed. and was left home because due to concussion symptoms.

But the game before that, which was a couple weeks prior, was also freezing, not as cold, but, Hayes, you would go out on the field. And, like, if you had any sort of moisture on your skin, it would immediately freeze. Like, you know, your eyes get watering. I'm like, what's in my eye? And it's like a piece of ice. My eyes watering. And then four weeks later, it was even colder.

I mean, it was blistering that year. So the idea that Bud Grant was out there at Galshirt, it's pretty impressive. It's amazing. Yeah, I'm looking at Bud Grant. He's from Superior, Wisconsin. Oh, my God. You know, Cole, it probably gets in Superior, Wisconsin. Anyway, go ahead, Dave.

I was just going to say, I want to, before we let you go, Luke, I've got to get to the important stuff here. I've been doing some scouting for the coming pick season here on Overdrive, and Hayes is very happy to know that Al's brother is entered in no less than four fantasy. leagues. I was thinking about five. He is gathering tremendous information. There is research being compiled. How scared are you? So, I'm not

scared because as you know, we had an absolute dominant Super Bowl performance, playoff and Super Bowl, dominant, which I'm still waiting for our hats. I got them. I looked at them this morning. I like that. I will say, I do have a video. I'm not going to say much

else, but I think there's a little bit of turmoil between Al's Bro and Hayes. A very, very close friend and colleague of Al's Bro, I have it on video, I'll share it during the time being, may have made a recording for me speaking about Brian Hayes, and it's not flattering. It's not flattering. It's not flattering. I think there's going to be some drama. House Brothers taking a run at me. Wow. I hope it's true. I can't wait to respond because I am supporting the fact that all this guy does is play fan. fantasy sports. Exactly.

And I think it's going to be very beneficial. But I will turn on him very quickly. Very quickly. It'll be a great season. I can't wait. Oh, what a tease, man. I can't wait. Two weeks out.

All right, buddy, enjoy yourself in Edmonton. Stay warm. We'll do it again soon. Yeah. Cheers, guys. There he is. Luke Wilson, TSN football analyst. CFO on TSN tonight.

Feels like eight degrees in Edmonton right now. Oh, my God. That's tough. That's very uncalled for. It's far north, man. I spent the summer out there one time. It doesn't get dark to like almost midnight. You realize you're far north.

Yeah. Those northern lights, man. They're up for a long time. I remember playing golf at like 10.30 at night. And it wasn't even close to dusk. Yeah. It's so great. And you're like, what am I doing out here?

This is nuts. So great. But then conversely, you go out there in January and it's 2 o'clock and it's pitch black probably. Right. Yeah, that's for, oh, no, that goes to that. It goes the opposite way. And then the point being mid-August, the summer's over. Yeah, that's it.

Yeah. Exactly. It's hockey season now. Yeah. Let's get going. All right, Eddie Ol-Chuck coming up. Pucks and Ponies with Eddie O in about 15. Dear Hazy B as well.

Overdrive continues. TSN 1050 and on TSN 4. Melodin Friday, brought you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar. Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree, a side, and a drink, and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a 15.

dollar fast lunch at your local Boston pizza. Jay's Rangers tonight. More on that into the next hour. Our best bets tonight will be on that game. Chris Bassett lights out at home. Doesn't lose at home. It just doesn't. Unbelievable. Yeah, stats are crazy. He's at the Rogers

Center. He's twice as good at home. I mean, explain that one. Going up against DeGrom, he's going to have to continue it tonight, you would think. Right. It's been pretty good. Yeah, he's been, I mean, his whole career. Like, I saw someone putting together a list today of, like, the great what ifs in sports and all that.

DeGrom was included in that. And he's had really bad injuries, but he had a three or four year run with the Mets that was absurd how good it was. Yeah. Like absurd how good it was. He was as good as it got there for a while. Yeah.

And, you know, if you extrapolate that over a 10 or 12 year, 15 year career, then maybe you're talking one of the all-time grades. Well, you would be. Yeah. Maybe you'd be talking the greatest. He went back-to-back, Cy Young's in 18, 19,

then, you know, third in the voting in 20. And, you know. Famously got no-run support. Yeah. Led the league in strikers a couple times. I mean, he was just as good as he led the league in ERA. Did it all? I mean, big payday down in Texas was hurt, but he's healthy now.

He's on a mount tonight. So more on that into the final hour. Overdrive continues. TSN 1050 and on the TSNF. Mail it in Friday is brought to you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar. Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree aside. and a drink, and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food.

See you for a $15 fast lunch at your local Boston pizza. The biggest songs in the world. You've heard them countless times. Now, learn the details of how they came to be. Join Ruby Car for Encore, the stories behind the songs you love. New interviews and newly unearthed archive footage make for a fascinating weekly deep dive. Stream encore, the stories behind the songs you love,

on IHeart Radio, or wherever you get your podcasts.