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Argos' McEwen looking forward to playing before friends and family in Calgary

TORONTO — Sean McEwen is looking forward to mixing a little pleasure with business this weekend to Calgary.

On Saturday night, the six-foot-three, 297-pound centre will play before friends and family when the Toronto Argonauts visit the Calgary Stampeders.

McEwen, 24, is a Calgary native who played collegiately for the Calgary Dinos before being selected in the first round, fourth overall, by Toronto in the 2015 CFL draft. But McEwen put his pro career on hold, returning to school for his final year of CIS eligibility.

"I was just kind of finishing off my eligibility and my schooling and putting that chapter of my life behind me," McEwen said. "I was closing that door before I was ready to open the professional one.

"It's always exciting when my family and friends are in the stands supporting me. It's always a great time."

But McEwen doesn't feel any extra pressure playing at home.

"Not at all," he said. "Whether it's Calgary, B.C. or wherever, I like to go in with the same mindset.

"It's a business trip for me, I want to play as hard and fast as I can all the time."

It's the second meeting this month between the two clubs. Calgary (6-1-1) earned a 41-24 win over Toronto (4-5) at BMO Field on Aug. 3.

"Their defence has many different looks and executes its schemes extremely well," McEwen said. "Obviously they have some very good athletes doing it and have been together for quite some time.

"If we want to have success we have to be able to execute our schemes and play together as a unit."

It's been a meteoric rise for McEwen, who started 13 games with Toronto as a rookie. But McEwen said his tenure at Calgary prepared him for professional football.

"Mentally and physically," he said. "I learned many great veterans then kind of moved my way into a veteran role and kept getting better each year.

"The coaches do a great job of preparing you for pro football."

Marc Trestman, Toronto's first-year head coach, marvels at McEwen's quick transition to the pro game.

"It's hard to believe he's going into just his second year," Trestman said. "He clearly leads the way in that he's really our protection co-ordinator on the line of scrimmage.

"His communication skills, the way he sees defences he just creates a big advantage for us and will down the road. He's an exceptional young man with a great skillset . . . he can really do it all."

The centre is the one responsible for calling the offensive line's protection schemes. In McEwen's case, it means having to tell more veteran players where to go, which can sometimes ruffle feathers.

"I think they've kind of seen I take it very seriously so I think they're comfortable with me doing it," McEwen said. "They helped me out a lot when I was first starting, especially Tyler (guard Tyler Holmes) being right beside me and helping with the different looks and schemes.

"I think now they (Argos offensive linemen) have confidence in me to take care of it and it's something I'm going to continue to get better at. It (line calls) has expanded since I got here from Calgary but I love being in control out there. It's an aspect of the game that made me fall in love with football in the first place."

McEwen said the biggest adjustment he's faced as a CFL player is understanding football is his profession now.

"It's continuing to approach it like a job every single day," he said. "The whole thing of preparing like a pro is an aspect of the game I take very seriously."

And that means spending a lot of time in the classroom evaluating gamefilm.

"I'm always amazed at how much more successful you can be on gameday due to the tape you've watched throughout the week," he said. "There's obviously come incredible athletes in our league and the only way you can close the gap athletically is by preparing and knowing what certain players and the defence will do in certain situations."

Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press


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