Fresh off a disappointing overtime loss, Sergio Castillo was in no mood to pat himself on the back for his history-making kick.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers kicker drilled a 60-yard field goal in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s 22-19 loss to the Calgary Stampeders to set a new franchise record.
Now with some time to reflect, Castillo’s tune has changed a bit.
It’s the second longest field goal in CFL history behind former Saskatchewan Roughriders kicker Paul McCallum who hit a 62-yarder in 2001.
THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES/Frank Gunn Winnipeg Blue Bombers kicker Sergio Castillo drilled a 60-yard field goal in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s 22-19 loss to the Calgary Stampeders to set a new franchise record.
“At first I didn’t grasp that it was 60 and a franchise record. With it being a loss, and you’re in the moment, too, during the game. But 48 hours have gone by and it’s appreciated,” said Castillo after Tuesday’s practice.
“I’ve thought about the people who have been in my life to get where I’m at and I’m just very fortunate to have another accolade under my name. There’s a lot of people behind that you guys don’t see on the field that have been there for me.”
His old career long was from 57 yards out during his time with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2017. Castillo’s longest field goal as a Bomber was a 53-yarder he hit last year.
He went four-for-four against Calgary.
“I was happy and surprised that Osh gave me the go. I was like ‘There’s no way he’s gonna let us kick the 60,’” said Castillo.
“But you know, (special teams co-ordinator) Mike Miller spoke to him and said ‘He has the distance so give him a go.’ So, I appreciate those two for backing me up and we came through.”
FEELING LUCKY
The Bombers haven’t officially announced the signing of receiver Lucky Whitehead. The paperwork is done, and an agreement is in place, they just now need to get him here.
Whitehead made his CFL debut in 2019 with the Bombers when he hauled in 52 passes for 521 yards and two touchdowns before losing his starting job to Rasheed Bailey. The former Dallas Cowboy and New York Jet then suited up for the B.C. Lions for three seasons where he was an all-star in 2021. Last year, the now 32-year-old recorded 58 catches for 728 yards and three touchdowns.
Head coach Mike O’Shea wouldn’t give a timeline for Whitehead’s arrival or confirm the signing.
The 0-4 Bombers play this Friday at home against the Ottawa Redblacks (2-1) at 7:30 p.m.
“Like I’ve said, we like the guys we had in camp. When you bring a guy in who definitely has CFL experience and has been here before it’s really interesting but we’ve got to see where he’s at,” said O’Shea.
Quarterback Chris Streveler was teammates with Whitehead in 2019 and is eager to work with him again. With Kenny Lawler (broken arm), Dalton Schoen (torn ACL), and rookie Keric Wheatfall (leg) all injured, the Bombers desperately need a playmaker.
“Obviously I know Lucky — he was here, he’s a great guy,” Streveler said. “I sent him a message just saying we’re excited to have him and I know he’s bringing some good energy and you can always use that in the building. He’s a a great dude, a good teammate and we’re excited to have him.
NIC ADAM / FREE PRESS Brady Oliveira (right) had 10 carries for 26 yards and five catches for another 37 yards against Calgary.
RUN GAME WOES
The ground game continues to be stuck in mud.
Running back Brady Oliveira made it clear last week that he’s hungry for 15-20 carries a game, but in Calgary, he was limited to 10 handoffs for 26 yards. With starting QB Zach Collaros out of the game in the second half, Oliveira was still only given five carries.
“Teams know what we want to do and we’re gonna have to adapt and be a little bit different and open some things up before we can really get into the run game,” said Oliveira, who also caught five passes for 37 yards.
“When they load the box, there’s an extra guy or an extra two guys that are unblocked. It definitely makes it challenging. I think as a whole, we need to play complimentary football… But yeah, it’s tough when they stack the box. Tough sledding.”
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Taylor Allen
Reporter
Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.
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