Steve Milton: Tiger-Cats Simoni Lawrence and Brandon Revenberg are finalists for top CFL individual awards
They are very different personality types - one mostly quiet, one mostly demonstrative - but both are team leaders, both are ferocious on the field, both are durable, both deflect credit to teammates. And both are finalists for the CFL's top individual awards.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats' linebacker Simoni Lawrence is the East division nominee for the CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player and left guard Brandon Revenberg gets the nod to represent the east for Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman.
It's definitely an honour," Revenberg, the quieter one, said Wednesday, But we're all focused on something bigger right now."
He means Sunday's sudden-death playoff game against the Montreal Alouettes Sunday afternoon at Tim Hortons Field, a priority Lawrence also mentioned.
Lawrence said that although six members of the defence made the eastern division all-stars earlier in the week, others in the unit were also deserving of the honour.
Every season I come up here to play football I know I'm going to be surrounded by great coaches and surrounded by great players," he said. All I have to do is play football."
Lawrence is up for the top defensive player honour for a third time in his illustrious Ticat career, during which he has become the franchise's career leader in both defensive and total tackles. He lost in his brilliant 2019 season to Winnipeg defensive end Willie Jefferson, and in 2015 it was B.C. linebacker Adam Bighill who edged him as top defensive player.
Bighill, now a Blue Bomber, is his opposition again this year.
Revenberg, who lost to in 2015 to West nominee Stanley Bryant, another Bomber, is once again pitted against Bryant in the national vote-off. The 6-4, 301-pound native of Essex is a core Ticat, and has yet to miss a regular season or playoff game in his five CFL years. This week, he made his third straight divisional all-star team.
Lawrence was named to his fifth eastern division all-star team and did not miss a single practice in 2021, one of his stated goals. He started all 14 games, tied for the CFL lead in interception return touchdowns with two, stood fifth in defensive tackles, and sixth in interceptions and was second among all linebackers with four quarterback sacks.
Steve Milton is a Hamilton-based sports columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: smilton@thespec.com