Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ head coach Scott Milanovich has anointed Bo Levi Mitchell his front-runner to be the team’s starting quarterback for the 2024 season.
“It’s certainly his job to lose. I would expect him to win the job and take off running. Now, he still has to earn that,” Milanovich said. “If he comes in and he’s not playing well and not making good decisions, then we’re gonna have to reassess that. My job is to do what’s best for the team at all times, but I would expect Bo to be the starter.”
The Ticats and Mitchell agreed to a restructured contract, after originally signing a three-year, $1.62 million deal with the Ticats last January, for the upcoming season. He received a $50,000 signing bonus along with $225,000 in hard money, plus up to $110,000 in playtime incentives if the 33-year-old maintains his starting job.
“He wouldn’t be back if I didn’t think he was the guy to lead us. I always had a lot of confidence in Bo’s ability to throw the ball, his competitiveness, his leadership ability, his knowledge of the CFL game. He loves football, he’s a worker,” Milanovich said.
“Really what had to happen was Bo and I had to make sure that we were going to be on the same page. There’s a certain way that I want our quarterbacks to play the game and it’s not hard and fast: ‘You’ve got to do this, you’ve gotta do that.’ But there’s a certain way that we’re going to do things and Bo and I needed to make sure that we were on the same page with that going forward.”
Mitchell started six games during his first season in Hamilton, missing time with an adductor injury and a fractured leg. He completed 59.1 percent of his passes for 1,031 yards with six touchdowns and ten interceptions, posting a 2-4 record.
“When I had Ricky Ray, he got hurt almost every year. He had that major arm surgery and then when I left to go to Jacksonville and Marc Trestman came in, he came back and won another Grey Cup. Bo has the ability to do the job. I know the numbers, I’ve seen them. I’ve seen the stats and I’ve seen him in person,” Milanovich said.
“But I believe that in the right system, doing the things that I think Bo can do well, we give him support where he’s not having to throw it 45 times a game, where we can lean on our running back and run the ball a little bit and have some balance, I still believe Bo can do it. I don’t think Bill Belichick forgot how to coach. Bo Levi Mitchell didn’t forget how to play quarterback. We’re gonna see, we’re gonna find out but I believe he can do it.”
Despite being healthy enough to play in the Eastern Semi-Final, Mitchell was benched in favour of backup Matthew Shiltz. He did not enter the playoff contest until late in the fourth quarter, raising questions about his future with the Ticats. Those have been answered, with the Katy, Tex. native taking a substantial pay cut to stay in Southern Ontario.
“The way he handled that was unbelievably impressive and I think his teammates appreciate that. He’s a team-first guy and it’s hard — I’ve been benched as a quarterback, so I know it hurts. It hurts to the core,” Milanovich said. “I’m sure Bo has been humbled a little bit but I think he handled it like a professional. I think his teammates appreciate that and I think they know all he really wants to do is win.”
In 165 career CFL games, the two-time Most Outstanding Player and two-time Grey Cup champion has completed over 64 percent of his passes for 33,572 yards with 194 touchdowns and 99 interceptions, including a 92-29-2 win-loss-tie record.
“I look forward to having an offseason with him, training camp with him. When I was there during training camp last year, I thought he would have a great year. I thought his arm strength was good, his accuracy was good,” Milanovich said.
“It was just going to be a matter of time before he and (former offensive coordinator) Tommy (Condell) got on the same page and then the injury happened — it was not the year that Bo hoped to have. But I’m really excited about him. I think he’s gonna change the narrative of the second half of his career and I’m looking forward to working with him.”
