Scott Milanovich acknowledged most quarterbacks he’s worked with in his Canadian Football League coaching career have been “pure passers.”
However, it’s not like he hasn’t worked with any mobile athletes at football’s most important position. When Anthony Calvillo was hurt at times in Montreal, Adrian McPherson played. Milanovich brought him to Toronto and had a role for him in a playoff game against Hamilton in 2015. When Zach Collaros was young with the Argonauts, the 53-year-old offensive guru believed he was similar to Nathan Rourke in his movement abilities.
It’s limited experience, but Milanovich does not exclusively like pocket passers. That brings us to Tre Ford, who was signed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in February. If his bench boss did not believe he had what it takes to play at a high level in the CFL, Ford would not be on the Black and Gold’s roster.
“I’ve reached out to some people, I talked to Kliff Kingsbury a couple weeks ago about any advice he has on mobile quarterbacks. I have some background with it. We’re excited to see him. He’s going to have to compete. He’s a talented kid. I know people are excited,” Milanovich said.
“He’s talented. As he’s learning to be a CFL quarterback, there’s things I see on film. He’s going to still have to prove it, just like Bo [Levi Mitchell] had to prove it, Taylor [Powell] and all the guys before him, but I see things on tape, even as a passer, that I think are special.”
Milanovich knows Kingsbury from coaching him in NFL Europe and Montreal. In 2006, the two men were together with the Cologne Centurions, one as a QB and the other as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. One year later, in 2007, each man ended up with the Alouettes. It’s a relationship that’s spanned over 20 years and led to the 46-year-old Los Angeles Rams’ assistant head coach sharing his advice for coaching dual-threat quarterbacks.
“One of his lines was, I’m not going to tell you who it was in relation to, but he said, ‘One, two, make a play — that’s it.’ You’re reading one to two, if that’s not open, take off, do your thing,” Milanovich shared.
Hamilton’s bench boss will push Ford to find out if he can take the next step as a QB in the three-down league. Milanovich said he saw on tape times where Ford was not protected in Edmonton, but still made plays due to his anticipation and off-platform throwing ability — two traits which cannot be taught.
“There are some things that we’ve talked to him about in the offseason that we need him to work on; his footwork, his mechanics, getting himself in position to throw, trust in the offensive line. But there are some things that show up on film that are different,” Milanovich emphasized.
“He’s creating nine to 10 explosives with legs. So the guy is intelligent, he’s local, his athletic ability is beyond anything. There are some things you can do in the run game, too, with a guy that’s mobile that change how a defence has to play you. I’m intrigued by him. I’ve done some research.”
If Milanovich was able to resurrect Mitchell’s career, imagine what he could do with Ford if the Canadian QB buys into his hard coaching and offensive football philosophies.
