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October 26, 2016

Picture of greatness?

Some day, when CFL historians are sorting through collectible artifacts of bygone eras, they may happen upon the picture taken Tuesday.

The one snapped inside the soccer/baseball dome kitty corner northeast of McMahon Stadium.

“I told everybody ‘Man, whatever you do, do NOT be late,’ ” chided safety Josh Bell of the scheduled 9 a.m. shoot time. “‘I got a feeling this is one picture you don’t want to miss being in.’ ”

Five rows of red-and-black.

A team photo for the ages?

Only the next five weeks can provide an answer.

“In the grand scheme of things, does it really matter?’’ asked quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, post-practice, hours after picture time, of Sunday’s curtain-dropper in Montreal.

“No. It doesn’t.

“The Grey Cup game is the only thing that really matters.

“But shoot, it’d be nice to finish the regular season off in style. To be able to say we had the best record, ever, would be pretty damn cool as an add-on, as a little extra nugget.

“If we do it, we’ll be proud. If we don’t, we won’t be crying, or hanging our heads.

“We just pride ourselves so much on winning. We hate to lose anytime, anywhere, any situation.

“This just happens to be a special situation.”

On Sunday at Percival Molson Stadium on Montreal’s McGill campus, the Stamps go in search of history, one of those Star Trek audio introduction (“To boldly go where no man has gone before …”) moments that don’t crop up often over the course of a career.

A 16-1-1 regular-season record would eclipse the 16-2 standard set by the 1989 Edmonton Eskimos.

“It would be nice,’’ is head coach Dave Dickenson’s somewhat guarded take on the potential milestone. “I personally think if you can do something nobody else has done, that’s pretty cool.

“Does it mean anything in helping you win the playoff game? Probably not. That’ll be a big-time battle regardless and we’ll go into it with confidence, either way.

“But we want to go in (to Montreal), play well and let the wins and losses take care of themselves.”

Jerome Messam and Rob Cote celebrate a touchdown (Photo by Johany Jutras)

Photo by Johany Jutras

For fullback Rob Cote, the idea of missing out on an opportunity of this magnitude pales in comparison with the dangers of taking anything — anything at all — for granted.

“I don’t,’’ he says, “want to be the guy somebody calls in 20 years, asking: ’How did you guys ever lose that 2016 West final?’

“That’s my biggest fear.

“But we’re in a position right now where 16-1-1 and a Grey Cup is absolutely the goal and the focus because we’ve only got three games left. We want to win each one of them.

“Everybody wants to go into the playoffs feeling good about themselves.

“I know lots of guys don’t want to talk about the Grey Cup. I’ve never been shy about it. That’s the reason I’m still playing: To win championships.

“Winning regular-season games is fun but everybody wins regular-season games. Only one team wins the Grey Cup every year.

So whether you’re 16-1-1 or whatever, you’ve got to get there first.”

No shortage of flares have been fired into the night sky over the years to warn presumptuous favorites. The old saying – If it looks too good to be true, then it usually is – often applies.

Think Ali-Liston in Miami or Douglas-Tyson in Tokyo. Yang over Tiger at the 2009 PGA. U.S.A. Hockey’s Miracle on Ice. The ’69 Mets.

Why, simply scroll back to the team the Stamps find themselves in pursuit of Sunday, the ’89 edition of the Eskimos. After stringing together a stellar regular campaign, they gummed up in the West final and didn’t even reach that year’s Grey Cup.

Defensive back Joshua Bell gives a pre-game speech in the locker room (Photo by Johany Jutras)

Photo by Johany Jutras

Safety Josh Bell looks no further than the NBA hardwood his past spring for his realization reinforcement.

“We’re coming off a year where we had a 73-9 team, the Golden State Warriors, that didn’t finish,’’ he reminds you.

“An amazing team.

“An unbeatable team.

“But King (LeBron) James beat ’em just the same.

“So yeah, that gets your attention.

“We just want to keep rolling. Like picking up crumbs on the way to the cake with all the icing. 16-1-1? Pick it up. The West final? Pick it up. The Grey Cup trophy? Pick that up, too.

“This weekend, we can do something even legends like Warren Moon didn’t do. So why wouldn’t we want it? I mean, we all understand 16-1-1, 18-0, doesn’t mean nuthin’ if you don’t finish.

“But why can’t we be the team that sets the record and finishes, too?”

Nothing. But there’s the tricky part. Turning that 9 a.m. photo shoot at the soccer/baseball dome into an authentic piece of CFL folklore.

“Nobody’s going to be talking about you in any positive way unless you deliver the championship,’’ emphasizes Cote. “I don’t like talking about The Best This or The Best That, ’cause we’re a long, long ways away from that.

“I’d say if we win these last three games, it’d at least put us in the conversation.

“And I look forward to us having that conversation late on Nov. 27.”