Nick Arbuckle feels he’s at a really good place in his life.
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Like, literally. A really good place.
The Ottawa Redblacks quarterback, his wife Zakiyyah and their three-year-old daughter Aaliyah are enjoying Ottawa, a city Arbuckle says they’ve “fallen in love with.” Another daughter is due Aug. 20, the day after a home game against Montreal. That feeling of being a husband and father has filled his heart. Nothing like seeing a young smiling face at the end of a long day at the office.
“Being a dad and husband, having family is the most important and best thing in my life,” said Arbuckle. “Nothing comes before that or takes away from it. I’ll make sacrifices elsewhere to make sure I can still be a football player and give everything I can to the team. Sleep gets trimmed down throughout the week; I try to make up for it as we get closer to the game. There’s a lot of give and take and making sure you have your priorities straight. How you manage your free time is really important.
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“One of the biggest things I’ve been trying accomplish is doing as much of my day as I can before (my wife and daughter) wake up. Instead of a 6 a.m. or 7 a.m. start, it’s coming in at 5 a.m. and doing extra film studies and the extra lifting before practice so the 10-12 hours you put in as a quarterback is from like 5 (a.m.) to 5 (p.m.) rather than 7 to 7 where you’re missing dinners and bedtimes.”
Once he gets home, there’s playtime with Aaliyah and dinner.
“I open the door and (Aaliyah) comes running and screaming and gives me a big hug,” said Arbuckle.
He says he’s asleep by 9:30 or 10 p.m.; he tries to get “7ish” hours of sleep.
The schedule by Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce gets a big thumbs up.
“I’ve never been to a place where in a lot of our days we were off at dinnertime,” said Arbuckle. “(Here), we still get everything done we need to, but I’m usually home by 6:30. Every place I’ve been, you’re lucky to be leaving the facility by 9 or 9:30 (p.m.). ”
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The story is certainly playing out much better than when the Redblacks, who had acquired Arbuckle from Calgary just prior to the COVID-cancelled 2020 CFL season, opted not to bring him back in 2021, turning instead to Matt Nichols as their go-to quarterback. Arbuckle signed with Toronto, then was dealt to Edmonton, before being traded to the Redblacks last July. He dressed for 12 games for the Redblacks, throwing for a career-high 2,400 yards on 308 pass attempts, along with four touchdowns, leading Ottawa to three of its four wins.
When he decided to rejoin the Redblacks for the 2023 season, knowing he’d be in a backup role to Jeremiah Masoli, his sentimental feelings for the city played into the decision.
He also likes the team’s direction and energy as it tries to work its way into playoff contention after its third straight bad season.
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“There’s a lot of belief in what we’re building here,” he said. “The talent is unquestionable, from top to bottom. They don’t just understand what they have to do, they understand the whole offence, they understand the defence. And, they’re fun guys to be around.
“A lot of us have been in places where we’ve won lots of games. We know what that kind of locker room feels like, what that kind of atmosphere feels like and I feel like that’s happening here. One of the biggest goals this year is to change how games go here (on home field).”
In Ottawa’s 22-21 pre-season loss to Montreal Friday night at TD Place, Arbuckle played a bit more than a half and completed 15-of-25 passes for 209 yards.
“We did a lot of really good things,” he said. “There are some things we need to clean up, finish some of our drives in the end zone. I just missed Shaq (Evans) at the goal lines where I know if I put it a couple inches inside, he’s going to catch it.”
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THE END AROUND: Bad news for the Redblacks: DB Money Hunter and receiver Shaq Evans are both out with injuries. Hunter suffered a torn pectoral muscle In the team scrimmage a week ago. Said Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce: “We’ll see how long the recovery is, but we’re talking months. Hopefully, he’s back before the end of the year. When you look in the secondary, we’ve been working a lot with Hakeem Bailey. We’ve got some young guys. Josh Turner-Valentine has done a good job back into the boundary corner. You don’t replace a guy like Money. He’s what I consider an elite corner in this league.” Evans broke his finger in Friday’s game vs. Montreal. He could be out 4-8 weeks. LB James Peter also broke a bone in his hand Friday. Said Dyce: “You hate to lose a player like Shaq, but these things happen. You see Siaosi (Mariner) come back and start practising today. Savon Scarver produced well in the game. (DeMichael Harris) has come back this week. One man’s regrettable injury gives somebody else an opportunity on offence.” … The Redblacks have brought back DB Edris Jean-Alphonse, who was released a week and a half ago. Also signed: Gee-Gees receiver Willy-Pierre Dimbongi, who’s from Ottawa. Receiver Zak Karim and LB Patrick Nelson were released. … Former Redblacks DL Avery Ellis, who was released earlier this month by Edmonton, is returning to Montreal.
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