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During the off-season, Powell has enjoyed video games and, like many, he’s hooked on Fortnite, a game of survival. As far as video games go, he’s into NBA 2K and FIFA.

“I don’t really play football games anymore,” Powell said. “We play soccer and basketball. I guess it’s because we play football so much. Guys want to take their minds off it.”

Since fans last saw Powell in November, he has upped his facial hair game, too. He showed up in the Manitoba capital this week with a full beard … sort of like an Ernest Jackson look.

“It’s the first time, we’ll see where it goes,” Powell said.

JUNE EFFECT

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats were a different team with June Jones as head coach in 2017. After starting the season 0-8, the Ticats were 6-4 under Jones.

“June’s mentality toward the game was a good thing for us,” Ticats receiver Luke Tasker said. “He has a relaxed way of approaching things. There’s a constant energy and desire to just be ourselves and not act like we’re fighting an uphill battle, to not feel like the world’s against us. We just want to play our own football and try to be great at what we do. We were stepping in the right direction with that.”

Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli said Jones was “a different kind of coach, for sure. He’s not your typical hard-nosed guy. He’s more laid-back and relaxed. He’s trying to level up on his players, rather than screaming at them. He’s very supportive, but he’s also very realistic and honest.”

Defensive lineman Ted Laurent added, “Nothing bad against Kent (Austin, former Ticats head coach), but June made it more fun on both sides of the ball. We had fun again, it made the game easier.”