Punter Pre inks extension with Argos
Posted January 14, 2011 3:45 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Veteran CFL punter and kicker Noel Prefontaine has signed a contract extension with the Argos, sources told Sportsnet.ca.
Surely a sign that time may truly heal all wounds.
The signing marks a complete reversal from how Prefontaine’s association once ended with the organization in 2008.
That spring he was traded from Toronto, and made it no secret that he was bitter with team management for shipping him to Edmonton when Mike Vanderjagt became available to the Argonauts.
But by last fall, the Argos football operations department was under the direction of Jim Barker – who traded for Prefontaine just last October. Three months later, the former high school quarterback agreed to remain with the franchise he’s played with for the bulk of his 13-year CFL career.
Prefontaine is one of the valuable, unheralded specialists in the CFL. As a non-import he can handle two critical jobs — allowing roster and ratio flexibility for the Argos. This stint with the franchise marks the third time the six-time all-star has worked with Barker.
They were together in Toronto in Prefontaine’s early years after the team drafted him in 1998. The duo, along with Argos receiver Jeremaine Coperland, also won an XFL title in Los Angeles in 2001.
Also Thursday, the Edmonton Eskimos parted ways with veteran punt and kick returner Jason Armstead.
The seven-year veteran, who has been a productive wide receiver as well in his career, was released from his fifth CFL team after joining the Eskimos late in the 2010 season.
