champion Andy Murray and four-time

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- Hes played just five games this year but already Ricky Ray appears to be in mid-season form. The Toronto Argonauts veteran quarterback is third in CFL passing with 1,355 yards despite missing a game due to a knee injury. His 11 TD passes are second only to Saskatchewans Darian Durant (15), and Ray and Durant are the only starters to not throw an interception. But what really stands out is Rays solid 76.4 per cent completion average, which is tops among CFL starters. The 33-year-old Californian has been hot lately, completing 34-of-38 passes (89.5 per cent) for 438 yards with five TDs in his last two starts. "Were just executing pretty well," Ray said following Tuesdays practice. "Obviously the gameplans our coaches give us have been pretty good but were just playing good football all around and thats what happens. "You see a lot of guys have success when all 12 of us are playing together and thats whats happening for us offensively." Thats certainly not good news for the Edmonton Eskimos (1-5), who visit Toronto (4-2) on Sunday. The West Division squad will be minus linebacker JC Sherritt, the CFLs top defensive player last year, who is out indefinitely after recently undergoing successful thumb surgery. "Hes a good player whos all over the field," Ray said of Sherritt. "He makes a difference. "He seems like hes always around the ball, hes just got those football smarts and is always there and makes a lot of tackles. For us, were not too sad about that." After starting the season 1-2, the defending Grey Cup champions have won three straight and outscored their opponents 111-44 over that span. The offence has done its part as Argos starters have completed 55-of-63 passes (87.3 per cent) for 691 yards and eight TDs with no interceptions in those games. Ray was a sensational 19-of-20 passing for 286 yards and two TDs in Torontos 35-19 win over Winnipeg on July 19 before suffering a knee injury. Backup Zach Collaros stepped in and completed 21-of-25 passes for 253 yards and three TDs in a 38-12 victory over B.C. on July 30. Ray returned and hit 15-of-18 passes for 152 yards and three first-half touchdowns in staking Toronto to a 31-3 half-time lead over Montreal on Thursday. He sat the second half after re-aggravating his knee injury. Ray says theres a simple explanation for this success -- familiarity. Ray and most of his offensive teammates are playing their second season under head coach Scott Milanovich. The six-foot-three, 210-pound Ray struggled initially as he learned Milanovichs offence after being dealt to Toronto following nine seasons in Edmonton. After returning from a knee injury Oct. 19, Ray surpassed the 300-yard passing plateau in three of his final five starts, including a 399-yard performance in Torontos 27-20 road win over Montreal in the East Division final. And Ray was a big reason why Toronto captured the 100th Grey Cup, finishing the CFL playoffs completing 69-of-97 passes for 869 yards and five TDs with just one interception. Toronto has a new offensive co-ordinator in Marcus Brady but hes very familiar with Milanovichs offensive approach and schemes. The two worked together as assistants in Montreal before Milanovich took the Argos head job. And it shows, as Torontos offence is tied for second overall with Calgary in TDs with 21 (one behind league-leading Saskatchewan) and is third in scoring (32.3 points per game). The Argos also boast the CFLs second-leading aerial game (305 yards per game) and are third in net yards (377 per game). The passing game is a huge part of Torontos offensive success as it leads the CFL in completions (150) and completion percentage (75.8 per cent). By comparison, the Argos ground game is ranked second-last overall, averaging 86.7 yards per game. But in Canadian football an offences success usually begins under centre and Milanovich, a former quarterback, has nothing but praise for Rays play. "Hes playing great football and really has been for about the last 10 games hes played," Milanovich said. "Were just trying not to talk about it too much and let him go out there and continue to do what hes doing. "I think its comfort level with the offence and his progressions . . . hes really feeling and seeing what the offence is giving him. Hes comfortable back there, obviously were protecting well for him, which is huge, and Marcus is doing a nice job calling the game." Theres also an obvious rapport between Ray and his receivers. Chad Owens, the CFLs outstanding player last year, is again leading the league in receiving with 43 catches for 470 yards and a TD. Canadian Andre Durie has 29 receptions for 370 yards and a touchdown while former Eskimo Jason Barnes -- who was released, then re-signed by Toronto last season -- has 16 receptions for 238 yards but a team-high four touchdown grabs. "Its a lot easier when youve been through it one time before," Barnes said. "Everybody understands not only their position but other positions as well so it helps out with our spacing and cohesiveness." Owens agrees. "We were in this system last year and a majority of the same guys are back," he said. "Ricky is comfortable, he understands it and besides that hes just an unbelievable quarterback. "I cant say enough about his poise, how he is in the pocket and his ability to deliver the ball on time and in the perfect spot." And with both Dontrelle Inman and Canadian Spencer Watt both nursing leg injuries, rookie John Chiles has contributed nine catches for 155 yards and three touchdowns. Inman might play against Edmonton and Watt could return soon as well, creating an interesting situation for Milanovich. "All good problems to have and they tend to take care of themselves through injury and other factors," he said. "That becomes a pretty good six-receiver package that maybe you have look into. "Well try to find a way to get all of them on the field, they deserve it." Predictably Ray downplayed Sundays game saying it wont mean nearly as much to him as his first meeting against the Eskimos or even last years East Division semifinal game against Edmonton. Barnes agreed, sort of. "Its another game for us," he said. "But at the same time I know me and Rick always love beating our former team so Im looking forward to it." NOTES: The New England Patriots released former Winnipeg defensive end Jason Vega on Tuesday . . . Montreal signed defensive end Anwar Stewart to its practice roster. The 37-year-old helped the Alouettes win three Grey Cups in 10 seasons with the club and was the CFLs top defensive player in 04. Stewart is also Montreals all-time leader in sacks with 66 but played with Calgary last season. The Als added Canadian receiver Ismael Bamba to their roster, signed defensive end Eze Ibiorato to the practice roster, released receiver Youssy Pierre and put Canadian defensive end Ameet Pall on the nine-game injured list. Zach Duke Jersey .J. Ellis hit an RBI single in the ninth inning, Hanley Ramirez hit a tape-measure, three-run homer in the first against Cliff Lee and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 on Saturday night. 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The Gatineau Olympiques head coach will lead Canada in its quest to end its gold medal drought at the 2015 world junior hockey championship held in Montreal and Toronto at the end of this year.Melbourne, Australia (SportsNetwork.com) - World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and four-time Australian Open titlist Roger Federer were among Mondays fourth-round winners at Melbourne Park. Nadal, who missed last years Aussie Open due to a knee injury, was tested mightily by Kei Nishikori, but the mighty Spaniard staved off his 16th-seeded Japanese counterpart to claim a 7-6 (7-3), 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) triumph that took more than three hours to complete at Rod Laver Arena. The 13-time major champion Nadal was broken twice by Nishikori in the third set -- receiving a time violation from the chair umpire in one of the games. "Normally I have a good self-control on court, and its true that the moment was a very critical one," Nadal said of the time penalty. Nadal also tripped in the first set and tumbled to the court, prompting him to head to the locker room to change shoes. The 2009 titlist and 2012 Melbourne runner-up will next face 22nd-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, who secured a spot in the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut. The 22-year-old Dimitrov will make his first-ever appearance in a Grand Slam quarterfinal in his 14th try, while Nadal will be appearing in his seventh quarter at the Aussie Open alone. Meanwhile, the fourth-seeded three-time Aussie runner-up Murray reached his fifth straight major quarterfinal by getting past French lucky loser Stephane Robert 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (6-8), 6-2 at Hiisense Arena on Day 8 of this Oz fortnight.dddddddddddd Murray wasted four match points in the third set and smashed his racquet after the third-set tiebreak before advancing. "Hes a fun player to watch, but not a fun player to play," Murray said of Robert, who can baffle with an array of drop shots and groundstrokes. Murray, who was last years Aussie runner-up to Novak Djokovic, will battle Federer in a quarterfinal on Wednesday. The sixth-seeded Federer avenged a quarterfinal loss at the hands of Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga here a year ago by unleashing his full arsenal of shots in dismissing the 10th seed 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. The super Swiss was not broken on Day 8, while Tsonga was broken three times by the 17-time Grand Slam king. The former world No. 1 Federer tied Jimmy Connors record by reaching his 41st Grand Slam quarterfinal. Its also the 11th straight year the Swiss icon has reached the quarters at Melbourne Park. Tsonga was the 2008 Aussie Open runner-up to Djokovic. The quarterfinals will commence Tuesday, as a second-seeded Djokovic takes on eighth-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka and third-seeded David Ferrer meets seventh-seeded Tomas Berdych. The former No. 1 Djokovic is a dominant 15-2 lifetime against Wawrinka, including a fourth-round win here a year ago. The Serbian star also topped the Swiss in a U.S. Open semifinal last season. Last years French Open runner-up Ferrer is 7-4 lifetime versus the former Wimbledon finalist Berdych. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '