Published: June 18, 2009 11:14 pm      

MARK MAYNARD: Jennings impresses Alouettes 061909

Chris Jennings is still chasing a pro football dream.

The former Fairview High School star is auditioning with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League.

Jennings made quite an impression in his first preseason scrimmage game against the Toronto Argonaunts. He ran for 122 yards on 10 carries, including a 10-yard touchdown run, in a 37-24 victory. Jennings also had two catches for 18 yards and two tackles on special teams.

The Alouettes Radio Network named him the Offensive Player of the Game.

The CFL, much like the NFL, uses the preseason games as a way to find newcomers. The regulars typically don’t play much. But Jennings’ performance surely gave him a leg up on stayng around.

Jennings was invited to a tryout prior to the first preseason game last year. He practiced a few days and got into a preseason game for a few plays. But he was released to open up a spot for a returning American player who had been cut by an NFL team. CFL teams asre allowed to keep only so many non-Canadian players on the roster.

But Jennings was resigned by the Alouettes in December, giving hm another CFL opportunity.

Jennings was an All-State linebacker at Fairview, where he led the Eagles to an undefeated regular season as a senior. He eventually landed at Arizona where he played two year after transferring from junior college.

Jennings has been living in the Phoenix area working out with some NFL players, including Philadelphia Eagle quarterback Donovan McNabb.

Jennings will get another chance to impress the Alouettes on Tuesday when they play the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the last preseason game. The CFL season starts on July 1.

Tolliver honored

Transylvania junior outfielder Thomas Tolliver, a Raceland product, has been named to the All-Mideast Region second team by the American Baseball Coaches Association of America.

Tolliver was also a first-team All-Heartland Conference pick. Transy posted a 20-17 overall record and finished sixth in the HCAC race.

Tolliver led the HCAC in hitting with a .506 average. He had 42 hits, 28 runs, and 18 RBI in league play. The junior batted .467 overall for the Pioneers.

Two players from the HCAC were named to the All-Mideast Region first team while Tolliver was joined by one other HCAC representative on the second team.

Dates to remember

The weekend of Aug. 28-30 is going to be a busy one for Ashland Tomcat fans.

‰Aug. 28 will be the debut of the documentary “Ashland’s Field of Dreams” at the Paramount Arts Center. Show time is 7:30 p.m.

‰Aug. 29 will be the second annual CP-1 Reunion in Central Park, starting around 1 p.m. Last year, several hundred came back to the park to share memories.

‰Aug. 30 will be the annual Tomcat Reunion at the Elks Country picnic grounds. It also starts around 1 p.m. with hamburgers and hot dogs provided by the Tomcat Booster Club.

The Aug. 28 date also coincides with the Raceland-Ashland football game in Putnam Stadiuim.

The plan is to have a second showing of the documentary sometime after the game, possibly at the Elks lodge, for those who don’t want to miss the football. Stay tuned for details.

Brick program

The Central Park brick donation program is accepting applications through June 30 to make the deadline to have your brick placed on the back of the dugout in time for the CP-1 Reunion in August.

Three lines (20 characters per line) can be purchased for $50 or six lines for $100.

Below is a link to the form provided by the city:

www.ashlandky.org/publicservices/central_park_%20brick.htm

MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2648.