By Max Campbell
Stampeders.com

It’s been a long two months for Juwan Simpson.

The middle linebacker suffered a broken clavicle against the Lions back on Sept. 18 and was recently been given the green light to return to action this weekend.

Asked what it will mean to him to help lead in the battle against the Leos, Simpson revealed he is literally counting down the hours until game-time.

“I’m not there yet,” the disciplined veteran announced with a splash of humour. “I’ve still got 48 hours or something.”

Simpson won’t be reclaiming his spot in the heart of the defence for just any game – he’ll be suiting up for the Western Semi-Final against the Lions after an injury suffered against the same BC squad led to his placement on the six-game injury list.

“I’m excited,” stated the two-time Grey Cup winner, with championship victories in 2008 and 2014. “I’ve been excited for weeks because I knew this day was coming. It’s just good to be out there and be with (my teammates). You fight so hard with them through the season through a lot of things on the field and off the field. It’ll be great to go battle with them.”

While the three-time West Division all-star has slowly made strides each day, Simpson has been operating at full speed on the practice field as of late. Always present in the meeting room and daily film sessions, No. 12 has done his best to keep up while knowing the one aspect of his game that would need the most improvement once he was fully healed.

“I feel good,” the Alabama alum offered. “I knew conditioning was really going to be the only thing that I was going to have to get back. I’ve been doing it for a few weeks now and I’m trying to get ahead of schedule. I’m feeling good and I’m just anxious to get back out there and make some contact.”

Simpson’s physical presence will undoubtedly be felt in immediate fashion after the game’s opening kickoff, but so will his trademark trash talk, something he’s looking forward to unleashing on Sunday afternoon.

“It’ll be much better,” said the grinning defensive captain, who has recently been in the ears of his teammates rather than opposing players. “I’ve got a lot of built-up things that are going to be said on the field, I’m pretty sure. It’s going to be an interesting day.”