So What Happened Before 1927?

Any reference I've ever seen to city high school football championships has only listed winners as far back as 1927. The graphic below, lifted from a 1943 Ottawa Citizen, serves as a good example.

For a number of years, nearly every article about the high school football championship winner would include an updated version of that list. But the list never began before 1927.

For years I assumed that high school football prior to 1927 was being played, but only as exhibition games and not in any organized, regularly-scheduled fashion. In other words, a champion only began being crowned "officially" in 1927.

So with a little time on my hands after Christmas Eve supper, I thought I'd take the time to check and...That's not the case at all.

A four-team league ran in 1926 and a champion was indeed crowned. It was Ottawa College, but it is actually only recognized, that I could find, in a game between two other teams near the end of the regular season. Read on.

I was unable to find a recap of the Ottawa College/Lisgar game. So I wonder if no champion being named is a simple matter of research failing to uncover one.

Adding to the confusion somewhat, years ago at a Gee-Gees game, I bought a records and facts book about the team. It was quite good but, by the writer's own admission, incomplete.

I bring this up because that book stated that Ottawa U. did not even field a club in the late 1910s and early 20s. It claimed that the school only resumed playing football in 1927 after being absent from the gridiron for several years. True enough, it did have a team in the Junior City League in 1927 but if "Ottawa College" refers to some other institution in 1926, I don't know who it could be.

Here are the nearly final standing from 1926. Presumably Ottawa College defeated Lisgar and nailed down an undefeated season.

2020 RedBlacks Coaching Staff Updates

I'm old enough to remember when people said we wouldn't be able to get quality coaches/players to come Ottawa because GM Marcel Desjardins has no people skills and is only working on a one-year deal.

With the most qualified head coach candidate secured, and that coach already building a quality staff, I think it's safe to say that those fears are unfounded. Let's catch up on how this coaching staff is shaping up so far.

Paul Lapolice: "We are excited to bring Mike on board as our defensive coordinator. Mike has been a successful assistant coach as well as a Head Coach in our league. He has a vast background in CFL football and his input will be very valuable to our staff and our players. Our players will also enjoy working with him on a daily basis."

 “I’ve known Mike for a long time. We’ve kind of grown up in the business together. We’re on the same page on a lot of things. Making sure we had experienced co-ordinators is part of the course in the Canadian Football League. We were excited to get Bob Dyce. He’s going to help me through the process. He knows the building, he knows the players and he’s well-respected. Bringing in Mike, who’s been a head coach and defensive co-ordinator and has been successful, it’s another person who has experience. You want to surround yourself with the best people possible."

Mike Benevides: “We want to be a group that’s going to be physical and fast and aggressive and well taught. But the vision has started way before today. It didn’t go the way they wanted (in 2019). Marcel and the group have been working hard at it and Paul’s been on the job for a while now. It was an off year. Now we have an opportunity to do things to improve it. There’s a ton of work ahead of us, but that’s OK. If you do anything in life, whether it’s football or something else, there’s always a lot to get done. You get excited about it, roll up your sleeves and get at it.”

Here are the most recent recent highlights of Benevides' career.

He...began a four-season stint as the (BC) Lions’ defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in 2008 and after winning his 3rd Grey Cup in 2011, he was promoted to head coach.  In 2012, Benevides guided the Lions to a first place finish in the west with a 13-5 regular season record and in his three-seasons at the helm, the Lions were a combined 33-21.  Benevides moved-on to the Edmonton Eskimos in 2016 as the team’s assistant head coach and defensive coordinator and in his 3rd and final season with Edmonton, he also assumed the role of linebackers coach.

Benevides' appointment is, of course, in addition to retaining Bob Dyce as special teams coach and hiring Bob Wylie to coach the offensive line.

Paul LaPolice: "We’re ecstatic to have Bob Dyce back for a fifth year with the club. I’ve known and respected Bob for many years. He’s an excellent Special Teams Coordinator, he’s got a good feel for this organization and he’s beloved by his players. We think Bob will continue to play a key role in the success of this team going forward. We worked together in 2003 in Winnipeg, Bob’s first year in the CFL, and we have been friends ever since." 

Dyce has had great success in the Canadian Football League over the years. The Winnipeg native won his first Grey Cup while with Saskatchewan in 2013 and became a champion once again with the REDBLACKS in 2016.

It's crazy to think that Dyce has already been with the team four years. Prior to his involvement, it seemed like there was at least one big return given up every game and a quality punt or kickoff return was more rare than a humble Saskatchewan fan. I don't miss those days.

Paul LaPolice: "We’re also very excited to have Bob Wylie as our Offensive Line Coach. This will be the third time that we have the opportunity to work together, so he already knows what we want to do to protect our quarterbacks and how we will run the ball. He’s an unbelievable teacher of men and he will create a great atmosphere in the offensive line room.  Our players will love the experience of working with coach Wylie."

Wylie's resume is a lengthy one indeed. Here's how it is summarized in the press release.

Bob Wylie, arrives in Ottawa with decades of experience at the college and professional football levels in the US and Canada. Wylie has worked for six Division I schools, two CFL teams and eight NFL organizations. Most recently, the Rhode Island native was the O-Line coach for the Cleveland Browns in 2017-2018 after serving in the same role with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 2014-2016.

His Wikipedia page connects his stops with the success of his former players.

Saskatchewan (2009):  Under his coaching center Jeremy O'Day, and guard Gene Makowsky were named CFL All-Stars. 

Winnipeg 2014 - 2016: Under his coaching, guard Travis Bond was named a CFL All-Star as well as an All-Division selection.

The interesting part of that is that while O'Day and Makowsky had been honoured multiple times in the past, that was Bond's only season in which he was so decorated. he's a free agent in February and I wonder if he wouldn't want to reunite with his old coach.

The Lost High School Championship

I came across something of an oddity while filling gaps in my high school football page earlier today.

In 1971, the Rideau Rams defeated St. Patrick 10-07 for the senior high school football crown. The recap of that game makes reference to the Ottawa High Schools Athletic Association (or OHSAA). So far so good.

Then in 1972, the Carleton school board fielded a competitive football league at the senior level.  A recap of St. Pius' win over Merivale in the final claimed that it was the first such game.

By all accounts at least some of the team (St. Pius for certain, as they were said to be winless the season before) had been playing for some time but I believe that was at the intermediate level (17 and under). They were now working under a junior/senior system so on that basis, this was indeed the first senior championship for the school board. Okay, fair enough, we've got that ironed out.

St. Pius would continue to roll in 1973. They knocked off Merivale again in the Carleton board finals then met the OHSAA champ Hillcrest and defeated them 33-07. This was the first time that champions from both school boards would meet head-to-head to determine a city champion.

St. Pius' Dave Behm, uncredited photo from the Nov. 10th, 1973, Ottawa Journal

All right, so that all makes sense, except...What happened to the OHSAA in 1972? Any record I find of past high school champions names only St. Pius. Why is the first-ever Carleton board champion St. Pius team generally regarded as the city champion if the two boards didn't play head-to-head until 1973? Why is there no OHSAA title recognized?

There was indeed an OHSAA champion. In fact, there were two.

The second was in 1954. Milton is making it sound like it happens every other day but at this point it hadn't happened in nearly 20 years. They first met in 1952 and their last meeting prior to this one was in 1959.

So while St. Pius is generally recognized as the 1972 high school champions, they are actually one of three champions that year. Rather than recognize St. Pat's and Fisher Park as co-champions, it appears as though history has deemed that a true OHSAA champion was never named. That's actually not the case so I'll add that championship for both teams on the High School page above.

Fisher Park would secure another title in 1977. That shared championship in 1972 would be St. Patrick's last so it really should be recognized.

“I’m Happy As Hell To Be Here”

Initially made public on Saturday night, Paul lapolice's hiring as RedBlacks head coach was made official earlier today. Here are a number of quotes from the press conference.

Marcel Desjardins: “This is a great day for the REDBLACKS. We conducted a thorough process in coming to a decision as to who our head coach was going to be. We started it by talking to a number of our key players and leaders to just get a sense of what they were looking for in a head coach. 

“The main three criteria for them was to have a coach that was a very good communicator, who was going to build a solid staff and also somebody who had a passion and a will to win but also to prepare to win. Those were things that were very important to them so I thank them for that.” 

“We’re excited as a group to have new ideas come in; to have a new vision from what we’ve been doing from a coaching perspective. Off the field in terms of how we prepare from an offensive standpoint, those are things that we’re in line with in terms of how we go about that process.” 

“It was a combination of maybe what some of the people were lacking that he had, plus, the fact he was an offensive guy and could run our offence at a high level – we just felt this was the best option. He’s all about teaching and communicating. When your players are telling you they want a guy who’s communicating, that says something. Paul’s all about that. That stuff, plus his vision, was a good fit for us.” 

“At the end of the day, Paul was by far the best candidate for us. There are a lot of good people in this league that all deserve a chance to be head coach of a CFL franchise. But, for us, Paul was the best choice. We’re excited as a group to have new ideas to come in, to have a different vision from what we’ve  been doing from a coaching perspective.”

Photo by Scott Grant, Image Communications

Paul LaPolice: “I’m happy as hell to be here,” said LaPolice, who had been the Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive co-ordinator since 2016 and was the team’s head coach from 2010-12. “I’m humbled and honoured to be the head coach of the Redblacks, to be in this community.” 

"I don't have any grand aspirations or bold statements to say. I will say this, we will leave no stone unturned in our game planning, our preparation and our willingness to work on a daily basis to put us in a position to win championships. I expect our team to play fast, to play physical and have fun on a daily basis and always worry about our process, not the end result." 

"I'm a better football coach as I've had more experiences and been around other people and been in other organizations. Four years in one organization to take notes on this is how you would do this and see situations and how I would handle things differently." 

"It's important to have conversations about how we do things and how our processes are and then you look at the big picture. We made sure we communicated and made sure we were on the same page, as much as you can be. I heard a lot of good things about Marcel." 

“You can’t win games when you’re minus-17 in turnovers. We have to take the ball away better defensively and protect the ball better offensively. We just have to make sure we do things winning teams do: Protect the football, take it away, put points on the board, prevent explosive plays. I don’t think winning or losing football games is one thing. If you want one thing, we have to play intelligent, smart CFL football. We have to start teaching our players how to do that.” 

“To the fans, I want to say, let’s make sure we make this the loudest place in the east. Let’s start making crowd noise important to us so when somebody comes into our house, it’ll make it even more difficult for them."

Here's a look at LaPolice's coaching history:

2000–2001 Toronto Argonauts (QB/RC/RB) 

2002–2003 Winnipeg Blue Bombers (OC/RC/RBC) 

2004–2005 Hamilton Tiger-Cats (RC) 

2006      Toronto Argonauts (RC) 

2007      Saskatchewan Roughriders (RC) 

2008–2009 Saskatchewan Roughriders (OC) 

2010–2012 Winnipeg Blue Bombers (HC) 

2016–2019 Winnipeg Blue Bombers (OC)

His record as a head coach is not particularly good (16-28), but it does include a Grey Cup appearance off a 10-8 regular season. I don't know the whole story but the disclaimer that I come across most often is to the effect that he was not properly supported by the front office.

Whatever. To be honest, I was fed up with Rick Campbell, the team's all-too-often awful home performance, fourth quarter collapses and baffling in-game decisions. Bring on the fresh start.

1947: Carleton 02 @ Ottawa U. 12

In trying to land a good starting point to record Ottawa U. accomplishments, I located the recap of the game below. As best as I can gather, It is the first meeting between the Gee-Gees and Ravens.

It appears that Carleton played only exhibition games in 1945 and 1946 as the program was being built.

Meanwhile, Ottawa U. did not field a team during world war two (1941 to 1945 specifically). They played a couple of games in 1946 but not against Carleton, that I could find. Even if they had, those would have been exhibition games only and therefore was less noteworthy.

Prior to WW2 but after a period of dormancy between 1914 and 1926, Ottawa U. (or Ottawa College as it was often known) essentially played at the high school level. With their participation in the Intercollegiate Intermediate Football League, they began to play teams like Queen's and, well, Carleton.

1947 will therefore be my starting point for recording their scores and various achievement. But first, a meeting with Carleton. I wonder what the folks who attended that game would think of the Panda Game nowadays?  ;-)

2020 Starts Today

At last, we can officially put the 2019 REDBLACKS season behind us.

The team wasted no time in starting preparations for 2020 with a couple of signings today.

The most interesting is that of James Tyrrell, a receiver from Concordia. I believe he was draft eligible this past spring but not chosen. Here's a snipped article from the Stingers from his final game. It was uncredited.

Stinger football fans witnessed the end of an era when quarterback Adam Vance and wide receiver James Tyrrell walked off the field for the last time at Concordia Stadium on Saturday afternoon. 

The graduating seniors, who will go down as one of all-time great quarterback-receiver tandems, cemented their place in Concordia history with another strong outing in a tough 23-17 loss to McGill University before a boisterous crowd of 2207. 

Vance completed 24 of 42 passes for 334 yards and two touchdowns in the game. Tyrrell caught four passes for 75 yards.... 

...

Tyrrell wraps up his season with 52 receptions for 779 yards and two touchdowns. He is first in the RSEQ in receptions, yards and average yards per game with 97.4. 

The Concordia record for most receptions in a single season belongs to Daniel Skube who caught 60 passes in 2015. Tyrrell is in a three-way tie for second place with Cory Watson (2009), currently with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and Stinger Vince Alessandrini (2016). 

With 779 yards receiving, Tyrrell trails only Watson for the all-time Stinger record. The current CFL star had 821 yards in 2009.

Tyrrell was named a first-team All-Canadian last week.

The team also signed Tanner Secord, a 6' 03" / 305 offensive lineman from the Saskatchewan Huskies, also a 5th year player. 

They have brought back Nathaniel Hamelin, a former Carleton Raven and a fourth-round pick by BC in 2017, and apparently are open to bringing back Gabe Polan as well. Polan was the team's third round choice in 2019 draft out of Sherbrooke but he bailed only a day or two into training camp, apparently overwhelmed by the experience.

I'm not sure if Polan is truly returning or if adding him to the active roster is simply accounting by the team to release his rights because I struggle to find evidence that Polan played in 2019. Regardless, it's good to see that the team is wasting no time in turning the page on this miserable season.

Oh Yeah...The Renegades...

I've had a fair amount more time to dedicate to this hobby of late. This past weekend was spent trying to fill some gaps in the information that I've gathered to this point.

That usually means finding more details about specific games (especially high school and midget championships) or teams. Earlier today, I looked around the site and realized that I had info about the short-lived and obscure Ottawa Deacon Demons semi-pro team, about some long-dead high school programs, about a junior league that many never knew existed in the IJFL, and so on and so forth. And yet...Nothing about the Ottawa Renegades.

That might have been due to a mental block of some sort because most of my memories of the Renegades are actually quite lousy. I met some great people as a result of my interest in that team, but the 'Gades never made the playoffs in their four seasons and accomplished little more than to strengthen the perception of Ottawa as an irredeemable football market.

Looking back on them with hindsight is almost more irritating than living through it. The team had Kent Austin on its coaching staff and let him walk. Austin may not be among my favourites but he's certainly achieved some success (more so than Joe Paopao, anyway).

Current Ticats offensive coordinator and top head coaching candidate Tommy Condell was on the Renegades staff for two years as well. Less known is that they had Doug Nussmeier coaching quarterbacks in 2002. Nussmeier coaches tight ends for the Dallas Cowboys these days but he has been offensive coordinator and QB coach for Alabama, Michigan and Florida. Not too shabby.

It wasn't all bad though. The seven-win 2003 season included a few exciting games at home.

But the one game that would stand out to most fans of team, however, is the Canada Day miracle in 2005. I've tracked down the Citizen article about that game and share it with you below.

"Alouettes defensive back Reggie Durden breaks up a pass to Renegades running back Sean Bennett during the first half..." Jim Young, Reuters.

Watching the game later, it was still hard to understand how they managed to pull this off. They weren't exactly known to be a clutch bunch.

Fans starving for football success, naturally, were out of their minds. I recall hanging out with a bunch of them near the west endzone after the game when Lonie Glieberman walked by. Clearly uncomfortable near our group of intoxicated and loud celebrators, Lonie basically directed us to bother the cheerleaders instead and got out of there.

There isn't much to celebrate about the Renegades beyond that one game but in the spirit of completeness, I'll record their brief history as well at some point. Being that much of the information is available elsewhere and that they accomplished very little, they won't be a priority.

Davis, Cassar Named to First-Team All-Canadian Squad

The following is copied from geegees.ca.

Réshaan Davis is now an All-Canadian. The defensive end was recognized by U SPORTS at the All-Canadian Awards Gala in Quebec City on Thursday night, ahead of Saturday's 55th Vanier Cup...

Photography by Greg Mason 

...Davis was a statistical leader and physical force for the Gee-Gees for the second straight season. After being selected to the East-West Bowl in 2019, Davis was second in OUA this season with 11.5 tackles for loss and fourth in sacks with seven.  

"Réshaan makes game-changing plays," says Gee-Gees head coach Jamie Barresi. "He is extremely difficult to handle in one-on-one situations and that was evident against every opponent. He is particularly effective in key moments and in late stages of games, and even in situations deep in the opponent's territory when their pass protection should be at its best." 

The product of Monsignor Paul Dwyer C.H.S. in Oshawa, Ont., Davis started every game in 2019 and registered sacks in five games with two against both Queen's and Laurier. The fourth-year Gee-Gee averaged 4.1 tackles per game and also had one forced fumble and one pass breakup this season. In his career with uOttawa, Davis has registered 13 sacks.

Carleton linebacker Jack Cassar was also selected on the strength of 44 tackles on the season (seven of which were for loss), four sacks and five pass breakups. Both gentlemen were members of the all-OUA team as well, naturally, but Cassar was a 2018 all-conference selection as well.

Photo from USports website, credit unavailable

2019 NCSSAA Senior Championship: Ashbury 42, Colonel By 12

This game took place this past Tuesday. It was originally scheduled for the middle of the previous week but delayed due to weather.

I have yet to come across a good recap of the game but, as is often the case, I will update this post with details if I come across them. In the meantime, congratulations Colts on your fourth city championship!

Ashbury Colts receiver Ben Huckabone. Photography by Drew Monrad as shared by the Ottawa High School Football Instagram and Facebook accounts.

1992: Ottawa Bootleggers 17, Moscow Giants 07

In my post from November 3rd I mentioned a book, penned by Warner Miles, about the Ottawa Bootleggers senior team that played in Ottawa from 1988 to 1992.

I purchased it right around the same time, received it a few days later, and saved it for a five-night business trip which took place last week. I started it on the plane upon my departure and completed it during my last night at the hotel.

I don't know that I am qualified to offer a review but one thing that struck me is the conversational tone of it. It's an easy read, and I don't mean that as criticism. I don't know Mr. Miles but reading his book felt like I had just met him and was sitting across the table from him at a pub as he told me about the whole experience of being a Bootlegger. 

The book is nearly 200 pages long but I'm going to quote from the final paragraph.

...Memories are fading and there's no team website, no alumni association, nor a hall of fame to document the team's history.

He's right and that's wrong (but at least now there's a book...).

I had the Bootleggers on the semi-pro page but that makes them too easy to overlook on this site. Therefore I'm in the process of building a page specific to them. They still won't have a website, but they'll have that. The Sooners semi-pro team info will be moved to the Sooners own page, as will the varsity team info. The semi-pro page will cease to exist.

Administrative stuff out of the way, the Bootleggers' history is rather colourful for a team so short-lived and while he didn't dwell on it, Miles reminded me of an interesting game the team held during their final season. They hosted a team from Russia in an exhibition game.

Here's an abbreviated version of that game's recap from the Ottawa Citizen. It is from June 28th, 1992, and written by Bob Ferguson.

 

No shame in getting stung by that dreaded Isaev to Salychev connection...

That isn't quite the end of the story. The following day, the Citizen reported that more than a baker's dozen of the Russians defected.

That's a hell of a twist and might make a good book of its own. I'd be curious to know whatever happened to that bunch.

Much more to come about the Bootleggers.

Kanata Knights are Interprovincial Midget Champions! But First...

Kanata Knights had an eventful night this past Sunday. They not only successfully defended their 2018 NCAFA Midget championship, they defeated the Quebec Midget Football League champion Orleans Raftsmen to win Interprovincial recognition as well. Not interprovincial in any real way, but it goes down in the books as such, anyway.

I didn't find anything about the interprovincial game in the Sun/Citizen and local papers can be slow to report on these things. Case in point, the Orleans Star reported on the game the Raftsmen played in Montreal on November 3rd against the North Shore Mustangs only on November 12th.

But we'll take it for now! A portion of that article, by long-time local sports reporter Fred Sherwin, is copied below. The full version is here.

...the Raftsmen caught a break midway through the first quarter when the (Mustangs) went for it on fourth and one on the three-yard line and end up coughing up the ball. Orléans linebacker Eric Cumberbatch was Johnny on the spot to recover the loose ball and end the threat. 

The Raftsmen were unable to move the ball on their series and decided to give up a safety rather than attempt a punt from their end zone. It would be the only points the Mustangs would score all game. 

The Raftsmen's first touchdown came early in the second quarter on a 38-yard run up the middle by Dante Spadaccini. 

The Raftsmen's second touchdown came on a 25-yard pass from Nick Rico to Colin Doherty who managed to keep his feet in bounds at the back of the end zone with 1:02 left in the first half. 

The final touchdown was set up by a 58-yard punt return by Ethan Wilson. The decisive blow was delivered by Rico who threw a bullet to Jonathan Aoude who was standing on the goal line. 

The Raftsmen would add a single off a punt in the fourth quarter that the Mustangs were unable to get out of their end zone to make the final score 22-2 in favour of Orleans.

It was a dominating performance by the Raftsmen who finished the regular season with an 5-2 record. Their two losses came against the Kanata Knights in a crossover game with the NCAFA team in their season opener and the Mustangs who beat them 22-7 on Sept. 28. 

Among their five wins were five shut-outs which contributed to their league best points against total (58) and points differential (+57). The Raftsmen allowed just 158 yards in offence against the Mustangs in the championship game while racking up 297 yards when they had the ball. 

Rico completed 11 of 14 passes for 157 yards...He also ran for 30 yards on seven carries and a TD. Spadaccini finished the game with 97 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown...

The Raftsmen's stellar season would end on a sour note in the Interprovincial Bowl on Sunday, Nov. 10. 

The NCAFA champion Kanata Stallions beat them 22-14 to maintain the National Capital Amateur Football Association dominance over the QMFL. NCAFA teams are now 9-1 against their Quebec counterparts in the season finale for both leagues.

It was actually 28-14. And when local papers catch up, I'll try to locate and post a recap of that game.

The photo above was lifted from the Knights' Facebook page. I'm not certain who took it but it certainly wasn't me.

I should also mention that it was good to see Fred Sherwin's name attached to one of these articles. He was a go-to guy for me when I ran the original version of this website/blog from about 2007 to 2012 or so. He provides a lot of detailed coverage about the youth sports programs in Orleans. His work was, and continues to be, appreciated.

2002: Ashbury's Most Recent Senior Crown

Yesterday, I copied from articles detailing Colonel By's first (and only) senior football championship.

As lead up to their attempt at securing a second one Wednesday night, we'll look at their opponent's last such victory back in 2002. It was Ashbury's third and, oddly enough, St. Mark was the victim each time.

So St. Mark saw their crown taken away by the team they took it away from in the first place. Ashbury were 1999 and 2000 champs, St. Mark earned the title in 2001 be defeating Gloucester. See the "high school" page above for a full list of champions by year.

St. Mark would regain the championship in 2006, defeating Ashbury for it 45-00.

Note: The article above is incomplete. I chose against copying a couple of paragraphs that seemed irrelevant.

1979: Colonel By Wins Their First Championship

On Wednesday, November 13th, Colonel By and Ashbury will meet at Minto Field for the Tier One senior football championship.

Ashbury has won championships in 1999, 2000 and 2002 but Colony By has only secured one, back in 1979. Information about that championship will come from both the Ottawa Citizen and the Ottawa Journal, starting with the latter.

(Colonel By) Cougars intercepted five of six passes thrown by Brookfield Blues quarterback Cam Collins, and tossed one of their own for a touchdown to win the Ottawa Valley high school senior football title 9-0...  

Cougars set the tone of the match early when Randy Trumpler intercepted a pass on the first Brookfield series. 

Cougars scored the game's only touchdown later in the quarter when quarterback Al Macartney linked up with Mark Branchaud on a 45 yard pass and run play. 

The Citizen (Doug Milton specifically) takes over here.

After that Tom Storey's defence was front and centre and at its larcenous best. They picked off no less than five Cam Collins and should have had a sixth except that Paul Duey was counting touchdown before he caught the ball. 

Randy Trumpler was the leading thief with three - two of them in the first 10 minutes of the game. First-year man Duane Doucette got the fourth and Paul Duey the fifth. 

Macartney...accounted for all the other...points. He converted the touchdown and kicked single points on two occasions.   

While Tom Storey is referred to above, he was actually the defensive coordinator. The head coach was Rod McGillis.

On Wednesday, the Cougars will attempt to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this championship in style, almost 40 years to the day.

"Pair of REDBLACKS named CFL East Division All-Stars"

Since we're talking about awards and recognition this morning (see earlier post about the OUS all-star and all-rookie selections), may as well include the REDBLACKS selections. It won't take long.

 The text below is from a press release by the team.

The CFL unveiled its divisional all-stars on Wednesday and a pair of Ottawa REDBLACKS made the cut.  

Announced as members of the East Division All-Star squad are Canadian and original REDBLACK Nolan MacMillan and American punter Richie Leone.  

Both players were nominated by the club for end-of-year awards this year, with MacMillan named Ottawa's best Canadian and offensive lineman. Leone, meanwhile, was named the REDBLACKS Special Teams player of the year.  

In his sixth CFL season, all with Ottawa, MacMillan started 14 games and provided his usual steadying veteran presence up front for the REDBLACKS before missing the final games of the season due to injury.  

Photography by Ashley Fraser / Postmedia 

Leone had a busy 2019 campaign for the REDBLACKS with 128 punts in 17 games played, averaging 48.7 yards and a net field position flip of 39.5 yards. Leone also accumulated 2,917 yards on kickoffs, averaging 62.1 yards per kick. 

Let's adjust these a bit; Leone, of course, ended up playing in all 18 games so his totals are actually 132 punts for a 48.4 average. His kickoff average was ultimately 61.8 yards.

No disrespect intended towards either gentleman but anytime you have to refer to your star punter as "busy" is bad. Leone's personal achievements (i.e. averages) are quite good, so the award is well-deserved, but it's also partially an indictment of the offence, obviously. Montreal's Boris Bede has the second-most punts with 109.

2019 OUA All-Conference / All-Rookie

The OUA handed out some hardware earlier this week. Here are the players honoured, along with the league's write-up on each.

All-Conference

REC – Phil Iloki, Carleton

The senior pass-catcher was among the league's elite with his seventh-ranked mark of 80.5 yards per game. Iloki's efforts went for an average of 14.6 yards per catch and he turned three of those grabs into touchdowns for the Ravens this season, providing a consistently reliable option for the team's first-time starter under centre.

Note: Iloki is credited with 44 receptions on the year.

Photography by Tim Austen

DE – Réshaan Davis, Ottawa

Réshaan Davis (Oshawa, Ont.) was among the leaders in sacks, tallying seven on the season, as well as tackles for loss with 11.5.

LB – Jack Cassar, Carleton

Jack Cassar (Mississauga, Ont.) maintained his status as one of the most intimidating individuals on defence, racking up 44 tackles, including seven for a loss, as well as four sacks and five pass breakups. Cassar started his season with a bang, totaling 10.5 tackles in the black birds' opener to earn defensive player of the week honours...

SAM – Trevor Hoyte, Carleton

Trevor Hoyte's...eight-tackle effort anchored his Week 8 honour, but his season marks of 35.5 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery have him placed firmly alongside his Carleton teammate as a first-team all-star.

HB – Cody Cranston, Ottawa

Cody Cranston (Winnipeg, Man.) and his team-high three interceptions also make the first team roster; an all-star campaign that he rounded out with a fumble recovery and 18.5 tackles.

RUSH – Rashad Spooner, Ottawa

Note: Spooner didn't get much of a write-up on the OUA website. I suppose it can be tricky to list contributions of a player specifically as a punt/kickoff cover man. Defensively, as a defensive back, he is credited with 15 tackles (in seven games) 10 assists, a sack, a fumble recovery and two pass breakups.

All-Rookie

Patrick Lavoie, OL, Carleton

Kevin Victome, DB, Ottawa

Kevin Victome (Ottawa, Ont.) earned the OUA special teams player of the week nod with a pair of game-changing plays...When the dust settled on his first season in Garnet and Grey, Victome had rattled off (a blocked field goal, two forced fumbles), to go along with four pass breakups and 20 tackles.

"REDBLACKS and Rick Campbell agree to part ways"

It's been a few days since (now-former) REDBLACKS head coach Rick Campbell resigned. I'm going to start with the official release then gather some quotes from the various interviews that have taken place since.

Nov 4th - The Ottawa REDBLACKS and Head Coach Rick Campbell have decided to part ways. After a difficult 3-15 season, Campbell informed the Club that he felt he could not continue as head coach and the club respects his position. 

"I would like to thank the Ottawa REDBLACKS for the last six seasons in this great city," said Campbell. "I'd also like to thank (General Manager) Marcel (Desjardins) for entrusting me with my first CFL head coaching opportunity. Leaving the REDBLACKS was a difficult decision to come to but, at the end of the day, the future of the organization is bigger than any one person and I believe it is in the best interest of the team for me to move on. I also want to thank the fans; RNation, we couldn't have accomplished what we have without you." 

 Photo from cfl.ca

Campbell leaves the REDBLACKS as the only head coach in franchise history. While his biggest success was leading the club to its first Grey Cup championship in 40 years, Campbell also coached the REDBLACKS to two other appearances in the championship game, the first coming in just the club’s second year of existence. That success included transforming a 2-16 expansion team in 2014 into Grey Cup finalists the next year through key free agent signings and the emergence of young prospects. The following year, the REDBLACKS would win it all.  

"On behalf of the Ottawa REDBLACKS, I want to thank Rick for his dedication since becoming our first-ever Head Coach," said Desjardins. "Rick's passion for coaching helped put our team on the CFL map and we will always be thankful for that. We wish Rick all the best in the next step of his career."

Campbell: “There are some pretty magic moments I won’t forget, I’m going to remember those moments...Going down Bank St. in the Grey Cup parade, are you kidding me? Literally, through my neighbourhood. That’s good shit there, pardon my language. I’m going to remember the good stuff, I appreciate it.”

"I know it feels like the right thing. I wanted to be really sure because it's been a long year with a lot of losing that I wasn't being rash or overly emotional making a poor decision. 

“Not to get into all the specifics, but I really didn’t like it when there were people who left here with a bad taste in their mouth — the list was getting a little long. You have to treat people well, you have to treat them right, empower them, value them. If you do that, people will go through the wall for you. If you don’t, it can make it tougher."

“I just want to make sure all the people who have left this place feel appreciated and feel valued. It wasn’t a power play or anything like that. It was about everybody pulling in the same direction and making it a fun place to work — for me, that was slipping, but that’s on me.

“I do not dislike Marcel, it’s not about that. Marcel’s got a lot of knowledge, there’s a reason why we won around here. Maybe it’s me that’s changed. If you know Marcel, he’s pretty consistent in how he acts. I would guess as it’s more me changing than him. Sometimes relationships have to jive to be able to communicate. It’s nothing against Marcel, I’ll put it on me too, I have to be a better communicator.”

OSEG CEO/president Mark Goudie: “My full expectation was both Marcel and Rick would be back next year and we’d be able to turn the page on what’s been a difficult 2019 and get back to where we should be at this time of year — preparing for a home playoff game,” said OSEG CEO/president Mark Goudie."

“Marcel has full authority and autonomy to put the football ops and coaching staff together, I’ll stay out of his kitchen on that. I’ll probably participate in the interview process, more for explaining the organization and what the Redblacks and OSEG are all about. Marcel has carte blanche to figure out what the staff will look like next year.”

Ottawa Redblacks general manager Marcel Desjardins, left, and Ottawa Sports and Entertainment president and CEO Mark Goudie speak to reporters about the news that head coach Rick Campbell will leave the team Monday. - Justin Tang , The Canadian Press

Desjardins: “I found out from Mark before I found out from Rick. The conversation after the fact was that he didn’t think our relationship was good enough for him to want to continue in this arrangement. Obviously, the stress of this season must have played a factor in that.

“I’m as surprised as everybody else by this outcome. My expectation was Rick would be back and we’d work together to try and get this thing straightened out. Today is kind of a strange day, an unexpected day. Rick’s a good guy, he takes everything to heart — he and I are similar in a lot of ways.

“I take complete responsibility for everything, but I also know all of the success we’ve had in the past, it was a group effort. As much as I’m the person to answer for this, there are a lot of things that happened, some of those were under my control. But there are a lot of things that didn’t work out — whether it be on the coaching side or injuries — that’s unfortunate, but at the end of the day, it’s my fault, it’s my responsibility.”

1989 MFLA Championship Game: Racine Raiders 15, Ottawa Bootleggers 13

I can't attend a game in harsh conditions, such as Friday's chilly RedBlacks home closer, without being reminded of the Minor League Football Alliance championship game between the Ottawa Bootleggers and Racine Raiders from Wisconsin in 1989.

As the article mentions below, the game took place in -15c temperature. Snow blew sideways throughout the game. Having to sit through it, I can attest that the 30-minute delay described at the end felt significantly longer. The whole "It'll be fun, we can take it" mentality seemed like a good idea sitting around at home two hours before the game but after my arrival at Lansdowne, it didn't take long to realize that I'd made a terrible error in judgement. ;-)

The Bootleggers were an often-dominant semi-pro team in Ottawa from 1988 to 1992. They spent most of the existence in the Empire Football League but played an independent schedule in 1989. You can read more about them on the "semi-pro" page above.

For that matter, one of the team members at the time, Warner Miles, wrote a book about the team. It was published earlier this year and can be purchased print-on-demand through lulu.com.

Miles also has a youtube channel with several videos of Bootlegger highlights and media appearances. Highlights of the 1989 championship game in particular are included in this one.

QMJFL Championship Game: Ottawa Jr. Riders 17, Chateauguay Raiders 07

The Jr. Riders overcame a 7-6 halftime deficit to secure their ninth league championship last night against long-time rival Chateauguay. I'll post more about the game when (or if) I come across more information.

"REDBLACKS announce the re-signing of five Canadian standouts"

I don't record every single signing that the team makes but this one feels significant. The team is clearly in a rebuilding mode and the fan base's faith has been shaken so securing the services of these five guys is a nice way to get a jump on 2020.

The Ottawa REDBLACKS announced the re-signing of five Canadian standouts (on November 1st), including Ottawa’s all-time leader for most receptions, Brad Sinopoli. 

TD Place erupted when the team announced during Friday night’s game that receiver Brad Sinopoli, defensive back Jean-Philippe Bolduc, offensive lineman Alex Mateas, defensive lineman Nigel Romick, and running back Brendan Gillanders, all agreed to a two-year contract extension. 

Brad Sinopoli, WR
Brad recently broke a team record when he passed Tony Gabriel for the most receptions in Ottawa football history with 445. In 138 games played in the CFL, Sinopoli has now reached 501 receptions and 5,641 yards. 2018 was his best season since joining the CFL, recording 1,376 yards on 116 receptions. 

Jean-Philippe Bolduc, DB
Leading up to the last game of the season, the Montreal native has had a good 2019 campaign on the special teams, recording 19 tackles in 17 games. Since joining the REDBLACKS in 2016, Bolduc played 50 games and has a record of 15 defensive tackles and 52 tackles on the special teams. Jean-Philippe is also very active in the Ottawa-Gatineau community. 

Alex Mateas, OL
Since playing his first game for the REDBLACKS in 2015, the Ottawa homegrown has been nothing but consistent. Through the years, Mateas has developed into a key player on the O-line and helped Ottawa in reaching new heights. Signing Mateas for another 2 years will ensure stability and leadership on the offensive line. 

Nigel Romick, DL
Romick will return to Ottawa for two more seasons after completing a solid 2019 season. The Thunder Bay native played in 81 games with the REDBLACKS since joining the team in 2014 and has currently 11 defensive tackles and 80 tackles on the special teams. 

Brendan Gillanders, RB
Gillanders is another huge re-signing for the REDBLACKS. Since signing with Ottawa for the 2016 season, the former Gee-Gee (2009-2013) has played some of his best football since being drafted in the CFL. He has accumulated more than 275 rushing yards in 57 carries in the league. The REDBLACKS are thrilled to keep this Ottawa product in their ranks.

Bolduc, Romick and Gillanders were the team's top three special teams tackling leaders with 20, 17 and 14 respectively.

This is even better news framed against the unexpected retirement of defensive tackle Michael Klassen earlier in the day. Klassen explained on TSN1200 that injuries were lingering and essentially forced him out of the game. Over two seasons in Ottawa, Klassen played in 25 games and contributed 50 tackles (all on defense) and six sacks.

"Former Rough Riders coach George Brancato dead at 88"

Former Ottawa Rough Riders head coach George Brancato passed away on October 22nd. I let a few days pass so that I could select the most detailed account of his career and selected the one below from the CBC (Canadian Press).

George Brancato, who won Grey Cups with the Ottawa Rough Riders as a player, assistant coach and head coach, has died (on October 22nd, 2019). He was 88.
Brancato, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., was a halfback/defensive back with Ottawa from 1957-62. 

The five-foot-seven, 177-pound former LSU star earned his first Grey Cup as a player with the Riders in 1960 before claiming a second in '73 as an assistant coach with the club. 

He took over as Ottawa's head coach in 1974 when Jack Gotta left the CFL team for Birmingham of the now-defunct World Football League. 

After capturing the Annis Stukus Trophy as the CFL's top coach in 1975, Brancato guided the Riders to a 23-20 Grey Cup win over Saskatchewan in 1976 in Toronto.
Tight end Tony Gabriel cemented the victory for Ottawa with a 24-yard TD grab late in the fourth quarter from quarterback Tom Clements, a play affectionately dubbed "The Catch." 

Brancato and the Riders narrowly missed registering the biggest upset in Grey Cup history five years later. After finishing the regular season with a 5-11 record, Ottawa surged to a 20-1 halftime lead over the heavily favoured Edmonton Eskimos (14-4-1). But the Eskimos, with Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon, rallied for the 26-23 victory at Montreal's Olympic Stadium. Kicker Dave Cutler's 27-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter provided Edmonton with the fourth of its five straight CFL titles (1978-82). 

Brancato was fired following the '84 season after the Riders posted a 4-12 record. He compiled an 82-90-4 regular-season record with the Riders, finishing behind only the legendary Frank Clair (116) in victories. Brancato's teams were 8-10 in the playoffs.
It was during his CFL coaching tenure that Brancato earned the nickname "The Ice Man," because he routinely chewed ice on the sidelines.  

Brancato returned to coaching in 1989 with the Arena Football League's Chicago Bruisers. After the franchise folded, he served as an assistant with the Dallas Texans. 

He rejoined the Riders in 1993 as a special-teams and secondary coach on Ron Smeltzer's staff. The following year he was an offensive co-ordinator with the expansion Shreveport Pirates. 

Brancato was also an assistant coach with Saskatchewan (1985-86). He finished his coaching career in the AFL with Anaheim and Florida, retiring after the '99 campaign. 

Brancato played both offence and defence, spending time in the NFL with the Chicago Cardinals (1954-55). He made his CFL debut as a running back with the Montreal Alouettes in 1956 and played mostly on defence with Ottawa but still made appearances on the offensive side of the ball. 

Brancato was a CFL all-star in 1961 and was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.

The Ottawa Sun made a nice tribute to the man, seen below. The photo halfway down the article is not from the CBC page but rather was on TSN's story about Brancato's passing. It was credited to Getty Images but not to a specific photographer.

Players Of The...Past Couple Of Weeks

The OUA revealed its weekly award winners earlier today which only underscored that I once again neglected to record them a week ago. So I'll do those first.

Defensive Player of Week Seven – Trevor Hoyte, Carleton Ravens

In a must-win game for Carleton, the Ravens were going up against one of the nation’s best, with the McMaster Marauders finding their groove on both sides of the ball. But with Trevor Hoyte at the heart of it, Carleton was able to upend the Hamilton squad and come away with the clutch victory. 

Hoyte was a man on a mission against the Marauders, making his presence felt on multiple occasions across the field. The third-year linebacker picked up eight tackles in the game, all of the solo variety, to produce a game-high in the category. He also added a forced fumble to his impressive stat line. The effort was also a season-high for the Gatineau, Que. native and brought his season average up to over 4.5 tackles per game. 

Not only was the defensive effort important in shutting down the Marauders when it mattered, especially in the opening half, but it was a much-needed effort in a must-win scenario to keep the Ravens’ playoff hopes alive.

For a little additional background, here's some text from the Ravens' announcement about Hoyte joining the program in 2017.

...the defensive standout played for several teams including Bel-Air Norsemen of the National Capital Amateur Football Association (NCAFA), Philemon Wright Falcons of the National Capital Secondary School Athletic Association (NCSSAA) and Hadley Hawks.

Special Teams Player of Week Seven – Kevin Victome, Ottawa Gee-Gees

The Ottawa Gee-Gees kept their winning ways intact against Windsor on Friday, more than doubling up on the Lancers when the final whistle blew, and a key figure in the win was on the special teams side of the ball – Kevin Victome. The freshman cornerback has been off to an outstanding start to his career in Garnet and Grey and his latest effort was highlighted by a pair of plays that were a definite factor in the outcome. 

Up only one point in the third quarter, Victome flew off the edge to block a go-ahead field goal from the Lancers. If that wasn’t enough, the Ottawa native made another standout effort early in the fourth quarter. Victome sped downfield on a kickoff, laying a hit on the returner and forcing a fumble that resulted in a scoop and score touchdown for the Gee-Gees who eventually won 54-26. 

For the game, Victome also racked up 4.5 tackles and a pass breakup.

Carleton also placed a player on the Week 8 honourees.

Defensive Player of the Week – Danny McWhirter, Carleton Ravens

In their second straight must-win game to close out the season, the Carleton Ravens did what they had to do, as Danny McWhirter and the team defence stepped up in a big way to shut down Laurier and claim the final spot in the Yates Cup playoffs. 

McWhirter was a one-man wrecking crew for the Ravens, with his eyes on lighting up seemingly any time a ball was thrown in his direction. The third-year defensive back made his initial impact with a pick-six late in the opening half. He got his hands on the Connor Carusello pass and took it back 52 yards to the house to give Carleton a 12-0 lead at the time. He wasn’t even close to being done there; however, as he would haul in his next interception just a few minutes later to halt Laurier in their tracks once again. He would cap off his three-interception day by snagging a deep Carusello pass early in the fourth quarter and keep momentum the way of the black birds. 

McWhirter would finish the day with four pass break-ups, including the three interceptions, as well as one solo tackle, helping to limit Laurier to just 190 yards passing and 10 points on the day and punch Carleton’s ticket to the postseason.

McWhirter as named to the OUA all-rookie team in 2017.

The Old Boys Cup

I find Ashbury's football program simultaneously fascinating and intimidating. It seems that no matter what era I happen to be researching for info about the many teams from Ottawa, I come across a mention of Ashbury playing football on some level, whether it's referred to as senior, intermediate, whatever.

Such an occurrence took place again today when, while filling some gaps (and making corrections) to my Carleton history section, I found an article pertaining to the Old Boys Cup.

I would love to record Ashbury's history but it's a daunting task and one for which I don't know where to begin. The school opened in 1891 and it sure seems as though they started playing football the next day.

So for now, we'll settle with Old Boys Cup series, the first installment of which was played in 1945 and is described below, courtesy of The Ottawa Journal.

You can probably mathematically work out the score of the first game of the series. Ashbury defeated Bishop's 5-2 in Lennoxville on October 9th, 1945.

Not that it's particularly relevant, but the other team in the "Little Big Three" was Lower Canada College.

I don't yet know with full certainty how long the two schools played this two-game-total-points series and/or whether it was always for the Cup. The following year, in 1946, Bishop's won 10-5 and while it was referred to as a game for the Old Boys Cup, no mention of another game to generate a two-game total is found (at least at this point).

Then some later recaps of the series will treat it as a total points series but not mention the cup. The trophy is said to be returning to Ashbury in 1953 "after a long absence" so I suspect that a lack of success caused the coverage of the series to be little sparse after that initial 1945 victory.

Ashbury would continue to win it right through to 1960, and again in 1962 and 1963. Bishop's narrowly reclaimed it in 1964 and started a winning streak of their own. Ashbury was only again able to win it in 1969 and at the point the game had become an exhibition contest.

Back to 1945:

Referee Des Bloom ended up coaching Carleton in 1946.

Nowadays, Ashbury is playing in the NCSSAA and sporting a 4-1 record. They will face winless St. Patrick later this week to close out the regular season.