2024, April 10th: "REDBLACKS hire Greg Marshall as Defensive Line Coach"

OTTAWA - The Ottawa REDBLACKS announced, today, that they have hired longtime CFL coach, and Ottawa Rough Riders great Greg Marshall as the team's Defensive Line Coach, ahead of the 2024 season. 

A native of Beverly, Massachusetts, Marshall most recently served as Head Coach at the University of Toronto from 2018 to 2023, and in 2021, guided the team to the postseason for the first time since 1995. Prior to his time with the Varsity Blues, the 67-year-old spent three years as Defensive Coordinator at Queen's.

Marshall is no stranger to the CFL coaching ranks, breaking into the league in 1994 as Defensive Line Coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He added a Defensive Coordinator title in 1996, before moving on to occupy the same two posts for Edmonton from 2000 to 2004. In 2005, Marshall served as Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator of the Ottawa Renegades, before running the defence and linebackers for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 2006 to 2008. He made his way to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2009, working as Assistant Head Coach, Defensive Coordinator, and Linebackers Coach for two seasons, before being hired as Head Coach of the Roughriders ahead of the the 2011 season.

As a player, Marshall enjoyed a decorated nine-season career as a defensive end in the CFL, after suiting up in two games with the NFL's Baltimore Colts. He spent his entire career north of the border in the nation's capital, earning CFL East All-Star honours from 1981 to 1984, and was named a CFL All-Star in 1981, and 1983, winning Most Outstanding Defensive Player in the latter year. He was honoured with a spot on the RNation Legacy Wall at TD Place in 2023.

Marshall was drafted in the seventh round, 186th overall, by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1978 NFL Draft, after playing his collegiate football at Oregon State.

Marshall was on radio the night he was hired and during the interview casually wondered if he was the first person to be involved with all three Ottawa pro football teams. 

It kind of brought a chuckle because he played with Joe Paopao in 1987 and was on Paopao's coaching staff with the Renegades. Paopao was also with the REDBLACKS in 2019. Goes to show that as fans, we sometimes have better recollection of these matters than players/coaches do. 

I'd actually meant to share content about Marshall's playing days last year when he was added to the stadium's wall of fame, but admittedly it fell off my radar.

I did find the image below from a November 1983 Ottawa Citizen. Neat to see some other familiar faces on there.  

Unless I have yet to locate it, the reaction to Marshall winning the Most Outstanding Defensive Player award was rather subdued. It seemed to consist of a paragraph or two in articles celebrating the group as whole.

Since we're talking about coaches, let's look at a couple of new faces added to the staff when it was  announces in mid-February.

Pat Perles (OL) returns to the CFL, after having previously worked as the Offensive Line Coach in Saskatchewan (1994-96), Winnipeg (1997), and Hamilton (1998-1999), winning a Grey Cup in his final year with the Ti-Cats. Perles was also a Defensive Assistant with the Los Angeles Rams from 1992-1993, and in 2009 joined the Kansas City Chiefs as a Defensive Quality Control Coach, before working as their Assistant Offensive Line Coach in 2010, and 2011. He has also spent time on the NCAA circuit, previously coaching at Toledo, North Dakota State, Syracuse, and Michigan State. 

Deion Melvin (LBs) joins the REDBLACKS for his first season with the club after spending the last four years as Linebackers Coach with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Prior to coming north of the border, Melvin’s coaching career began at East Aurora where he worked as a graduate assistant in the early 1990s. He would go on to coach at Western Illinois (1993 to 1998), Missouri State (1999 to 2005), Georgia Southern (2006), Bowling Green (2007 and 2008), Ball State (2009 and 2010) and Lindenwood University (2011 to 2016), before returning for a second stint at Western Illinois (2017 to 2019). In a coaching career that spans 30 years, Melvin has gained experience working with players in all three phases of the game.

Alex Suber also returns to the fold. 

Alex Suber is back for his fourth season with the REDBLACKS, but first since 2022, after spending the 2023 season as Cornerbacks Coach at Middle Tennessee State. The move followed four years in the nation's capital, where Suber served as Defensive Backs Coach from 2019 until 2022, when he took on the role of Receivers Coach. Before joining the REDBLACKS, Suber coached receivers at Murray State University, after spending time as Lyon College’s defensive coordinator. Suber wrapped-up his CFL playing career with 65 games played and 254 defensive tackles.

This, of course, is in addition to naming Tommy Condell offensive coordinator.

The 1974 Sooners' Two-Game Playoff Series Against Niagara

This post comes on the heels of the announcement that the 1974 Ottawa Sooners are being inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame.  

In looking at this site's content about that specific edition of the team, I was surprised at how thin it was. They're mentioned very little here.

Seeking to remedy that, I began to look for content from newspapers archives. I was quickly reminded why I've recorded so little. While there is plenty of information available, its quality is quite poor, as you'll see below.

Nevertheless...I added the team's first playoff game summary to the Sooners (Junior 1960-1980) page. That game was followed by a two-game series against Niagara. The first game's recap is directly below, from the Citizen. 

Chiarelli wasn't dicking around. The Sooners were far more dominant in the second game. Here's the summary of that one from the Ottawa Journal. 

This led to another two-game series, this time against Hamilton. I'll see what I can dig up about those two games. 

uOttawa's Max Charbonneau Receives the OUA's President's Award

The image and text below are cut from a press release announcing the Conference's major award winners.

A senior season to remember for Max Charbonneau, the Ottawa Gee-Gees linebacker takes home the 2023 President’s Award as the OUA’s outstanding stand-up defensive player.

Despite missing time early last season and ultimately playing through a knee injury, the criminology major was still selected by the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers after earning a ticket to the national combine. Returning to the Garnet and Grey for a final season, however, Charbonneau showcases what being an elite tackler with outstanding consistency looks like from a middle linebacker.

A tackle-machine for the Gee-Gees this season, Charbonneau found himself atop the conference when it came to takedowns. The senior linebacker finished with 44 solo and 36 assisted tackles, good for 62.0 in total, which was second across the country. On a game-by-game basis, Charbonneau’s 7.8 tackles per contest also had him among the top three in the conference and nation.

Charbonneau also added a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and blocked kick as part of his award-winning season, becoming the first Gee-Gee to earn the award since 2017 (Jackson Bennett).

Four REDBLACKS named CFL East All-Stars

OTTAWA - The Canadian Football League announced, today, that four Ottawa REDBLACKS players have been named among the 2023 East Division All-Stars.

Receiver Justin Hardy, Defensive lineman Bryce Carter, defensive back Brandin Dandridge, and punter Richie Leone have been recognized for their outstanding performances during the season, and have been named to this year's All-Star squad.

Hardy, 31, earns his first All-Star nod, in just his second CFL season. The Washington, D.C. product broke the 1,000-yard plateau for the first time, hauling in 85 passes for 1,009 yards, and three touchdowns. He posted two games of 100+ yards through the air, and made a career-long 54-yard touchdown catch in Week 19 at Toronto.

Carter, 25, broke out with 12 sacks in his sophomore season, finishing tied for second in the CFL. A native of Steelton, Pennsylvania, Carter also ended the year with 31 defensive tackles, and two forced fumbles. He set a new single-game career high in the REDBLACKS' Week 16 win over Saskatchewan, getting to the quarterback three times.

Dandridge, 27, enjoyed an outstanding defensive season; with five interceptions, a pick six, a forced fumble, and 24 defensive tackles. He also made equally significant contributions in the return game, as when DeVonte Dedmon went down with an early-season injury, Dandridge immediately stepped in, and the Lee's Summit, Missouri native returned a punt 79 yards to the endzone in Week 2 vs Calgary. Dandridge racked up a total of 867 return yards, in just 13 games.

Leone, 31, is now a six-time divisional All-Star, and four-time East All-Star, having earned the honour with the REDBLACKS in 2018, 2019, 2021, and now 2023. The Roswell, Georgia native appeared in all 18 games, totalling 5,567 punt yards, including a a pair of 74-yarders.

2023 Ottawa Sooner Conference All-Stars

As selected by a panel of coaches within the conference, here are the Sooners who have been named to the all-star team this year.

The Sooners finished the regular season with a 4-4 record and will travel to face the St. Clair Saints (8-0) this Saturday evening at 7PM in semi-final action. The last time they met, the Saints won 28-26.  

OFC Players of the Week: Week 4

The Sooners faced a tough start to their 2023 regular season schedule, resulting in an 0-3 start, but they continued to battle and recorded their first win last weekend in no small part due to the contributions of defensive lineman Richard Graham.  His performance earned him one of the player of the week honours. 

Richard Graham - #1 -  Ottawa Sooners

The Sooners’ defensive catalyst led a hard hitting Ottawa defence to their first win of the season over the previously undefeated Quinte Skyhawks. Graham wrecked havoc as he compiled 2 quarterback sacks, 2 tackles, blocked a kick and intercepted a pass which he returned for a 72 yard touchdown. In all Graham produced 20 defensive points on the day.

2022 Jr. Rider All-Stars!

It may seem late to reveal these, but they only appeared on the league's website on April 2nd. I believe the QMJFL tends to announce their all-star teams as part of the launch of the upcoming season, typically. Hell, I've taken to seeing it as a sign that spring has finally arrived! 😋  

A subsequent post on the league's site named their individual award winners as well. Here they are. 

2022 Ontario Football Conference Awards

The OFC took a week off for Thanksgiving and now prepare to head into its playoffs. They took the opportunity to hand out some hardware in the meantime.

Let's start with the following players that have been named to the Conference's All-Star team:

QB Owen Cowan
WR Nathan Coleman
OL Jett Hudson
DL Richard Graham 
LB Shawn Charles 
    
Now Owen Cowan actually shared the all-star team quarterback honour with another player (from St. Clair) but he nailed down the offensive rookie of the year award for himself. 

Over the course of the regular season, Cowan completed 92 of 172 attempts for 1,254 yards, nine touchdowns and nine interceptions.

And to cap it all off, the man responsible for the team's resurgence also got a well-deserved pat on the back.

Congratulations all, it's been great to have the Sooners back. 

OFC Defensive Player of the Week: LB Richard Graham

As he has done all season for Ottawa, Richard Graham was all over the field making plays for the Sooners.  In addition to his 3 solo tackles, Graham picked off a pass that he returned 51 yards to the house for a touchdown.

Sooners' Keyshawn Upshaw-Tynes is an OFC Special Teams Player of the Week

As we look forward to a Sooners game at the GTA Grizzlies today, let's look back at one of the award recipients following last week's action. The text and graphic are from the Ontario Football Conference's Instagram account.

Upshaw-Tynes provided more than enough scoring all by himself for the win as he returned two kicks for touchdowns.  The Ottawa rookie returned 1 kickoff for 88 yards and a touchdown and then later, adding insult to injury, he returned a missed field goal 115 yards for a touchdown. Upshaw-Tynes also returned a punt for a measly 10 yards. For the game Keyshawn returned 3 kicks for a combined 213 yards and 2 touchdowns.

USports Players of the Week

Both uOttawa and Carleton had players honoured by the OUA earlier this week who then went on to be be named players of the week nationally by USports on August 31st.

Defensive Player of the Week – Shaiheem Charles-Brown, Carleton

A record-setting opening game performance for Carleton University defensive lineman Shaiheem Charles-Brown earns him the nod as U SPORTS Defensive Player of the Week.

The senior Psychology student from Montreal made himself at home in the McMaster backfield, recording a school-record four sacks in the contest. The final sack of Marauders quarterback Andreas Dueck came late in the fourth period forcing McMaster into a late-game charge third and long situation that resulted in an interception as Carleton held on for a 24-18 victory.

Charles-Brown was in REDBLACKS training camp this past spring. This is a good start to ensuring that he gets another shot with someone in 2023. 

Special Teams Player of the Week – Campbell Fair, Ottawa

Veteran kicker Campbell Fair accounted for 13 of his team’s 19 points, including the winning field goal with seven ticks remaining in regulation time as the Ottawa Gee-Gees defeated Windsor 19-16 en route to earning the U SPORTS Football special teams player of the week award.

The fourth-year Arts student from Carrying Place, Ont. was four of six in field goal attempts including a pair from beyond 40-yards as he established his longest field goal in his career connecting from 46 yards in the second quarter. He would add 234 yards on six punts to his game totals.  

Sooners LB Quinton Hodgson named OFC Defensive Player of the Week

The Ontario Football Conference announced it's Players of the Week earlier a couple of days ago and Ottawa Sooners linebacker Quinton Hodgson was among those honoured.  

In an upset win on the road in Hamilton there was no bigger play than the 85 yard fumble return for a touchdown by Quinton Hodgson. The fumble return for a touchdown by the Ottawa linebacker took what was going to be sure points for the Hurricanes and turned it into a 7 point lead for Ottawa that proved to be the difference in this hard fought battle. Hodgson also contributed an additional 3 tackles on the day.

The Sooners are currently 2-1 and their defeat of the Hamilton Hurricanes on the road, by a score of 28-21, enabled them to crack the CJFL's power rankings at #10. 

Dec. 14th, 1944: Joe Asquini is Awarded the Gerry Boucher Trophy

Many years ago, I was contacted through the previous version of this website by a relative of Joe Asquini. The lady in question was looking for more information about Joe's playing days. I tried to help and was ultimately given a gift that exceeded my contributions to the cause.

Since acquiring much better access to old newspapers articles, I've occasionally attempted to get in touch with this lady again to find out if she'd achieved her goal or if there was anything more she was looking for. So far, no luck. 

I was reminded of all this again last night when an article about Mr. Asquini caught my eye. It's taken some time to find it simply because it is from mid-December of 1944. By then most of the football-related activity is over so searches don't extend that late into the year.  

Mr. Asquini was honoured as a high school player at Ottawa Tech prior to joining the Ottawa Rough Riders. The articles about that award are copied below and if his relative is still looking for material, hopefully she stumbles across this post one day and this is something new to add to the collection. 

Scott Alexander Named to Carleton Ravens Hall of Fame

Carleton University named its 2022 Athletics Hall of Fame class on May 12th and it included record-setting Ravens receiver Scott Alexander.

The following information was compiled by Ravens Sports Information.

In an era when football was primarily a running game, wide receiver Scott Alexander began his career with the Ravens in 1969 and set the bar for all other Carleton receivers to be compared. Over four seasons, Alexander rewrote the Carleton record book establishing records that still stand nearly 50 years later.

Alexander graduated as the school’s all-time scoring leader with 134 points, a record that still holds today. He also established Carleton records with ten touchdown catches and 62 points in a single season, as well as touchdowns in a career with 22. His single-season record of 10 touchdown catches and 62 points scored still stands today. Alexander’s 22 touchdowns in a career has been tied twice but remains unbroken. Alexander’s 89-yard touchdown in the 1972 Panda Game remains the longest passing play and touchdown in Panda Game history for either school.

That 89-yard touchdown pass in the 1972 Panda Game actually set the career touchdown record. The clip below is from the October 23rd Ottawa Journal.

So relatively speaking, he ended up shattering the old mark when he reached 22. That the record has not been broken since speaks for itself.  

"Time Heals Wounds as Clair, Rough Riders Make Up"

There weren't many on-field highlights to the 1993 Ottawa Rough Riders season but the naming of the stadium after Frank Clair was a notable one off the field. 

Perhaps scheduling this event when the Doug Flutie-led Calgary Stampeders were in town wasn't the wisest choice. I doubt anyone was particularly stunned when the Stamps went on to spank the Rough Riders 47-22.

But there are far more heinous Glieberman missteps on what is a very long list. Fans got to see a wrong made right by the unlikeliest of sources. 

1945: Arnie McWatters is Awarded the Imperial Oil MVP Award

I'd gradually been putting together a list of the men who have played for the Ottawa Combines/Trojans of the ORFU from 1943 to 1947 prior to that team amalgamating with the Rough Riders.

The list usually only grew in small spurts. Today, I decided to dedicate some time to that task specifically.

I took a longer look at some mid-week articles from September through November of 1945 and 1946 instead of only game summaries from that time range. The mid-week articles often listed injured players being removed from the roster and their potential replacement as teams resumed training. They used the players' full name in doing so. Far too often, game summaries only refer to players by family name. 

Reaching the end of 1945, I landed on the union's MVP award announcement. It was given to Trojans  veteran player/coach Arnie McWatters and that seemed like a notable achievement to record here. I believe McWatters is the only Ottawa recipient of the award but that's hardly shocking since Ottawa was in the ORFU only a short period of time while that award was being handed out. 

McWatters was the most valuable player but was not named to the union's all-star team. Only George Sprague represented Ottawa in that regard. That would suggest that McWatters' coaching ability and sportsmanship were substantial decision influencers in determining his "value".

McWatters' career started in Sarnia but he joined the Rough Riders in 1939, won the Grey Cup with them in 1940, and stayed with the club until it was disbanded after the 1942 season because of WW2. He then joined the Ottawa Combines/Trojans in 1943 and stayed with that club until the aforementioned merger with the Rough Riders prior to the 1948 season. He has coached at both Ottawa universities. 

"REDBLACKS' DeVonte Dedmon crowned CFL's top special teams player"

OTTAWA - Ottawa REDBLACKS standout kick returner DeVonte Dedmon has been named the 2021 John Agro Special Teams Award recipient as the CFL’s most outstanding special teams player.

The awards were announced Friday night in Hamilton during the lead up to Sunday’s Grey Cup game between the Tiger-Cats and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The award, as voted on by his peers, recognizes Dedmon after a breakout season. The 26-year-old racked up a combined 2,841 return yards across punts and kicks, along with three touchdowns in the return game. With his third return major, against the Toronto Argonauts on November 6, Dedmon became the fastest player in CFL history to reach five career return touchdowns, in just 15 games. On offence, he posted 65 rushing yards and a touchdown, to go with 98 receiving yards.

Dedmon was the REDBLACKS’ unanimous nominee for the award. He was named an East Division All-Star upon the conclusion of the regular season.

A native of Williamsburg, Virginia, Dedmon signed a one-year contract extension with the REDBLACKS on November 2, 2021. 

Rodney Estimé, Nathan Clark Named to OUA All-Rookie Team

The OUA named its rookie players of the year earlier today. Rather than list an entire line-up with players from the various programs, it appears they chose to name a single player from each team instead. 

In uOttawa's case, the selection was receiver Rodney Estimé. 

Photo Credit to Spencer Colby / The Charlatan

For Ottawa, Rodney Éstime came out of the gates on a mission, starting his university career with eight catches for 149 yards for an average of almost 19 yards per reception. He would finish the season with averages of five receptions and 70.5 yards per game, ranking sixth in the OUA in both categories. His 13.8 yards per catch and 359 total yards receiving also put the Montreal, Que. native in the top 10.

Defensive lineman Nathan Clark was the selection for Carleton. 

Nathan Clark, a defensive lineman from Kingsley, N.B., first found his footing in one of the biggest games on the university sport calendar, picking up a pair of assisted tackles in the Panda Game. He would chip in another three tackles in his following two games before capping of the regular season with his strongest outing to date (3.5 tackles, 1 tackle for loss).

A couple of names to file away for future seasons! The quoted text above is from the OUA's press release.

"(Alonzo) Addae Named Ronnie Lott Impact Trophy National Defensive Player of the Week"

At the risk of seeming to state the obvious, the Redblacks seemed particularly focused on future seasons with their 2021 draft selection. You can occasionally find guys that will contribute in their draft year but every player chosen by the team this past spring still had college/university eligibility left and was expected to go back to school. 

That includes Alonzo Addae, the team's selection in the second-round. And he appears to be making the most of his additional university experience. He was honoured earlier today for his performance this past weekend against Virginia Tech. 
 

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Alonzo Addae of West Virginia has been named the Lott IMPACT Trophy Player of the Week.

The 5-foot-10, 190-pound safety from Pickering, Ontario, had 10 tackles, including four solo stops and a sack, in the win over Virginia Tech, 27-21.

Addae is a sixth-season senior, having been awarded the extra year due to the NCAA COVID-19 eligibility ruling.

He is the team's third-leading tackler with 17 tackles, including 10 solo stops, one sack, three tackles for loss and a team-leading two pass breakups.

 

He is a Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll student and is working on his master's degree in sport management.

Named after Pro Football Hall of Fame member, Ronnie Lott, The Lott IMPACT® Trophy is awarded to college football's Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. Founded in 2004 by The Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation, The Lott Trophy is the first and only college football award to equally recognize athletic performance and the personal character attributes of the player. 

The Lott IMPACT Trophy is given to the player who exhibits the same characteristics Lott embodied during his distinguished career: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity. Voters for the award include selected members of the national media, previous finalists, the Board of Directors of the Pacific Club IMPACT® Foundation and a distinguished group of former college football head coaches.  

There are no guarantees he'll ever wear a Redblacks uniform and even if he did it may take years for that to come to pass, but it's easy to see why the team was interested in him.

2010: Brad Sinopoli Wins the Hec Crighton Trophy

With today's announcement of Brad Sinopoli's retirement, much of the focus will be on his considerable achievements as a professional player. 

That being the case, I'd like to flashback to when he earned the top award available to a university football player. 

Thanks from the (not so) cheap seats, Mr. Sinopoli! Watching you perform has been a blast!