Head Coach - Lions announce Jeff Tedford as 2015 HC

[cromartie]

Can we just fast forward to the introductory press conference with Paul LaPolice and save ourselves some time and bandwidth?

[Toppy Vann]

The thought that Hufnagel exits as HC to keep Dave D is incredibly naive thinking as no one is about to stop doing what they like to do to let someone else take it on.

If he decides to step down as HC it will be for his own reasons.

Wally and Benny spun the removal of Stubler to keep Washington and it's spin.

There is a huge part of me that suggests Dave D is not that driven to be a HC that he'd even want to work for Wally. But he seems to have a good working rapport with Hufnagel and they both say the same things about players in the news. But unlike Junior Wally, no one i have heard says Dave is Junior John Hufnagel.

He is not all about the money and he seems to have managed his pro career and money pretty well. I am sure he is well paid by OC standards.
Ambition he might have but he is not one to let himself be consumed by it.

Now I don't like to say I told you so but...this suggests my take on Dickenson from prior media reports and quotes is fairly spot on:

Loyalty and lifestyle, Dickenson said, rank above just about any scenario.

“I’ve kind of given my wife a little more say on where we get to live,” Dickenson said. “I want to be a head coach. If it falls to me at one point in my career, great. But I’m not as motivated to be at the top of the ladder.”

If it means he must continue to work the final two seasons of his contract under Calgary coach John Hufnagel, he’ll wait.

“My decisions are based more on family life and things that aren’t involving football. I love where I’m at; why do I need to change all that?”

http://www.theprovince.com/sports/have+ ... ederated=1


As far as let's roll out the welcome mat and welcome Lapo as new HC let's just say there had better be a process before that happens.

The LIONS need to get GC done this week and then generate some fan interest and the first thing I want to hear is what Wally's detailed process is going to be and what he really is looking for. Knocking Garcia out of the hunt as WB sorta seemed to suggest (but that is a bit of a stretch on my part ) is not generating fan interest.

More of the same like anointing another Benny is not going to get a different or better result.

[MexicoLionFan]

Definitely, you can't train really hard and play your best at the same time. Especially the older guys. That's why off-season conditioning is so important.

During the season, the emphasis should be on skills, strategy and execution. Players need to recover between games, not beat each other to a pulp or be run ragged during midweek practices.

EXACTLY, Both Joe and RB are bang on with their comments...practise is about preparation and FOCUS, not hitting and gassing players...that stuff is JUVENILLE, this is supposed to be PROFESSIONAL. That was biggest concern for me with MB, he didn't seem to understand these things...too often treating the players like children, not MEN. Men are held are taught, trained and then held accountable...children show up late, pout, fight and are undisciplined...sound like this year's Lions? It reflects on the coaching. This another reason why I would like to see Jeff Garcia hired, he has played under the best systems in football, where intelligence, repetition at game speed, and accountability are what counts!

We MUST move away from where we have been and it starts with the interviews for the new HC...questions, questions...lots of questions...how do you structure your practices and WHY? What do you hope to gain from weekly practices during the season? Candidates must show this intelligence in preparation throughout their interview!

[WestCoastJoe]

It would appear that the history of two franchises changed on the day in late 2007 when the Lions cut the quarterback that Calgary was only too happy to take back.

True that.

“I’ve kind of given my wife a little more say on where we get to live,” Dickenson said. “I want to be a head coach. If it falls to me at one point in my career, great. But I’m not as motivated to be at the top of the ladder.”

If it means he must continue to work the final two seasons of his contract under Calgary coach John Hufnagel, he’ll wait.

“My decisions are based more on family life and things that aren’t involving football. I love where I’m at; why do I need to change all that?”

Temptation may still be in the future of the most-sought coach in the CFL, who has been linked to at least three other job openings in recent years. Would a blank cheque signed by Lions owner David Braley change his outlook?

“I’m not saying there’s not something that wouldn’t entice you,” said Dickenson. “But I’m saying me and Huf have an agreement and we’re staying with it.”

One more thing ... Can words be taken at face value? I recall when Dave D was still playing, he was asked about coaching when he retired as a QB. He answered that he had no interest in coaching. (It would be on this website back in the day.)

So, approach him, and "make him an offer he can't refuse."

[WestCoastJoe]

Cam Cole: Grey Cup takes precedence over all things CFL

BY CAM COLE, POSTMEDIA NEWS COLUMNIST NOVEMBER 27, 2014

VANCOUVER - It is Grey Cup week, and Wally Buono isn’t talking.

He isn’t talking on the record, off the record, for background, or issuing non-denial denials about potential candidates for the B.C. Lions’ head coaching job.

“Call me Monday or Tuesday,” he said. “The CFL has rules against anything that isn’t about the Grey Cup this week.”

He says he once got fined by the league when a football writer penned a column during Grey Cup week speculating what the Lions GM might possibly be thinking, without quoting Buono or talking to him. Even that was verboten.

So we’re not going to speculate, either, because heaven knows Wally can’t afford another fine.

However, since the job is open and at least two fellows who would be on anyone’s list of potential youngish head coaching candidates are on the staffs of the Grey Cup teams --- Hamilton defensive co-ordinator Orlondo Steinauer and Calgary offensive co-ordinator Dave Dickenson --- it’s almost like talking about the Grey Cup, right, Wally?

“Can’t do it,” he said, en route to get credentialed for the CFL Player Awards.

Well, that was substantially Steinauer’s response at the Ticats’ breakfast with the media Thursday morning, and Dickenson, the former B.C. quarterback who would have had the Lions’ job yesterday if he hadn’t been anointed John Hufnagel’s head coach of tomorrow with the Stampeders, spent more time at addressing it during Calgary’s luncheon interview session in the afternoon, but the message was substantially the same.

“Well, thanks for starting with the easy question, appreciate that,” Dickenson said. “My answer today is, not interested in talking about it. I’m going to be back in Calgary next year. It’s going to be the same answer tomorrow, same answer next week.”

“I think last year, when Dave signed a long-term contract with the Calgary Stampeders, it was pretty self-explanatory,” said Hufnagel, who might --- might –-- kick himself upstairs if the Stamps were to win Sunday.

Or he might not. Either way, Dickenson said, he’s in no hurry.

“I think Huf can do more than two (more years). I really am OK with that,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of things about being co-ordinator that are more fun than the head coaching job. The salary is the one thing that’s maybe not as fun.”

And still, breaking the bank to try to get him wouldn’t be the whole answer. He has listened to offers before, including for the coaching job Kent Austin has now, though probably not the other two hats Austin wears in Hamilton.

Dickenson, it should be said, is one of the CFL’s most engaging personalities, and he clearly is a superb offensive play-caller.

Maybe that’s why there’s such a groundswell of opinion that the Lions ought to make him an offer he can’t refuse.

Only thing is, he sounds as though he would refuse it, anyway.

“You guys know me,” he said. “My decisions are based more on family life. I love where I’m at.”

Loves being near Montana, where he grew up and won a national championship in college.

The decision not to listen to what the Lions might offer has nothing to do, he said, with any hard feelings from how he and the club parted ways in 2007, a year after winning the Grey Cup.

“Oh, no, no, I loved it here, and still have good feelings with Wally,” Dickenson said. “But I’m a very loyal person and I think Huf alluded to this: I gave him my word, and when I sign a contract, I’m honoring that. I think it’s very unfair when you give someone your word to just decide the grass is greener on the other side and move.”

All that said, if there’s one reason any established co-ordinator might balk at the B.C. job, it’s that there is a world of uncertainty about whether there’ll be a legitimate quarterback here in 2014. One that can last beyond the first hard hit, anyway. Travis Lulay might not.

Still, someone’s going to accept the job. Buono has had expressions of interest “globally,” he admitted, a while back.

“The reality is, there’s 41 jobs as head coach of a professional football team in the world,” said Ticats special teams coach Jeff Reinebold, who’s been a head coach in Winnipeg and defensive co-ordinator in B.C. among his myriad of postings.

“So when one of those comes available, everybody in this business that aspires to that dream, their ears perk up.

“You get to a point where you wonder if it’s ever going to happen and then a job comes open, and … you know, I respect so much guys like (Edmonton’s) Chris Jones and Dave Dickenson who’ve maintained they were not going to take a job unless it was a purrfect fit.

“I didn’t have that kind of (good) sense. I was probably too emotional about it when I took the job in Winnipeg. I wanted to be a head coach. I believed at that time that I could outwork any problem.”

What he learned, he said, he would happily pass on to whoever might be thinking about the B.C. job, or any job.

“Looking back on it now, and I’ve talked to Orlondo about this because I’m sure he’s going to get the opportunity very soon: No. 1, you better have a quarterback or access to one, because you can’t win in this league without one,” Reinebold said. “And two, go someplace where there’s a structure in place to get you players, where you can work hand-in-hand with the GM, or however they structure it.

“That didn’t happen in my case. So it was destined to fail. I loved my time in Winnipeg, but the reality of it is, you don’t get very many second chances in this business.”

So Dickenson is smart to stay put. That doesn’t solve Wally Buono’s problem, but in both the short and long term, it’s darned good for the Stampeders.

Meanwhile, in Grey Cup news …

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Cole ... z3KNytguap

[WestCoastJoe]

“The reality is, there’s 41 jobs as head coach of a professional football team in the world,” said Ticats special teams coach Jeff Reinebold, who’s been a head coach in Winnipeg and defensive co-ordinator in B.C. among his myriad of postings.

“So when one of those comes available, everybody in this business that aspires to that dream, their ears perk up.

“You get to a point where you wonder if it’s ever going to happen and then a job comes open, and … you know, I respect so much guys like (Edmonton’s) Chris Jones and Dave Dickenson who’ve maintained they were not going to take a job unless it was a purrfect fit.

“I didn’t have that kind of (good) sense. I was probably too emotional about it when I took the job in Winnipeg. I wanted to be a head coach. I believed at that time that I could outwork any problem.”

What he learned, he said, he would happily pass on to whoever might be thinking about the B.C. job, or any job.

“Looking back on it now, and I’ve talked to Orlondo about this because I’m sure he’s going to get the opportunity very soon: No. 1, you better have a quarterback or access to one, because you can’t win in this league without one,” Reinebold said. “And two, go someplace where there’s a structure in place to get you players, where you can work hand-in-hand with the GM, or however they structure it.

“That didn’t happen in my case. So it was destined to fail. I loved my time in Winnipeg, but the reality of it is, you don’t get very many second chances in this business.”

So Dickenson is smart to stay put. That doesn’t solve Wally Buono’s problem, but in both the short and long term, it’s darned good for the Stampeders.

Reinebold was a smart acquisition by the TiCats. Helluva special teams coach. He can rally the troops.

"you better have a quarterback ... because you can't win in this league without one" ... As it happens, both Calgary and Hamilton have two quarterbacks each. Developed in house. In Collaros' case, with some help from Scott Milanovich.

Yes, one could say Dickenson would be smart to stay put in Calgary.

Wally's problem? We will see how that goes.

[ziggy]

A lot of who shouldn't be a Head Coach on here! Who should be?

[B.C.FAN]

Wally was on Team 1040 with Sekeres and Price at 11 a.m. Friday and said the biggest factor for him in searching for a head coach is personality. I forget the term he used but he suggested that they're worked hard as an organization to build team character, and they got away from that this year. I missed the end of the interview but it may be available as a podcast later.

[TheLionKing]

“I didn’t have that kind of (good) sense. I was probably too emotional about it when I took the job in Winnipeg. I wanted to be a head coach. I believed at that time that I could outwork any problem.”

Jeff Garcia, take note.

[Rammer]

“The reality is, there’s 41 jobs as head coach of a professional football team in the world,” said Ticats special teams coach Jeff Reinebold, who’s been a head coach in Winnipeg and defensive co-ordinator in B.C. among his myriad of postings.

“So when one of those comes available, everybody in this business that aspires to that dream, their ears perk up.

“You get to a point where you wonder if it’s ever going to happen and then a job comes open, and … you know, I respect so much guys like (Edmonton’s) Chris Jones and Dave Dickenson who’ve maintained they were not going to take a job unless it was a purrfect fit.

“I didn’t have that kind of (good) sense. I was probably too emotional about it when I took the job in Winnipeg. I wanted to be a head coach. I believed at that time that I could outwork any problem.”

What he learned, he said, he would happily pass on to whoever might be thinking about the B.C. job, or any job.

“Looking back on it now, and I’ve talked to Orlondo about this because I’m sure he’s going to get the opportunity very soon: No. 1, you better have a quarterback or access to one, because you can’t win in this league without one,” Reinebold said. “And two, go someplace where there’s a structure in place to get you players, where you can work hand-in-hand with the GM, or however they structure it.

“That didn’t happen in my case. So it was destined to fail. I loved my time in Winnipeg, but the reality of it is, you don’t get very many second chances in this business.”

So Dickenson is smart to stay put. That doesn’t solve Wally Buono’s problem, but in both the short and long term, it’s darned good for the Stampeders.

Reinebold was a smart acquisition by the TiCats. Helluva special teams coach. He can rally the troops.

"you better have a quarterback ... because you can't win in this league without one" ... As it happens, both Calgary and Hamilton have two quarterbacks each. Developed in house. In Collaros' case, with some help from Scott Milanovich.

Yes, one could say Dickenson would be smart to stay put in Calgary.

Wally's problem? We will see how that goes.

I am happy to see Reinebold's Winnipeg tenure being applied to a potential new HC for the Lions, as his HC time for the Bombers was a little too loose even for that time period. Now had it worked out for him, it may have set a snowball effect for the CFL to be exactly what the XFL wanted to have, pure entertainment both on the field and off of it.

IMO, having a Reinebold type coach on the staff is great if you can handle him, he is sure to give the HC support while putting up his own opinion. Plus he lives football with a wide background to draw from. Just don't let him be HC of the Lions please. Plus I don't think that he is a Wally type coach, which has it's good and bad factors in this search for a new coaching staff.

[WestCoastJoe]

Reinebold was a smart acquisition by the TiCats. Helluva special teams coach. He can rally the troops.

"you better have a quarterback ... because you can't win in this league without one" ... As it happens, both Calgary and Hamilton have two quarterbacks each. Developed in house. In Collaros' case, with some help from Scott Milanovich.

Yes, one could say Dickenson would be smart to stay put in Calgary.

Wally's problem? We will see how that goes.

I am happy to see Reinebold's Winnipeg tenure being applied to a potential new HC for the Lions, as his HC time for the Bombers was a little too loose even for that time period. Now had it worked out for him, it may have set a snowball effect for the CFL to be exactly what the XFL wanted to have, pure entertainment both on the field and off of it.

IMO, having a Reinebold type coach on the staff is great if you can handle him, he is sure to give the HC support while putting up his own opinion. Plus he lives football with a wide background to draw from. Just don't let him be HC of the Lions please. Plus I don't think that he is a Wally type coach, which has it's good and bad factors in this search for a new coaching staff.

It seems clear Jeff Reinebold knows his first and last CFL HC opportunity came and went in Winnipeg.

He is about as far from Wally's preferred personality type as one can get, it seems to me.

With Hamilton, under the leadership of Austin, all is good with Reinebold. I wish him well.

As Toppy noted, it will be interesting to hear of the Lions' detailed hiring process after the Grey Cup. And it had better be detailed.

[Blitz]

Wally was on Team 1040 with Sekeres and Price at 11 a.m. Friday and said the biggest factor for him in searching for a head coach is personality. I forget the term he used but he suggested that they're worked hard as an organization to build team character, and they got away from that this year. I missed the end of the interview but it may be available as a podcast later.

Yes, Wally is looking at "personality". But what does 'personality' mean to Wally. Does that mean he wants a 'personality' that will defer to Wally in terms of personell decisions, look up to Wally as a 'living legend', and view Wally as the 'all knowing 'mentor'.

Wally stepped down as Head Coach, after a winning Grey Cup season. But it was not all roses between 2008 and the start of 2011 and there were many calling for Wally's head in 2010 and early 2011. Everything went right in those last 11 games of 2011 and the playoffs and Wally, no fool, walked away a winner, when that was not looking as the likley scenario.

Benevedes was always Wally's hand picked successor. Chapdelaine, who had been our offensive coordinator, when we won the Grey Cup in 2006, left at the end of that season because he knew that he would never get a chance to succeed Wally. Benevedes, our special teams coordinator was the chosen one. That was always the succession plan. The question is why?

What was so special about Mike Benevedes? I guess he had the right 'personality' for Wally. However, how about looking for a more important hiring attribute? It's called leadership. Something we didn't get from Benevedes. But why would Wally hire a leader? That's not what he is looking for. He is the 'leader' and the HC job is to be the 'follower'. That might work out great for Wally but it doesn't work out great for the players or the fans.

I find it interesting to see which ex-players get the chance to coach. It's never the Carl Kidd's or the Korey Banks - players who were viewed as leaders by the players when they played. The two players, who were viewed as leaders when they played for our Leos and became coaches - Barrin Miles and Jarious Jackson - have left.

One thing that has to change is how we treat our veteran players. Yes, sometimes its good to be one year ahead of the curve when it comes to releasing or trading a veteran. But too many star veterans leave our Leos bitter. Jason Clermont, Dave Dickenson, Geroy Simon, Korey Banks, and now Dante Marsh will leave our Leos organization with a very bitter pill in their mouth. No wonder we have trouble signing free agents. That's not the way we used to do it - we found places for our ex-stars like Jimmy Young, Lui Passaglia, and Jamie Taris.

I'm surprised that some thought Dickenson might want to come to B.C. as the HC. It's easy to forget that Wally was ready to dump Dickenson at the end of 2005 for Printers or that Dickenson left bitter at the end of 2007. Dickenson often chafed under Wally and at one time, while playing quarterback here, to the media that 'he played for his teammates and not Wally. Dickenson would not have come here to have Wally tell him which players to play. He was and is still too much of a leader for that.

I look at Calgary's coaching lineup this season - Hufnagel, Dickenson and Stubler. I compare that with Benevedes, Washington and Khari Jones. No wonder why Calgary is playing in the Grey Cup and we are not. We would have had a much better season if we had Stubler and Chap as assistants because at least they had expectations for players at practices and during games while Benevedes either ranted or belly bumped or looked for deals for ice cream treats.

I remember well the 'love in' way too many sports writers and media types had in 2012, as we got all kinds of corny feel good stories about the relationship between Benevedes and Buono. I was wondering if the Leos publicicy department was going to create a movie about Benevedes admiring Buono while Buono talked about his protege in glowing terms - I was waiting for them to announce that Carl Malden and Michael Douglas were going to be the actors chosen.

Buono gave Benevedes a two year extension. He had no intention of firing Benevedes if Benevedes would have just kept the Montreal game close, even if we lost, The injuries were going to be the excuse. But after getting destroyed in our last two regular season games and then blown out so badly by Montreal there was no way that Wally was going to be able to retain Benevedes. If he had chosen to do so, he was putting his own job in jeapordy and there was no way Wally was going to do that. So he had to say good bye to the guy who thought the sun shone on Wally, the guy that he had mentored, and the guy who he could tell which players to play and which players to discipline and how. Not easy to give up that kind of control.

But the fans deserved a true leader as a Head Coach. So do the players. The question is "Will we get a "true leader" or is "personality" a Wally code word for hiring a future Head Coach who will be easy for Wally to control?

Who we hire will be most interesting and whether that future Head Coach will be able to hire his own assistants.

[TheLionKing]

I am shocked that personality rank so high on Buono's hiring criteria. One would think it would be experience and ability to adjust on the go

[Rammer]

I am shocked that personality rank so high on Buono's hiring criteria. One would think it would be experience and ability to adjust on the go

Any potential coach coming in better use the word 'execute' for him.

[DanoT]

I am shocked that personality rank so high on Buono's hiring criteria. One would think it would be experience and ability to adjust on the go

Any potential coach coming in better use the word 'execute' for him.

IMO, I wouldn't get too wound up by Wally's use of the word "personality". The coaching fraternity in the CFL is just that. The CFL is small enough that the coaches see a lot of each other and get to know each other. They get to know who they like or don't and who they can get along with and work with.