Montreal Names Mike Sherman as New Coach

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Hambone
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 1:36 am

Hmmmm ... Can't coach high school, but can coach CFL? Moving between college, high school, the CFL and the NFL ... This fan would not say never to any transition and success. But success in one does not mean success in another. Sherman is no guarantee of success in the CFL. Don Matthews was hugely successful in American high schools, and obviously just as successful in the CFL. Tedford has had success in college. His one foray as HC in the CFL did not work out, but it may not all have been on him. One year and out with a 7-11 record.

This CFL fan will be surprised if Kavis shows some good judgment in his capacity as GM.

And whither Anthony Calvillo? Despite all his success as a QB, one always felt he worked in his own bubble. Little interaction with others. He hardly seems of the temperament to be a coach.
Hard to reflect on the high school record without knowing the situation of the school. Sherman is from Boston. Nauset is out on Cape Cod where apparentlyhis parents retired to in the early 90s and he and his wife have lived for several years. Do they have full reign to recruit from afar or are they stuck with whatever kids live in the immediate area? They have however produced a good soccer program.
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JohnnyMusso
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He will really need to study the game to have success. This is a very risky move and if I was a betting man I would bet it will not work. This is what happens when several top candidates did not want the job for some reason and they end up up going off the board and hire an ex NFL & NCCA coach with zero CFL knowledge. I think Kavis will end up picking the coordinators for Sherman will need experienced CFL guys to have any chance. Montreal is a terrible team so they better do some good recruiting to upgrade the talent and get a QB for they do not have a good one.
TheLionKing
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For his sake, Sherman better surround himself with coaches who are familiar with the intricacies of the CFL
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WestCoastJoe
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Hambone wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 10:16 am
WestCoastJoe wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 1:36 am

Hmmmm ... Can't coach high school, but can coach CFL? Moving between college, high school, the CFL and the NFL ... This fan would not say never to any transition and success. But success in one does not mean success in another. Sherman is no guarantee of success in the CFL. Don Matthews was hugely successful in American high schools, and obviously just as successful in the CFL. Tedford has had success in college. His one foray as HC in the CFL did not work out, but it may not all have been on him. One year and out with a 7-11 record.

This CFL fan will be surprised if Kavis shows some good judgment in his capacity as GM.

And whither Anthony Calvillo? Despite all his success as a QB, one always felt he worked in his own bubble. Little interaction with others. He hardly seems of the temperament to be a coach.
Hard to reflect on the high school record without knowing the situation of the school. Sherman is from Boston. Nauset is out on Cape Cod where apparentlyhis parents retired to in the early 90s and he and his wife have lived for several years. Do they have full reign to recruit from afar or are they stuck with whatever kids live in the immediate area? They have however produced a good soccer program.
I was privileged to hear Don Matthews speak at a banquet and to chat with him.

In his quiet way, he spoke about his experience coaching at a number of high schools. In each situation, he took over teams that had lost almost every game. They quickly turned it around and won championships.

Not holding Sherman to the standard set by Matthews. Wishing Sherman well in Montreal and the CFL.
WestCoastJoe wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 9:37 am
This fan kind of likes the hire. Sherman has vast experience and notable success at the pro level. We will see how it shakes out. No guarantees.
As noted earlier, it looks like a pretty good hire.
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JohnnyMusso wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 10:18 am
He will really need to study the game to have success. This is a very risky move and if I was a betting man I would bet it will not work. This is what happens when several top candidates did not want the job for some reason and they end up up going off the board and hire an ex NFL & NCCA coach with zero CFL knowledge. I think Kavis will end up picking the coordinators for Sherman will need experienced CFL guys to have any chance. Montreal is a terrible team so they better do some good recruiting to upgrade the talent and get a QB for they do not have a good one.
I think Dan Hawkins failure and ultimate demise came down to his intractability. The man was unwilling to accept input from those who came before him in the CFL and had no actual desire to adjust to his new surroundings in Montreal. To compound matters he was 2-faced about his willingness to adjust his game planning based on the input of existing Montreal staff. He simply didn’t park his ego at the door, nor did he stifle what I recall as a rather big mouth.

So if Sherman is willing to become a square peg to fit a square hole, then maybe this could work....
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It is always a risk to hire someone without experience in the league, but also sometimes necessary to bring in fresh thinking. Sherman certainly has the experience and pedigree to be successful.

Kavis Reed and the Als' ownership were very thorough in their process and seem to have made a solid choice. Hopefully it works out as I'm not sure that the franchise can afford to lose any more credibility.
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squishy35
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I like this hire by Reed. Sherman is cerebral kind of coach and I believe he will do his due diligence in getting up to speed for the necessary nuances of the Canadian game. I think the players will view him as a players' coach.
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Toppy Vann
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Sherman definitely brings some good coaching experience. I'd put little stock in his HS record unless we know what kind of players he had access to and what his competition was.

I'm not sure of this hire if only because they've have so many failed HC picks in recent years and this guy - like the others credited the process with the owners.

I do like his "trust in the process" and the method of doing things right all the time. That's pure Trestman and we know it failed with the Bears.

Process: details, how they practice and do things etc.

He wants to instill a winning culture.

He has no idea who is starting QB will be - translation - 'we don't have a QB'.

As Jeff Reinbold says there are only some 240 (?) HC jobs in pro football and it's hard to get there and stay there. But his one proviso was you must have a QB or know where to get one, or you won't stay.
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This worked once before with Trestman so maybe lightning can strike twice. One thing that I wonder about is whether he might have some benefits in the area of recruiting. Working at the NFL level and the high school level, it might be that he can tap some contacts in the south and get the inside track on some new young players. The Als certainly could use an infusion of new bodies. They just look old and slow much of the time.
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Hambone
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Sir Purrcival wrote:
Wed Dec 20, 2017 7:42 pm
This worked once before with Trestman so maybe lightning can strike twice. One thing that I wonder about is whether he might have some benefits in the area of recruiting. Working at the NFL level and the high school level, it might be that he can tap some contacts in the south and get the inside track on some new young players. The Als certainly could use an infusion of new bodies. They just look old and slow much of the time.
I think everybody who has been in the game for 30+ years has an amazing network of contacts. Ackles talked in his book about how he always answered the phone or returned calls from anybody and everybody in the football world. Even if he couldn't help the person at that particular moment it was a new contact who might be able to help him in the future. Sports is a fraternity. Whether it's a player you want info on or a player who is looking for opportunity even if you don't have a direct contact odds are you know somebody who knows somebody else who does know the player.
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Sir Purrcival
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I was just speculating as to why the Als would so definitively go with someone who doesn't appear to know the Canadian game that well. What might be an advantage over a Mark Washington for example, or even an older coach who had spent much of the last 30 years in the CFL rather than in the lower 48? For a team that has been on a downward slide for the last 5 years, they appear to be taking a large chance on a relative unknown in the CFL.
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David
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Prediction time:

Johnny Manziel's rights will be traded to the Als (if Hamilton is smart they will keep Jermiah Masoli. That kid is the real deal). Manziel will be the Als starting quarterback when they kick off the regular season in Vancouver against the Lions.

This game will generate some really strong buzz (ex-NFL bad boy makes his CFL debut). We will have a good crowd on hand, but it won't be a lower-bowl sellout.


DH :cool:
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Dusty
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What is surprising to me is that Sherman's name came up only at the last minute of their process (even though they said he was a front runner from the onset), which indicates that Kavis and Mack have some tight controls within the organization . They did not use media reporters to leak the choice, preferring to keep it very quiet almost up to the "unveiling".....

I suspect that Ed Hervey will do the same thing since he made the point that "The Club" should be the first source of news, not leaks to specific reporters....
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CardiacKid
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David wrote:
Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:42 am
Prediction time:

Johnny Manziel's rights will be traded to the Als (if Hamilton is smart they will keep Jermiah Masoli. That kid is the real deal). Manziel will be the Als starting quarterback when they kick off the regular season in Vancouver against the Lions.

This game will generate some really strong buzz (ex-NFL bad boy makes his CFL debut). We will have a good crowd on hand, but it won't be a lower-bowl sellout.


DH :cool:
They (the Als) better be prepared to lock Manziel away in a Franciscan mission in the remotest region of the Gaspe for the bulk of 2018. The little big tubby needs to shed some weight....
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Hambone
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CardiacKid wrote:
Thu Dec 21, 2017 9:53 am
David wrote:
Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:42 am
Prediction time:

Johnny Manziel's rights will be traded to the Als (if Hamilton is smart they will keep Jermiah Masoli. That kid is the real deal). Manziel will be the Als starting quarterback when they kick off the regular season in Vancouver against the Lions.

This game will generate some really strong buzz
(ex-NFL bad boy makes his CFL debut). We will have a good crowd on hand, but it won't be a lower-bowl sellout.


DH :cool:
They (the Als) better be prepared to lock Manziel away in a Franciscan mission in the remotest region of the Gaspe for the bulk of 2018. The little big tubby needs to shed some weight....
Lol. For a noted party animal can there be any better place to be in Canada than Montreal?
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
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