Edmonton's Jones set to take on Buono
(Vancouver, BC: July 3rd, 2007) Edmonton Wildcat Tristan Jones is about to make his dream of playing professional football take a step closer to reality. As the son of former Edmonton Eskimo great Milson Jones, Tristan along with his younger brother Devon, have created a stir on the national junior football circuit. Even though Tristan has one more year of junior eligibility left, he still is focused on achieving his life long dream of playing professional football. On Friday Evening, September 14th, Tristan Jones will be honored at the Canadian Football Hall of Fame Induction Dinner as the 2007 Wally Buono Award Winner for Canada's Most Outstanding Junior Player. "It's exciting to win this award and it hasn't really sunk in as of yet. Wally Buono is a legend and to even be attached to this award is hard to comprehend at this moment. There are a lot of people I have to thank for helping me get to where I am today. I have to start with my family especially my brother for pushing me to become better every single day. Both on and off the field, he always has my back. I couldn't do it without him" stated Tristan Jones.
The new WBA Bronze trophy will be unveiled and presented to Jones at the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton, Ontario. Jones will be seated at the head table with former CFL greats Greg Battle, Darren Flutie, Rocco Romano and Pierre Vercheval. Along with coaching legend, Dave "Tuffy" Knight, the CFL players will be honored as the 2007 Canadian Football Hall of Fame Inductees.
Jones' selection comes as no surprise to many within the junior football community as he has broken a string of junior football records this past year. "I was fortunate enough to see Tristan in person on several occasions and he is a remarkable runningback. I even went as far as to run his father's game film side by side with his and the comparison was more than I expected. Both Tristan and Devon have many of Milson's attributes and skills" stated Christina Saint Marche who submitted Tristan to Wally Buono as a candidate for the WBA. "The difference between Milson and his sons is that the boys have become students of the game. Tristan has mastered the fundamentals of his position. He has great peripheral vision as he hits the hole. He is not afraid to make adjustments when the opening is not there. He has great instincts as a runner." commented Saint Marche.
The Wally Buono award is a national award which will be housed in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame and Museum in a soon to be built exhibit for junior football. The new bronze trophy which is replacing the 64 pound hammered glass trophy is the only award that takes into consideration all junior players on a national basis. The Canadian Football Hall of Fame and Museum will be the caretakers of the new bronze trophy in perpetuity. The award was established in 2003 by The Saint Bernard Pass Charitable Foundation for the purpose of recognizing such a player on a national basis. It is in it's fifth year of presentation.
Recipients of the Wally Buono Award must prove their athletic and leadership ability on the field as well as a high level of leadership within their community. Previous recipients have included 2003 winner, Al Giacalone of Calgary, Alberta. In 2004, Chris Ciezki of Edmonton, Alberta was awarded the Wally Buono Award. In 2005, the award went to Jeff Halvorson of the Okanagan Sun Junior Football Club as the third winner of the Wally Buono Award. Known as the fastest man in junior football, Jeff died suddenly on the practice field on the first of September 2004, just before the end of a practice session. Halvorson was well on his way to breaking several national junior football rushing records himself at that time. Quarterback Nate Friesen was the 2006 winner and he is a member of the Manitoba Bisons.
Wally Buono, who presides over the award that bares his name, enters his fifth season as the Lions general manager and head coach. Over the past four seasons, Buono has led the Lions to four consecutive playoff appearances and three consecutive first-place regular season finishes as well as a Grey Cup Championship in 2006. Over a 17-year coaching career, Buono has led his clubs to ten division titles and four Grey Cup championships. Highly-respected among coaching peers, he has amassed a regular season record of 202-102-2, putting him second only to Don Matthews in all-time CFL wins. His consistency and success have been recognized with the CFL's Coach of the Year award in 2006, 1992 and 1993.
Born in Potenza, Italy, in 1950, Wally moved to Canada in 1953 with his family, later playing minor football in Montreal. He attended Idaho State University and was a linebacker for the Bengals. Wally returned to Canada and played 10 seasons with the Montreal Alouettes as a linebacker, appearing in 152 games. Shortly after his retirement, Wally tried his hand at coaching, landing an assistant position with the Montreal organization in 1983. Four years later, Wally found himself in Calgary where he worked under Larry Kuharich until 1990 when Stamps' President Norman Kwong hired him as head coach of the Stamps.
Aside from being an accomplished CFL coach, Wally is a noted contributor to the community, being recognized for his work with the Paul Harris award in 2001. Wally continues to donate a significant amount of time as an ambassador of the Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation and as a spokesperson for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
After being diagnosed with angina in 2004, Wally has been spokesperson for Making the Connection TM, a program dedicated to the ongoing education of Canadians about the dangers of high cholesterol and its link to heart disease. Wally is also actively involved with Operation Christmas Child, giving presents of clothing and toys to children of impoverished nations.
Wally and his wife Sande have four children, Amy, Dana, Christie and Michael and one grandchild Jonah.
Tristan Jones Achievements 2006:
2006 CJFL All Canadian Runningback
2006 CJFL All Canadian Offensive Player of the Year
2006 PFC Offensive Back of the Year
2006 PFC Most Valuable Player
2006 PFC Offensive Player of the Year
For Press Release Information Contact:
R. Chance Saint-Marche'
Signature Entertainment Corp
"The Official Cinematographers of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame"
(514)448-2173
chance@saintmarche.co.uk
