Wally named coach of the year

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TheFanWithTheFlag
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Wally named 2011 coach of the year according to bc lions.com
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Toppy Vann
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Congratulations. This was deserved and expected.

While I thought it was a deserving based on the season it has to feel special and be good for the CFL that it was his last year as HC. I suspect thought they voted for him for the turnaround and winning the GC and the last year had nothing to do with the vote - it didn't need to be like that anyway to win. His team was in the tank and their turnaround was the stuff they make movies of. Remarkable. If any other of the finalists had won it would have been a bit of a travesty given what BC did.

I still shudder at the decision the voters made to give Jim Barker that honour for a mediocre 9 and 9. That was a vote for the Argo turnaround and for the wrong reasons. This year they got it right. They voted the best coach for the remarkable season which began badly but finished with a Grey Cup.

Great story and good comments from Lapo and Reed. It would not have been to the good work these other two coaches did though to have scooped the award from Wally's hands. Their comments are gracious and spot on.

Wally got 45/56 votes. They got it right.

Some good philosophy from Wally there - right back to Marv Levy another football guy who deserves respect.

Also the TSN clips with Wally are good. Wally talks of how they approached the disaster to start the season. This is the most candid and incisive I have ever seen from Wally. Very good must see video.
Last edited by Toppy Vann on Fri Mar 02, 2012 5:31 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"Ability without character will lose." - Marv Levy
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TheFanWithTheFlag
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VANCOUVER — Being a gracious sort of fellow, one assumes that in accepting the Annis Stukus Trophy in Toronto on Friday as the CFL’s 2011 coach of the year, Wally Buono gave credit where it was due.

Something along the lines of: “I would like to thank my general manager for not tying the can to me when we were 1-6, because any other boss but mine might have lost faith. So I share this award, not only with the players and assistant coaches, and with our owner David Braley and president Dennis Skulsky, but with the man who made it all possible: Me.”

Of course, he’d never say that.

It’s probably true enough, though. Wally Buono didn’t get fired in July, and survived to engineer the greatest turnaround in CFL history, primarily because his immediate superior was Wally Buono. And when all was said and done, he knew darned well that the guy in the mirror was the man best suited to dig the B.C. Lions out of the mess they had made of their first seven games.

Not that he didn’t have some doubts about that.

“In my mind? Of course. If you’re going to be honest with yourself, how can you not go through that?” Buono said Friday evening, the award luncheon behind him and his mind already on the CFL’s weekend evaluation camp.

“If I’m saying to you, ‘Everybody’s the problem but me’, guess who’s the problem? I had to examine that.

“Did we think of making changes? Sure, we had to. But what you do in the boardroom and what you come out with are two different things sometimes.

“Fortunately we stayed the course. The greatest coach I’ve been around, Marv Levy, always believed that you pick your team at training camp and you stick with it. You make your moves in the off-season when there’s no emotion.”

At 1-6, there was far too much emotion floating around, waiting to combust. Cooler heads prevailed, and the coolest of all was on Buono’s old linebacker shoulders.

His patience, stubbornness, and belief in the Lions leaders and coaching staff were all put to the test, and in the end — with a rediscovered snarl on defence and an MVP season from quarterback Travis Lulay — the club won 12 of its last 13 games, blowing out the defending champion Montreal Alouettes in the regular-season finale, annihilating Edmonton in the West final, and outlasting the tough Winnipeg Blue Bombers 34-23 in the Grey Cup.

It was Buono’s fifth Cup win, in his final game as coach. The 62-year-old native of Potenza, Italy, moved aside to become general manager and vice-president of football operations in December, leaving defensive coordinator Mike Benevides in charge of the sidelines.

In 22 seasons as a CFL head coach, Buono guided his teams to 18 division finals and nine Grey Cups — yet until the Lions won in November, he was exactly .500 in the big ones, which just shows how hard it is to control what’s on the field once that pointy-ended ball starts to bounce.

Getting there that often, though, is his monument. But this was no lifetime achievement award.

Bombers coach Paul LaPolice and Eskimos’ Kavis Reed were also finalists for the trophy, but Buono nabbed 45 of the 56 first-place votes from members of the Football Reporters of Canada.

The voters don’t always get it right — Hugh Campbell won five straight Grey Cups with the Eskimos, but only once won the coaching award — but let the record show that the two most decorated Stukus winners are Don Matthews (five times) and Buono (four), and they are also the league’s two winningest head coaches; Buono (254-139-3, .645) surpassing Matthews in 2009.

“Look, it’s an eight-team league, somebody’s got to win it. You should win (a Grey Cup) every 10 years, at least,” Buono said, laughing at the idea that he had his best-ever coaching season.

“I’ve been 15-3 three times, been 14-4 twice. To be honest, I probably coached better those years,” he said. “But being a good coach, doing a good job, isn’t always rewarded by winning. Or by winning a championship.

“What I’m proud of, both players and organization, is that there were no rats jumping off the sinking ship when we were 1-6. No cloak and dagger. The coaches didn’t turn on the players, which believe me sometimes occurs, and when it does, you’ve got no chance.

“When we were in the quagmire, we were all in it. The smell was tough to deal with, but the guys came back every week, and I don’t know how they did it, they were upbeat, motivated and worked hard to improve things. It didn’t get improved all of a sudden.

“I think it’s leadership, it’s good character, it’s what is good about sports: the locker-room where guys like each other.”

Buono almost stepped down a year ago, thought hard about it, but rejected the idea because he thought the ripple effect would disrupt the Lions’ best chance to win the Grey Cup in their hometown.

That Cup no doubt means a lot more to him than another coach of the year bauble, but the Stukus award puts an exclamation point on an exit so purrfect, it’s almost poetic.

“Honestly, I’m not sure that if we weren’t 1-6, we could have won,” he said.

“Men always react better when they’re under pressure. The adrenalin from that makes you better. The 15-3 teams (in Calgary), unfortunately, I could not sustain the pressure. The record wouldn’t allow it. We could pretend. We did pretend. But it wasn’t there.

“But this 1-6 team knew it could not relax — ever. It made them mentally tougher. Made the coaches tougher, too.”

He no longer includes himself among them. The game will miss him.

Vancouver Sun

ccole@vancouversun.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun


Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Wall ... z1o0rcMHDt
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MexicoLionFan
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A Hollywood ending to Wally's coaching career...and I love the way he has started his career as GM ONLY...

Congrats to Wally and his family...he could not have done this all alone!
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WestCoastJoe
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“I am honoured and humbled to be named Coach of the Year,” said Buono, now the club’s vice president of football operations and GM. “While this award is bestowed upon an individual, it is the combined work of coaches, players and support staff and I am very grateful of their efforts.”
:thup:
“Bob did it the right way,” Buono said. “He was always around, but he was never visible. Bob would always listen to the press conferences because your job is to evaluate all aspects of football operations. Bob and I used to talk about the fact he might have to fire me someday. As such, even though we were good friends, we both understood that was part of our responsibilities.”

“The uniqueness of last year were the decisions that were all built on the premise of winning the championship at home,” said Buono, who was busy as a member of the league’s rules committee which met in Toronto on Thursday.

“We sat down in the off-season and evaluated training camp and came to the conclusion that we would change everything in preseason. We changed our philosophy on how we dealt with our option-year guys with a wait-and-see approach.

“The person looking from outside would say there was no difference, but internally the process of change had started.”
“I miss playing, but do I want to go back and play? No. Did I sometimes long to be an assistant coach? Think about it. You’re actually doing something instead of standing around and you get blamed for everything,” Buono said.

“But I wouldn’t go back. I don’t want to be the visible person. You won’t see me the first game. I’ll find a little hole somewhere and start the process of viewing things from a distance. We just better win the first one.”
Congratulations, Wally. Well deserved. And as good or better in the community than with the football team. :thup:
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Toppy Vann
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MexicoLionFan wrote:A Hollywood ending to Wally's coaching career...and I love the way he has started his career as GM ONLY...

Congrats to Wally and his family...he could not have done this all alone!
YES.. he is certainly saying great things.

YOU MUST WATCH WALLY'S SPEECH at the ceremony!
Incredible.

I have never heard Wally speak better than he did in accepting this award. I don't what it is but somehow he seems to be rising to the role of GM and ambassador for not only the Lions but the CFL.

There is far, far too much in there to recap and I'd do it a disservice if I tried.

I loved the funny line along the lines of Benny you better be up here next year...no pressure!

He mentions all who he had coaching with him and even Joe Galat who gave him his first coaching job. He says Levy was calm but on game day. Talks about Canada and the tradition of the CFL. Yes, my parents never went to a CFL game but never missed a GC on TV - while now my mom is blind so it is hard to see much tv for her but she still talks about them. He talks of Canadian coaches.

Wally seems to be different in some ways in how he speaks.
"Ability without character will lose." - Marv Levy
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WestCoastJoe
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Wow. The best speech I've ever heard Wally give.

And it just represents the man that he is. :thup:

Ambassador for the Lions and the CFL, and even the Canadian way of life. :thup:

"I just hope that people remember that I cared, that I worked hard, that it was important, that we did things hopefully with integrity and honesty."

True that. :beer:
TheLionKing
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TheFanWithTheFlag wrote:VANCOUVER — Being a gracious sort of fellow, one assumes that in accepting the Annis Stukus Trophy in Toronto on Friday as the CFL’s 2011 coach of the year, Wally Buono gave credit where it was due.

Something along the lines of: “I would like to thank my general manager for not tying the can to me when we were 1-6, because any other boss but mine might have lost faith. So I share this award, not only with the players and assistant coaches, and with our owner David Braley and president Dennis Skulsky, but with the man who made it all possible: Me.”
So true.If it was anyone else not named Buono, he would have fired
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MexicoLionFan
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TheLionKing wrote:
TheFanWithTheFlag wrote:VANCOUVER — Being a gracious sort of fellow, one assumes that in accepting the Annis Stukus Trophy in Toronto on Friday as the CFL’s 2011 coach of the year, Wally Buono gave credit where it was due.

Something along the lines of: “I would like to thank my general manager for not tying the can to me when we were 1-6, because any other boss but mine might have lost faith. So I share this award, not only with the players and assistant coaches, and with our owner David Braley and president Dennis Skulsky, but with the man who made it all possible: Me.”
So true.If it was anyone else not named Buono, he would have fired

Very true TLK...
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274always
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Congratulations Wally. Number 39 forever.
Grey Cup 103. Graduation day.
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notahomer
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Life is stranger than fiction, IMO. I would have given anybody big odds that Wally wouldn't win the Coach of the Year last summer. In fact I wouldn't take the bet simply because I'd feel there was something seriously wrong with the person willing to make the bet. But see the satisfaction of a stumbling and bumbling football team suddenly morph into something else and then head all the way to winning a home stadium Grey Cup made it special of course.

Congrats Wally and I hope GM is enough football to keep your appetite whetted.....
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Toppy Vann
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Thanks for pulling that out WCJ. That really stood out for me too.
"I just hope that people remember that I cared, that I worked hard, that it was important, that we did things hopefully with integrity and honesty."
I have criticized Wally's decisions in the past but never his commitment to the CFL and the lot of Canadian coaches. Yes, he has Americans on staff but these guys live in Canada so they are Canadians in the sense of their commitment to the CFL.

That speech blew me away! I have always held the blustery Brian Burke up as a GM who knows how important the community is even if he was trashing a media guy while flogging tickets. I questioned if Wally was a promoter but if keeps that sort of speaking up, he will be fine.

He won coach of the year for the season's work and the results. If he was 9 and 9 and no GC, I'd then have concluded that the voters were influenced by the retirement. They weren't as it would have been a crime to give it to Lapo or Reed who Wally said did great jobs but no one did what Wally did. Even Wally say they blew it up after the losses. That is when the offense changed. He also said that as HC and GM he was busy GMing a lot in the off season and not coordinating the coaches as much as his new HC is doing now. He is likely right. He delegated and expected say tweaks to the offense that had not always in recent years translated consistently into the game plans.

Wally has a sense of history in the game and although competitive has a good regard for the other team's execs and coaches.

At times some of us as fans are fanatics and forget that in order for the team we follow to be great and worthy we need a good opponent who brings the best out of us. That is what is great about sports. As a player and we played our best in a great game and lost - I always felt good about the game. The same with coaching. I only got angry with my team as a coach if we failed to play our game. Wally has always shown the best toward the game and this speech he gave also shows how he values the work of the other coaches as well.

What a story book ending to his coaching career.

Now we got to hope his successor is on the same path. So far so good.
"Ability without character will lose." - Marv Levy
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I'm certainly no Canadian, but I respect the love yall have for YOUR league. It's like Southerners and the way we feel about our college football here in the States, it's loyalty beyond question. I love your game, but it's not my game, it's purely Canadian. I think Wally really embodies that sense of ownership and is a great ambassador for it.
Founder of the Bama BC Fan Club :towel:
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WestCoastJoe
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BCfanInDIXIE wrote:I'm certainly no Canadian, but I respect the love yall have for YOUR league. It's like Southerners and the way we feel about our college football here in the States, it's loyalty beyond question. I love your game, but it's not my game, it's purely Canadian. I think Wally really embodies that sense of ownership and is a great ambassador for it.
:thup:

Football fans all.

Needless to say many of us north of the border have spent countless hours watching MLB, NFL, even NBA. It's all good.

And then there is the NHL, straddling the border. In deed, stradding the continents.
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Toppy Vann
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BCfanInDIXIE wrote:I'm certainly no Canadian, but I respect the love yall have for YOUR league. It's like Southerners and the way we feel about our college football here in the States, it's loyalty beyond question. I love your game, but it's not my game, it's purely Canadian. I think Wally really embodies that sense of ownership and is a great ambassador for it.
It is a distinctive Canadian game embraced by Americans and their families/friends who come to Canada and love the game, the people and the cities they play in.

Many come and never leave as they love their cities as their home. Listen to how Buck Pierce speaks of Winnipeg as his home now. Of course lots go home for good reasons and that doesn't suggest they don't the CFL either.

I can't think of a single player who has gone back and on to NFL fame ever speak negative or forget their roots here in the CFL.

I met Leon Bright as his locker was next to mine at SFU where he was a guest coach in football after retiring. Great guy. He told me that he enjoyed playing in the CFL more than that NFL (where he had a reduced role - WR on 3rd downs, punt return IIRC) but it was about the far better money.

When Joe Theismann was crossing Canada promoting for ESPN IIRC he came to Vancouver where a local negative sports guy kept getting trying to goad into trashing the CFL on the radio interview. Theismann finally just told this guy flat out how much he valued the league, the opportunity, etc as that is what got him to the NFL. It was a nice, polite put down. I was shocked that the radio guy would think someone who was proud of being a very good CFL player would now dump on the CFL. Warren Moon comes on Canadian radio and he treasures his time in Edmonton and all those Grey Cups.

Wally knows that the game needs Canadians to win and keep the CFL viable. This means Canadian coaches too must thrive.
"Ability without character will lose." - Marv Levy
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