Posts Tagged ‘wally buono’




Buono named CFL Coach of the Year

Friday, March 2nd, 2012

Wally Buono (Raj Taneja, Wikimedia Commons)

Wally Buono of the British Columbia Lions will go out as a head coach as the best for 2011.

On Friday in Toronto, Buono was named the Canadian Football League Coach of the Year.

Buono was chosen over Paul LaPolice of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Kavis Reed of the Edmonton Eskimos.

The Lions finished with a record of 11-7 in the CFL’s Western Division, but a major reason why Buono was chosen was because the Lions were red hot in the second half of the season, where they won 11 of their last 13 games.

But voters obviously forgot how terrible the Lions were in the first half of the year when they lost their first five.

I’m sorry, but I think for a coach to be named coach of the year he needs to be the best coach in the league throughout the entire year. One could argue Buono didn’t start coaching until mid-August.

The voters got it wrong. Nobody would have predicted the Blue Bombers to win the Eastern Division at the beginning of the season after going 4-14 the previous year. My vote would have gone to Paul Lapolice without any questionable doubt.

Buono, meanwhile handed over the Lions coaching duties in the offseason to Mike Benevides, the team’s former defensive co-ordinator. Buono will stay on as the Lions’ General Manager.

 

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Elimimian signs with Vikings

Thursday, January 26th, 2012

One of the best defensive players in the Canadian Football League is going to see how things emerge in the National Football League.

On Thursday, Solomon Elimimian of the British Columbia Lions, one of the top linebackers in football over the last two years, signed a contract with the Minnesota Vikings.

Elimimian was second in the CFL last year with 98 tackles, seven behind Jerrell Freeman of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. But Elimimian was more impressive than Freeman, as the Lions defense gave up 97 fewer points than the last place Roughriders this past season.

If Elimimian makes the Vikings, he will be the latest CFL product under the tutelage of the great Wally Buono to have NFL success. He’ll join defensive specialist Cameron Wake of the Miami Dolphins, and quarterbacks Doug Flutie and Jeff Garcia.

Elimimian will also join former Lions wide receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux, who joined Minnesota last summer. Elimimian was the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie in 2010 and then won a Grey Cup with the Lions in 2011. The University of Hawaii product was also a CFL all-star this past season.

In other NFL news, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have named Greg Schiano head coach. Schiano most recently coached the University of Rutgers.

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Stubler leaves Eskimos for Lions

Friday, January 6th, 2012

The Edmonton Eskimos are now in search of a new defensive co-ordinator.

On Thursday, veteran coach Rich Stubler announced he was leaving the team to accept a similar position with the British Columbia Lions.

Under Stubler’s guidance, the Eskimos gave up the second fewest points in the Canadian Football League in 2011– 401 points. Only the Lions at 385 points gave up fewer.

But a change became necessary in British Columbia when Mike Benevides became the head coach after spending four years as their defensive co-ordinator. That particular move was made by the Lions because Wally Buono felt it was time to step away from coaching to concentrate on General Manager duties.

Stubler has a long history coaching in the CFL. He was the defensive co-ordinator for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1983-1989, Toronto Argonauts in 1990 and 2003-07, Edmonton Eskimos from 1991-1995, 1998-1999 and 2011, and British Columbia Lions in 2000. Stubler was also the head coach of the Argonauts in 2007 and 2008 and the defensive line coach for the Lions in 2010.

If the Eskimos hire internally for the defensive co-ordinator position, linebackers coach Mark Nelson would be a solid choice. Nelson has a year of experience being the defensive co-ordinator of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2009.

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Lions name Benevides head coach

Tuesday, December 13th, 2011

According to TSN, the Grey Cup champion winning British Columbia Lions are set to announce Mike Benevides as their head coach today.

Benevides has been the Lions’ defensive co-ordinator since 2008. The Lions are making the move because legend Wally Buono has decided it was time to relinquish one of his two major responsibilities with the Lions and only focus on the managerial duties for the football club.

The Lions gave up the fewest points in the CFL last season. Their 385 points against were 16 fewer than the Edmonton Eskimos.

Prior to being named as the Lions’ defensive co-ordinator in 2008, Benevides had worked as  the Lions’ special teams co-ordinator and linebackers coach from 2003-2007. Prior to that role, Benevides worked with the Calgary Stampeders as the special teams co-ordinator, linebackers coach and director of Canadian scouting.

A native of Toronto, Ontario, Benevides is the only Canadian born head coach in the CFL. With the move, John Hufnagel of the Calgary Stampeders is the only current person in the CFL, who is taking on the duel role as head coach and general manager. Earlier in the off-season, Jim Barker of the Toronto Argonauts announced he would only stay on as general manager and the team announced Scott Milanovich as head coach.

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Buono decides to leave as head coach, will stay as Lions’ GM

Monday, December 5th, 2011

Wally Buono (Raj Taneja, Wikimedia Commons)

The winningest head coach in Canadian Football League history has decided he will now just focus on his general managerial duties.

On Monday, Wally Buono, 61 years of age, confirmed weeks of speculation that he will stay on as the General Manager of the British Columbia Lions and give someone else a chance to be the head coach.

Buono had a record of 254-139-3 in 22 seasons as a head coach with the Lions and Calgary Stampeders. He has been coaching in the CFL since 1990, winning five Grey Cups and winning the Annis Stukus award as the best coach in the Canadian Football League three times.

Buono could win his fourth Annis Stukus award this season, as he helped turn a Lions team around that began the season 0-5 to an impressive Grey Cup Championship. I believe the award should go to Paul LaPolice of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, because the pre-season expectations in British Columbia than they were in Winnipeg.

Now the question is who will be the next head coach of the Lions? I think it will be one of Buono’s assistants, either offensive co-ordinator Jacques Chapdelaine or defensive co-ordinator Mike Benevides.

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Tiger-Cats fire Bellefeuille

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have fired head coach Marcel Bellefeuille.

This firing doesn’t make a significant amount of sense to me by General Manager Bob O’Billovich. The reason is despite the fact that Hamilton had a losing record at 8-10, they did make the playoffs, and advanced to the Eastern Conference Final with a dramatic 52-44 victory over the Montreal Alouettes in the Eastern Conference Semi-Final.

It makes me wonder if O’Billovich made up his mind quite some time ago, and didn’t take the playoffs into account in his final decision making process.

So now the question is who will be Bellefeuille’s replacement in Hamilton. One name I think that will be strongly considered is British Columbia offensive-coordinator Jacques Chapdelaine, who played for the Tiger-Cats as a soltback from 1987-1989. Two other possibilities in my opinion are Rich Stubler, who was the defensive co-ordinator in Edmonton last season, and Lions’ defensive co-ordinator Mike Benevides. But don’t be surprised if Chapdelaine and Benevides receive strong consideration for the Lions’ head coaching position if Wally Buono decides just to be a General Manager next season.

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CFL Preview–Lions & Roughriders

Monday, June 20th, 2011

Greg Marshall (Bing Images)

In the second of a four part preview, I’ll analyze the Calgary Stampeders’ and Edmonton Eskimos’ two Western Division foes, the Saskatchewan Roughriders and British Columbia Lions.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

For the third time in four years the Saskatchewan Roughriders went to the Grey Cup in 2011, and for the second consecutive year lost to the Montreal Alouettes.

The Roughriders will probably improve a little defensively in 2011. Ken Miller stepped down as head coach in the off season and was replaced by defensive guru Greg Marshall.

(more…)

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