Coach remembered with tears, laughs and hugs

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This article was published 08/08/2011 (5151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There were tears, some laughs and — fittingly — lots and lots of hugs.

Several hundreds mourners turned out for the final down in the career of Winnipeg Blue Bombers assistant coach Richard Harris, who died July 26 after suffering a heart attack at Canad Inns Stadium.

The memorial at Immanuel Pentecostal Church was filled with red-eyed players, coaches, executives and fans who remembered the 63-year-old for his laughter, his love for his players and family, and his hugs.

Those in attendance Sunday afternoon represented a who’s who of current and former Bombers as well as coaches and players from around the league. Former all-star receiver, Joe Poplawski, recent Bombers Hall of Fame inductee Wade Miller and former running back Willard Reaves, were there, as was ex-coach Mike Kelly and former CFL most valuable player Kerry Joseph, now with the Edmonton Eskimos.

Greg Marshall, head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, who worked alongside Harris in both Winnipeg and Ottawa, was one of three people to eulogize him. Marshall said that even though Harris loved being with his “boys” on the defensive line, he had “the ability to touch everybody in the locker-room, whether he coached their position or not.

“He had a soft spot in his heart for the defensive line. We will all miss his smile and the giggle that came from that big man. And we will all miss his hugs. Nobody hugs like Richard,” Marshall said.

Bombers president Jim Bell said he would miss Harris’s daily greeting of “good morning, blue and gold,” as well as his sincerity, spirit of kindness, and friendship.

“The world needs more people like Richard Harris,” he said.

Harris, who was from Louisiana, was also dedicated to Winnipeg, where he coached since 2006, Bell said. He told the story of Harris being recognized on the street last year and being asked where he was from. “I’m from Winnipeg,” came the reply. “Southern Winnipeg.”

Another former Bombers assistant who worked with Harris, Kavis Reed, now head coach of the Eskimos, gave a Scripture reading.

Defensive lineman Doug Brown, who had a particularly close relationship with Harris, said he was able to keep his composure throughout most of the service but couldn’t help but get emotional during a video montage near the end. In particular, Brown said footage of Harris putting his troops through some footwork drills several years ago while talking to a youngster he had brought down to field level was particularly poignant.

“That was the best. It really demonstrated that he was one of the best football coaches I’ve ever worked with. He brought other elements into his life. He wasn’t just a football guy,” Brown said.

“He had a kid there that he was taking care of and he knew that kid would always remember that moment. He could combine so many different elements of life into what he loved to do, which was coach his boys. He was always giving back. He’d think, ‘How can I make somebody else’s day better?’ He took that kid under his wing that day,” Brown said.

geoff.kirbyson@freepress.mb.ca