‘A brilliant football mind’ Pierre brings wealth of experience and universal respect to role as Bisons new football coach By: Joshua Frey-Sam Posted: 4:52 PM CST Friday, Feb. 14, 2025

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This article was published 14/02/2025 (583 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Some would call the birth of their first child the happiest moment of their life. Stan Pierre isn’t prepared to go that far.

Instead, he remembers a nerve-wracking day as he delivered his daughter Catrina on the bathroom floor of his home seven years ago. The baby girl’s sudden arrival caught Pierre and wife Jennifer off guard — they had been told during a checkup the previous day that their baby was still weeks away.

The following afternoon, Pierre came home early to take his wife back to the doctor, as something had felt off. They wouldn’t make it to the car.

Jennifer found blood in her urine and, concerned for the health of the baby, Pierre immediately called 911. He was dispatched to a paramedic, who, after being briefed on the situation, informed the soon-to-be father that his wife was already in labour. Their newborn arrived minutes later.

“I’ll tell you, that moment was unbelievably exciting and when people say they have their kids, they say it’s the best moment of their lives, they’re lying,” Pierre said. “It’s fraught with fear and anxiety, and it’s exciting and you’re happy, but you’re also scared.”

It’s clear Pierre knows a thing or two about performing under pressure. It’s something that will serve him well as the new head coach of the University of Manitoba Bisons football program.

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Not surprisingly for Pierre, his fondest memory came on the sidelines where he has built an impressive resume over a three-decade coaching career.

“Winning the Vanier Cup. There’s no close second. Winning the Vanier Cup was the best experience of my life,” Pierre said of the 2007 Canadian university football championship.

Pierre, the defensive co-ordinator for the Bisons at the time, said it was the only time in his life he experienced unfettered joy.

“Being able to fulfil what you think is the biggest goal in your life — that you never know if you’re going to do it because it’s so hard to attain — I’m just telling you it took me several days to be able to fall asleep. It was that good.”

Pierre was named head coach of the U of M program in January. He succeeded Brian Dobie, who stepped down following last season after 29 years at the helm.

The 2007 title run was the culmination of years of work for Pierre and his colleagues, but it was something he almost never got to experience. Years earlier, he contemplated stepping back from coaching university football to focus on a career in economics and commerce.

A standout at Vincent Massey Collegiate and a Canada West conference all-star linebacker with the Bisons in 1991, Pierre returned to the U of M in 1998 as a volunteer coach responsible for the team’s linebackers. A year later, he was promoted to defensive co-ordinator, a role he continued to serve without pay despite a significant increase in responsibilities.

Money aside, there were only so many hours in the day for Pierre to dedicate to his career and building a championship-calibre defence. He found himself at a crossroads.

“It was getting to the point where it was really hard to keep doing both things. Essentially, you’re doing two jobs and only getting paid for one and spending all that time,” he said.

“If we had won in 2001 (Manitoba lost in the Vanier Cup final to Saint Mary’s that year), I’m not sure what my future would’ve been. I may have just said, ‘I’m taking a step back and concentrating on my career,’ and, ‘I kind of got out of this thing what I hoped.’”

In 2003, the Bisons added a salaried position on the coaching staff to work full-time alongside Dobie. Pierre was ultimately chosen to fill the role.

Twenty-two years later, Pierre was tabbed as Dobie’s successor.

It doesn’t take much prying to know what Dobie thinks about his longtime assistant coach. He wrote a letter of recommendation for only one person while the university’s selection committee sifted through candidates.

“I made it clear that I felt that he was certainly the person to move this program forward,” Dobie told the Free Press shortly after Pierre was announced as the head coach. “He’s a great coach, a brilliant football mind and he’s the most respected coach on our staff, in both rooms— the locker room and the coaches’ room.”

“He’s a great coach, a brilliant football mind and he’s the most respected coach on our staff, in both rooms— the locker room and the coaches’ room.”–Brian Dobie

While it was a job Pierre graciously accepted, it was not one he truly sought. He was more than happy to remain the defensive co-ordinator and assistant head coach, calling it his dream job.

“It’s not that I don’t cherish this opportunity, it’s just I wasn’t motivated by that. I always believe in being where your feet are and… it was hard for me to fathom having a more rewarding life than the one I was leading,” he said.

Bob Dyce, who was a receivers coach at U of M when Pierre joined the staff, believes the 53-year-old could’ve been a head coach a long time ago if he pursued opportunities elsewhere.

Dyce, now head coach of the CFL’s Ottawa Redblacks, knows firsthand Pierre had chances to leave Manitoba, as he’s offered to recommend him to other CFL teams.

Pierre never budged, a decision Dyce respected, saying it’s often a coach’s ego that drives them to leave a university program in search of satisfaction.

“Probably one of the greatest strengths Stan has is his authenticity. If you talk to his players and you talk to the guys who played defence for him, Stan is no-nonsense and he speaks his mind and he speaks truthfully in what he does,” Dyce said.

”Probably one of the greatest strengths Stan has is his authenticity. If you talk to his players and you talk to the guys who played defence for him, Stan is no-nonsense and he speaks his mind and he speaks truthfully in what he does.”–Ottawa Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce

Dyce and Pierre were teammates on the Bisons but grew closer as young coaches, even renting a duplex near the university together for a year. Because they played and coached on opposite sides of the ball, Dyce didn’t know much about Pierre as a football mind, but quickly realized the brilliance of his roommate during their evening conversations after practice.

“He was probably ahead of the time with regards to when you go to game-planning and scouting and tendencies,” said Dyce. “He was thoroughly invested in what I call the science of the game and breaking it down to the details.”

“He’s very meticulous with everything,” said Bisons defensive back Daniel Conway, who has spent the last two seasons under Pierre’s guidance. “He works like a computer almost… does not miss one thing when it comes to game planning, and he’s going to give everything to you straight.

“I don’t think I’ve had a coach that will keep you as accountable as him. And I think for a lot of people that can be hard, but for a lot of people what they need is to be held that to high of a standard and learn from that.”

Today, Pierre’s resume speaks for itself. He’s helped 23 players graduate to the CFL and guided two players to careers in the National Football League (Israel Idonije and David Onyemata). He also coached two Presidents’ Trophy winners, which is presented annually to the U Sports Defensive Player of the Year.

With his hiring, Pierre, whose father was born in Trinidad, joined a small group of minorities that lead Canadian university football programs, along with Mark Surya (Guelph), Cherif Nicolas (Bishop’s), Corey Grant (Carleton), Dexter Jenke (York) and Darrell Adams (Toronto).

The significance is not lost on him.

“I know there’s not a lot of us, for whatever the reasons are, and if it motivates somebody I’m proud of that,” Pierre said.

“I think most of us, we just expect us to be judged by what we have to bring and what our strengths are and what our value is, but I know there are still things like that there.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca