LaPolice vs. Kelly? Bah! Berry better than both

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/09/2010 (5869 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It was inevitable, alas, that the hypothetical debate would surface pitting current Bombers bench boss Paul LaPolice against his unfortunate predecessor Mike Kelly.

After all, under LaPolice the Bombers are 2-6 on the eve of Labour Day, while Kelly’s Heroes were 3-5 at this very juncture last season.

So it’s understandable, at first blush, to ask why Kelly was thrown overboard for LaPolice, given that the 2010 Bombers are certainly no closer to the playoffs than the 7-11 outfit that was put out of its misery under Mad Mike.

First of all, it’s a false premise. Because forget about Kelly vs. LaPolice, since Doug Berry — the former Bombers head knock who runs the Saskatchewan Roughriders offence — had a better record than either of them, made the Grey Cup final in 2007 and earned a home playoff date in 2008. That should be the measuring stick.

And to think the Bombers were actually still paying at least a portion of Berry’s salary while Kelly was setting up the tents for his three-ring circus, in retrospect, is rather appalling.

Still, it’s not unfair to raise the LaPolice-Kelly comparisons based on records alone, if you want to be superficial. And since records don’t allow for nuance, the superficial can be the bottom line, too.

And to be honest, given what Kelly had to work with at quarterback (his own doing), and that the man clearly was stuck in a mid-’90s time warp in terms of offensive schemes (also his own doing) the fact that the Bombers missed the post-season by one victory last year almost seems remarkable. Right?

Or perhaps the core of veteran Bombers under Kelly should have been given far more credit for preventing what could/should have been a Chernobyl-ish implosion.

It’s equally true that Kelly was provocative, passionate and — lord love him — a meal ticket for those of us ink-stained wretches in the Fourth Estate.

Oh, those heady days of the Coach’s Show with Knuckles Irving, where it was must-listen radio. It was like waiting at an intersection with no traffic lights. Sooner or later, an accident would happen.

Speaking of which, yours truly would actually pay money to hear Kelly listening to LaPolice go all Ned Flanders on his own Monday night radio pulpit. Kelly: “Are you freaking kidding me!?? I can’t believe that !@#$#@$ gets away with that namby-pamby bull#@$@#!!!

Or something to that affect.

So let’s all agree Kelly was media gold, like him or not.

LaPolice, meanwhile, is so the opposite of Kelly it’s almost eerie. Where Kelly would accuse fans of being schizophrenic, LaPolice can’t fawn over them enough. Where Kelly was confrontational and glib, LaPolice is unendingly diplomatic. It’s like Oprah versus Jerry Springer.

Family guy

And if you don’t think LaPolice’s wholesome, fan-friendly, family guy, persona didn’t factor into the equation of his hire, then I’ve got an NHL team in Phoenix to sell you.

And that’s my point: If you want to compare Kelly to LaPolice based on records alone, go ahead. Because that’s the only criteria that fits. The rest, from a purely football and franchise perspective, isn’t even close.

Hey, if history tells us anything, LaPolice is going to get fired, too. Every football coach does.

But to suggest that the Bombers would have been better off to have kept Kelly, while an interesting experiment in masochism (sorry, Mike), is ultimately moot. That’s because the risk to the franchise was too great. It was a gamble no one on the Bombers board was prepared to cover, and who could blame them.

No, LaPolice isn’t a great quote. He doesn’t make headlines, doesn’t publicly feud with players, doesn’t draw attention to himself. Doesn’t want it, either.

Come to think of it, Berry wasn’t exactly a media darling, either. But like LaPolice, Berry had — and still has, for that matter — a rock-solid understanding of CFL offences and with suitable talent can produce game plans that can compete with any opponent in the league. You can look it up.

Curiously, both LaPolice and Berry are about to see their respective teams go toe-to-toe for a couple of crucial rounds, beginning this Sunday in Regina.

Only the future of the Bombers entire season hangs in the balance.

So you can argue LaPolice versus Kelly all you want. Me? I’m far more concerned about whether LaPolice can eventually match and exceed the bar set by Berry, who was canned before both his heir apparents for a lot less reason.

After all, this shouldn’t be a limbo contest.

The day LaPolice gets compared to a winner is the day Bombers fans will be a lot better off, indeed.

randy.turner@freepress.mb.ca

Randy Turner
Reporter

Randy Turner spent much of his journalistic career on the road. A lot of roads. Dirt roads, snow-packed roads, U.S. interstates and foreign highways. In other words, he got a lot of kilometres on the odometer, if you know what we mean.

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