Stubler’s impact on CFL immense

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This article was published 31/08/2023 (779 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The CFL lost one of its greatest defensive minds with the passing of Rich Stubler on Sunday. He was 74 years old.

Admittedly, I knew little about Stubler outside of his many roles and stops in the three-down game, but I didn’t need to know him on a personal level to understand the impact he had on the great Canadian game.

 

Stubler, as many have described him over the last few days, was a football lifer who brought an old-school approach and was beloved by the many peers and players with whom he worked. He got his first shot in the CFL with the Hamilton-Tiger Cats in 1983, hired on as the club’s defensive co-ordinator, and stayed for three seasons, exiting Hamilton after winning his first of five Grey Cups.

He would go on to join five other organizations, (some for multiple stints), with stops in Toronto, Edmonton, B.C., Calgary and Montreal. Stubler was a head coach for just the 2008 season with the Argos but was fired after going 4-6 through 10 games. His last CFL gig was in 2021, as a defensive assistant in Toronto.

Over a career that spanned more than half a century, Stubler also coached high school and was a presence in the NCAA, working with defences at Colorado, New Mexico, Southern Methodist, Colorado State and Oregon. He spent two years with the Detroit Fury of the Arena Football League in the early 2000s and was most recently with Clearwater Academy International, a prep school in Florida, as they work to defend their state title.

We’ll leave the last word to Blue Bombers defensive co-ordinator Richie Hall, someone who knew Stubler well, having played for him as a young defensive back while at Colorado State University in the early 1980s before competing against him in the CFL.

“When I first started coaching, he was in Edmonton and I just got hired (by Saskatchewan) and I went to Edmonton and spent a weekend with him and just kind of learned about coaching and making that adjustment because I hadn’t had a lot of coaching experience,” Hall said. “He took the time out of his schedule to help tutor and bring me along, and we talked about those CSU days. It just makes you realize how life is so fragile — one day you’re here, the next you’re gone. It’s important you make the most of your days and cherish those memories.”

With that, let’s take a closer look at the other top stories from Week 12 in the latest edition of CFL Rundown.

1) The Edmonton Elks are slowly digging themselves out of a massive 0-9 hole, winning their second consecutive game, and in doing so snapping their home losing streak at 22 games. At 2-9, they’re just two points back of the Calgary Stampeders and could leapfrog Calgary come Monday, when the two clubs meet for the first of a home-and-home series. The fact they even find themselves in a playoff race after losing the entire first half of the season is outrageous and is an indictment on the league and its lack of quality teams. I’m still not sold on Edmonton, as I’ll need to see them beat a better outfit than Hamilton or Ottawa, but there’s no denying they’re in the playoff hunt.

 

2) Tre Ford continues to look like the real deal. The Elks QB put up personal bests last week, throwing for 317 yards and a touchdown, while also recording a team-high 74 rushing yards and another score. Given how Ford has played the last three games, one can’t help but wonder where Edmonton might be in the standings had Ford been given the keys a lot earlier. With all the damage the Elks have done to their fan base, Ford just might be the answer to winning them back. If a truly homegrown QB, who played his college football in Canada, can take the league by storm, there’s going to be as much interest outside of Edmonton as there is in. But that’s a big IF.

 

3) The Lions started with so much promise, but with losses in three of their last four games a first-place finish in the West now seems like a pipe dream. I’d knock them down a tier, below the top group of the Bombers and Argonauts. B.C.’s defence has been eclipsed by Winnipeg as the best in the league; since giving up just five offensive touchdowns through the first seven games, the Lions have surrendered 12 over the last four. The Lions have a ton of talent, but they’re still learning how to win and lose.

 

4) The Stampeders just can’t seem to buy a win. Rather, they can’t get all three phases on the same page. If the offence is rolling, the defence lets them down. When the defence is clicking, the attack goes dry. Against the Argos this week, it was special teams that did them in, as Javon Leake returned his league-leading fourth punt back for a TD. Perhaps a back-to-back with the Elks is just what the doctor ordered to bring the Stamps off life support.

 

5) Brady Oliveira is the best running back in the CFL right now and it’s not particularly close. He leads the league in total rushing yards (902), average yards per game (82), average yards per run (5.7) and most games with 100-plus rushing yards (five). He’s also tied for second in rushing TDs, with four, and has another two through the air, along with 299 receiving yards. At just 26 years of age, there’s a lot left in the tank and Oliveira believes he’s just starting to hit his stride. I wouldn’t be surprised if, when all is said and done, he is battling Andrew Harris for his various career marks.

 

6) Zach Collaros became the second QB in league history to throw two interceptions that were returned for TDs and still lead his team to victory. The first was Anthony Calvillo, who did it twice (2004, ’06) with the Alouettes. Collaros was asked this week how he seems to quickly move past costly mistakes, offering some canned answer about the need for a short memory and thanks to his supportive teammates. But when pressed, the real Collaros came out and he admitted to still thinking about the interceptions while adding he’ll probably still have it on his mind the rest of the year. The funny thing is he wasn’t joking. That’s the competitive, reigning two-time CFL most outstanding player in a nutshell.

 

7) Chad Kelly has committed to the CFL for the next few years and in doing so has become the league’s highest-paid player. Kelly signed a three-year extension which, according to 3Downnation’s Justin Dunk, is worth a combined $1.865 million, all of which is in hard money. Dunk noted that Kelly is due a $240,000 signing bonus in 2024, but a clause indicates he can’t collect if he signs an NFL contract. That’s a nice little caveat for the Argos, as it will take a substantial financial commitment by the NFL to draw Kelly south of the border.

 

8) There’s been a lot of talk about Nathan Rourke being placed on waivers and added to the Jacksonville Jaguars’ practice roster. After a strong preseason, which included a highlight-reel TD pass against the Dallas Cowboys, Rourke should have won the No. 2 job. Welcome to NFL politics, where it sometimes doesn’t matter how good you play but more who you are. Rourke is still young and will get his chance. It has nothing to do with his Canadian passport.

 

9) We’re headed into Week 13 and the CFL’s online statistics remain an epic failure. While they seem to be improving each week, they’re nowhere near where they should be. The fact fans can’t look up a player’s CFL career online is a black eye for the league. I’m also not sold on the weekly and monthly reports put out by Pro Football Focus. How on earth was Edmonton’s O-line the top unit in August?

 

10) Tyrell Ford, Tre’s twin brother, was released by the Green Bay Packers this week, making some wonder if a return to the Bombers might be in the cards. Winnipeg owns Ford’s rights through the 2024 season, so that’s his only option if he returns north. Ford will undoubtedly look for another NFL opportunity.

 

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton