CFL ROUND-UP

Montreal – The Montreal Alouettes announced on Wednesday that the club has added William Fields to its coaching staff. The 37-year-old will tackle the roles of Assistant Defensive Backs Coach and Defensive Quality Control Coach.

Fields, who played for six seasons in the CFL, made his coaching debut in the Canadian circuit in 2015 as he was the BC Lions Assistant Defensive Backs Coach and Defensive Quality Control Coach. The McKeesport, PA native saw his protégés finish tied for second place in the League with 23 interceptions, including a league-leading six that belonged to defensive back Ryan Philips.

“We welcome William to the Alouettes family. His experience in the CFL as a player and as a new coach will make him a quick study with our program and with the upcoming minicamp,” declared Alouettes General Manager and Head Coach Jim Popp. “He will get some individual time with the defensive backs and help free up Coach Thorpe so he can spend time were needed with the entire defence.”

Prior to joining the Lions’ coaching staff, Fields was the Defensive Backs Coach with the Simon Fraser University Clan who were coached by Jacques Chapdelaine. The two coaches will once again be colleagues in Montreal.

Fields made his coaching debut at Cypress Christian High School in Houston, where he was the defensive backs coach from 2010 to 2013 seasons. As a player in the CFL, Fields played four seasons for the Calgary Stampeders between 2001 and 2004, where he amassed 169 defensive tackles in 69 games, while intercepting nine passes. He played the following two seasons for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, adding 51 defensive tackles and four interceptions to his totals. He won the Grey Cup in 2001 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal with the Stampeders.

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TORONTO – With the Toronto Argonauts Football Club set to kickoff their first season and home opener vs. the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Thursday, June 23 at BMO Field, Head Coach Scott Milanovich today announced the team’s coaching staff for the 2016 season:

Scott Milanovich – Head Coach
Marcus Brady – Offensive Coordinator
Rich Stubler – Defensive Coordinator
Kelly Jeffrey – Special Teams Coordinator
Mike Preston – Offensive Line Coach
Anthony Ierullo – Running Backs
Kit Lathrop – Defensive Line Coach
D.J. Wingate – Linebackers Coach
Jordan Younger – Defensive Backs Coach
Bradley Daye – Assistant Special Teams Coach

“I’m extremely excited about the coaching staff that we have assembled”, said Argonauts head coach Scott Milanovich. “We have several coaches with significant CFL experience as well as some younger coaches that will bring fresh ideas and energy to our staff. I am confident that this staff will do a great job leading our football team in 2016.”
                               
Marcus Brady will enter his fourth season as the Argos Offensive Coordinator. During his time in Toronto, Brady has been part of some of the most prolific offences in CFL as the Argonauts have finished near the top of the League in a number of significant offensive categories during his tenure. Under his watch the Argonauts have produced 11 East Division All-Stars, five CFL All-Stars while also seeing Ricky Ray honoured as the East Division Most Outstanding Player in 2013 and 2014, and Vidal Hazelton named the East Divisions Most Outstanding Rookie last season.

Rich Stubler, who officially returned to the Argonauts for his third tenure with the Double Blue in December, will enter his 29th CFL season as a coach in 2016. The five-time Grey Cup Champion spent the last two seasons with the Calgary Stampeders where he oversaw one of the CFL’s premiere defences.

Kelly Jeffrey joined the Argonauts in February bringing over 20 years of coaching experience in the NCAA and CIS ranks. He has spent 12 years as a head coach, seven years as years a positional coach and several years as an offensive and special teams coordinator. Prior to joining the Double Blue, Jeffrey spent the last seven seasons as the head coach at Mount Allison where he guided the Mounties to back-to-back AUS titles, and was named the AUS Coach of the Year three times and CIS Coach of the Year in 2014.

Mike Preston is back in Toronto for his second CFL season but will assume the role of Offensive Line Coach in 2016 after joining the Double Blue as the Assistant Offensive Line & Special Teams Coach last season.

Anthony Ierullo will remain in his role as the Argonauts Running Back Coach as he enters his fifth season as a member of the Argonauts’ coaching staff, and tenth season with the club. Ierullo joined the Argonauts coaching staff in 2012 after serving as the club’s Video Coordinator and Quality Control Assistant for five seasons.

Kit Lathrop comes to Toronto in 2016 with over 20 years of football experience as a player and coach. Lathrop will serve as Argonauts Defensive Line Coach, a role he previously held in BC, Edmonton and Ottawa during his career. The longtime coach will be reunited with Argonaut Defensive Coordinator Rich Stubler, who he previously worked with during his time in BC and Calgary.

D.J. Wingate will serve as the Argonauts Linebackers Coach in 2016 after originally joining the club as the Assistant Defensive Backs Coach last season. Wingate played four seasons at Marshall University before joining the school’s coaching staff as a defensive backs assistant. He also worked in various coaching capacities at the University of South Florida and Davidson College.

Jordan Younger returns to the Argonauts staff as the Defensive Backs coach. Younger, who enjoyed a 12-year professional career, eight of which were with the Argos, entered the professional coaching ranks with the club last season. Prior to returning to the Argonauts, the two-time Grey Cup Champion with the Double Blue previously coached at the University of Toronto alongside former Argonauts linebacker, Kevin Eiben.

Bradley Daye will make his professional football coaching debut with the Argonauts in 2016 as the Assistant Special Teams Coach. Daye began his coach career at the alma mater Mount Allison University, where he served as the Mounties Defensive Backs and Assistant Special Teams Coach under Argonaut Special Team Coordinator Kelly Jeffrey for the last three seasons.

The Argonauts will announce their receivers coach at a later date.

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(Edmonton) – The Edmonton Eskimos have finalized the 2016 coaching staff, led by Head Coach Jason Maas, with the addition of Demetrious Maxie as linebackers coach and Carson Walch as receivers coach.

Demetrious Maxie
Maxie had a 13 year CFL career as a defensive lineman for the Baltimore Stallions, Montreal Alouettes, Toronto Argonauts, Saskatchewan Roughriders and Calgary Stampeders. He is a two-time CFL All-Star (1999, 2000) and was a member of three consecutive Grey Cup championship teams (1995-97). He retired with 291 tackles and 70 quarterback sacks in 167 career games.

He won a fourth Grey Cup championship (2008) with Calgary where he was assistant director of player personnel from 2006 to 2008.

Maxie later transitioned into coaching as a defensive line and linebackers coach at his alma mater the University of Texas El Paso in 2010 and 2011. From 2012 through 2015, Maxie was the defensive line and strength and conditioning coach at Desert Ridge High School in Mesa, Arizona.

In 2013, he was a guest coach at BC Lions training camp under now Eskimos Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator Mike Benevides. Maxie returned to the Green and Gold the following season as the Southwest Regional Scout.

He spent last season as the defensive line coach and assistant special teams coordinator at Missouri Valley College.

Carson Walch
Walch was an All-American, all-region and all-conference running back, receiver and return specialist for Winona State University from 1996 to 1999. In his final season, he was named a regional finalist for the Harlon Hill Award earned by the top player in Division II football.

He then transitioned into coaching at his alma mater where he would spend three seasons serving as student coach, wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator.

From 2003 to 2005, he was the offensive coordinator at Dakota State University, while working with the quarterbacks and receivers. The following season, he served as special teams coordinator and running backs coach at the University of St. Thomas. Walch returned to Winona State from 2007 to 2009, serving as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator during his final two seasons.

In 2010, he joined the Montreal Alouettes as an offensive assistant. That year, they won the Grey Cup championship. After two seasons, he was named the Alouettes’ wide receivers coach.

Walch returned south to work with the Chicago Bears from 2013 to 2014 as an offensive quality control coach.

Last season, he was an offensive consultant for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

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The Hamilton Tiger-Cats announced Wednesday that the football club has signed national offensive lineman Peter Dyakowski to a contract extension through the 2017 CFL season.

“Peter is a team leader, our longest serving player, and a vital member of our organization both on and off the field,” said Tiger-Cats Vice President of Football Operations and Head Coach Kent Austin. “This move, along with the extensions of both Mike Filer and Ryan Bomben late last year, ensures stability and continuity amongst our Canadian starters on the offensive line.”

Dyakowski, who will enter his 10th season with the Tiger-Cats in 2016, has appeared in 132 career CFL regular season games, including 118 starts at guard or tackle. He has also seen action in seven playoff games, including two Grey Cup appearances in 2013 and 2014. The 6-5, 325-pound offensive lineman was an Eastern Division All-Star in 2012 and the Tiger-Cats Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman in 2011.

After suffering a torn patellar tendon in his left knee in the 2013 Grey Cup, Dyakowski would miss the entire 2014 regular season schedule before returning for the playoffs. Subsequently, the 31-year-old would go on play in all 20 regular season and playoff games for the Tiger-Cats last season, and was the team’s 2015 nominee for the CFL’s Jake Gaudaur Veterans’ Award for strength, perseverance, courage, comradeship and contribution to Canadian communities.

Dyakowski was selected by the Tiger-Cats in the second round, 11th overall, in the 2006 CFL Draft out of Louisiana State University. The Vancouver, B.C. native became the first Canadian-born player to sign a football scholarship at LSU. He would start 13 of 27 games for the Tigers at right tackle from 2003 to 2006, and was part of the school’s national championship team as a freshman.