Former CFL QB, OC Marcus Brady to serve as head coach at Shrine Bowl

Photo courtesy: Indianapolis Colts

Former CFL quarterback and assistant coach Marcus Brady has been named as a head coach at this year’s Shrine Bowl.

Brady recently completed his first season as the offensive coordinator of the Indianapolis Colts. The club narrowly missed the postseason with a 9-8 record but finished No. 8 in scoring (26.5 points per game) and No. 2 in rushing yards (149.4 per game). Second-year running back Jonathan Taylor had a breakout season, rushing 332 times for a league-leading 1,811 yards and 18 touchdowns.

The 42-year-old will be coaching the West team, which has won four of the previous five Shrine Bowls. The all-star game serves as an opportunity for draft-eligible prospects to showcase their abilities to scouts from both sides of the border. One Canadian player, defensive lineman Deionte Knight from Western, will participate in this year’s event.

Brady helped Andrew Luck return to elite form in 2018 as he threw for 4,593 yards and 39 touchdowns, which was the second-most in the NFL. After Luck unexpectedly retired prior to the 2019 season, Brady worked with Jacoby Brissett in 2019 and future Hall of Fame quarterback Philip Rivers in 2020.

After seven seasons as a CFL quarterback with the Toronto Argonauts, Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Montreal Alouettes, Brady was named Montreal’s receivers coach on Marc Trestman’s staff in 2009. He was elevated to the role of offensive coordinator in 2012 and then served as the offensive coordinator in Toronto for five seasons (2013-17).

The Shrine Bowl is slated to take place on Thursday, Feb. 3 at Allegiant Stadium, which is the home of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Former Shrine Bowl Offensive MVPs include Montreal Alouettes’ quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, Toronto Argonauts’ head coach Ryan Dinwiddie, and future Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver Steve Smith Sr.