Remember the 2018 season? The Calgary Stampeders were Grey Cup champions and Dave Dickenson had been to the final in all three seasons since taking over as head coach. At the time, he was the winningest coach in CFL history on a percentage basis.
Over those three years, the Stampeders were 41-11-2. Since then. they are 48-29 in four seasons and haven’t been to the West Final, losing four straight semi-final matchups — the last three as the road team following third-place finishes.
In his postseason availability the day after his team fell 41-30 to the B.C. Lions in their latest playoff loss, Dickenson told the media that no rash decisions would be made regarding his coaching staff as a result.
“We’re going to take a breath today and just figure things out. I don’t know. I certainly have to look at everything and look in the mirror myself and figure out what’s the best combination to get the most out of our players. I appreciate their work, everyone worked hard again. We were a tight staff and team. I didn’t see anybody pointing fingers at anybody.”
However, on multiple occasions this season, Dickenson spoke after losses that he felt that his team had been outcoached, as well as being outplayed. Those concerns manifested in his first season serving as general manager as well, taking over from president John Hufnagel this past offseason.
When asked directly if the long look in the mirror would include the possibility of himself not being the head coach next year, Dickenson said he would be back on the sidelines.
“I’m coaching if they let me coach. I don’t have that decision. I’m feeling confident in that. But you know what? The reality is that professional football is a winning business but I feel good with Huf and (Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation CEO) John Bean. They know the challenges we’ve had and they’ve always supported us to the fullest but I do understand you always are judged by wins and losses and that’s fair. I’m good with that.”
It is my opinion that the Calgary brain trust should seriously consider removing the dual hats from Dickenson’s head and move him into the front office on a full-time basis.
The Stampeders already have a coach-in-waiting in Mark Kilam, who has been tagged as the assistant head coach and special teams coordinator for the last several seasons. The 44-year-old has been spoken about in CFL circles anytime a head coaching job comes up, and already won his head coaching debut for the team in 2022 when Dickenson was sidelined due to COVID-19.
As of now, there is just one CFL head coaching job available next season — with a Saskatchewan team that may be a tad wary of hiring a special teams coordinator or anyone associated with the name Dickenson for the foreseeable future. But it is only a matter of time before the man the Stampeders have had on the payroll for 19 years finds the right opportunity for a promotion.
Special teams players often speak about how Kilam is the kind of coach that they would go to war for. That enthusiasm being utilized in another organization would seem a dramatic waste of development.
One doesn’t need to look too far around the league for an example of how that plays out, as Ryan Dinwiddie, leader of the reigning Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts, spent time on Dickenson’s staff before successfully moving into a head coaching job himself.
I asked John Hufnagel after the 2014 season if he was planning on retiring as coach and he told me nothing was in play yet. A year later, he admitted that a succession plan was already worked out for Dave to take the reins in 2016. That may be the case again here, but this is an opportunity the team needs to seize sooner, rather than later.
The Stampeders have 38 pending free agents on the roster and are looking to reload or rebuild completely. Either direction means that Dickenson will have his hands full as a general manager.
During his availability, he responded to a question about pending free agency by telling reporters that the bulk of their signings will have to come in the new year because their injury situation left the cupboards bare.
Moving Kilam to coach and Dave to the front office allows for those free agents to decide if this is the team they want to play for, while Dickenson can be a full-time negotiator and not have to carry the weight of double responsibilities.
Both Alberta CFL teams currently have dual head coach/general managers and they finished sixth and eighth respectively — hardly a ringing endorsement of splitting time between jobs. Orlondo Steinauer essentially splits those duties in Hamilton as well, though his title is president of football operations, and he finished fifth with a sub-.500 record. Only B.C.’s Rick Campbell had any success while double dipping this season, but he shares his general manager chair with Neil McEvoy.
The difficulty of the dual role exists in the demands of negotiating with players to take less money because they aren’t worth what they want, then asking those same players to play above their contracts when they take the field. In a generation of players that no longer sees the game as one that they are privileged to play but instead recognizes their worth to teams and look for that to be acknowledged, that may be too fine a line to walk.
The last time the Stampeders promoted a well-respected assistant to coach to alleviate dual responsibilities from a Hall of Famer, they went to three straight championship games.
They say those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, but it seems that Calgary could benefit from seeing history repeat itself.
