There’s only one question on everyone’s mind ahead of the 110th Grey Cup in Hamilton: what’s in Danny Maciocia’s backpack?
The Montreal Alouettes’ general manager has fascinated fans and media members all season with his sideline appearances, which never occur without his signature bag slung firmly over both shoulders. While most executives or personnel people choose to leave their belongings behind before making their way onto the field, Maciocia’s unique school-boy aesthetic has led to plenty of debate about what might be contained within.
“It’s funny now that you mention it, you’re right. He does truly have a backpack on every single time,” Alouettes’ safety Marc-Antoine Dequoy laughed during Grey Cup media day.
“I think it’s a remote controller to the giant screen (at Percival Molson Stadium), so sometimes if there’s a replay he doesn’t like, he can close it.”
Dequoy, who played under Maciocia at the Université de Montréal, is not alone in presenting wild conspiracies about what is strapped to the back of the Als’ architect. After a historic upset over the 16-2 Toronto Argonauts last week, could the secret to victory be contained within the bag? A story of this magnitude required thorough investigation.
3DownNation was willing to ask the tough questions to gain exclusive insight from Maciocia as to the contents of his treasured accessory.
“There’s an accumulation of notes — notebooks, I would say — over the course of time, in particular this past season, that I keep with me, that I can constantly refer to or that I may add some notes to during the course of a game,” Maciocia revealed. “Obviously, I’ve got my laptop and some personal effects but it’s those notebooks.”
While those notebooks may be far less exciting than theories of cutting-edge spyware, the born and raised Montrealer guards them with no less vigilance — lest they disappear by accident or nefarious means.
“I unfortunately have either misplaced, lost, or had them disappear over the years, when I first started coaching in the CFL,” he explained. “I was never able to recover them, so now what I do is that I make sure that I keep them with me at all times.”
Maciocia first broke into the CFL in 1996 as an assistant with the Alouettes, climbing the ladder to become the offensive coordinator in 2001. He joined the Edmonton Football Team in the same capacity the following season and was promoted to head coach in 2005, winning a Grey Cup in his first season.
The 56-year-old eventually moved into the front office before being fired by Edmonton during the 2010 season. He spent the next nine years as head coach of the Montreal Carabins, winning a Vanier Cup in 2014. He is the only person in history to win both a CFL title and a U Sports national championship as a head coach.
Maciocia was hired as the Alouettes’ general manager in January 2020, also serving as interim head coach for much of the 2022 season following the firing of Khari Jones. In the four years since returning to his childhood team, he has helped steer them through a global pandemic and ownership turmoil, now earning an unlikely Grey Cup berth.
Throughout it all, the top-secret notebooks have been his constant companion. Following the season, they will be retired to a safe location for storage until he needs them again.
“Under lock and key,” Maciocia chuckled. “I’m gonna have to sit down with the family here and we’re gonna have to discuss how we’re going to go about it.”
As for their status on gamedays, the backpack will remain firmly on his person until he can be certain of its safety. He hopes that’s something the team’s new billionaire owner, Pierre Karl Peladeau, might be able to help with.
“Now that you mention it, maybe this is a conversation that I should have with Mr. Peladeau and maybe he can help me out,” Maciocia smirked. “He’s got to have a safe or two, I would think.”
It would seem this is the least Peladeau could do if Maciocia leads his newly-acquired asset to a championship in his first season of ownership. If the Alouettes do hoist the Grey Cup on Sunday, their veteran GM acknowledged two priorities: avoiding a repeat of his infamous too-early celebration from 2005 and protecting his backpack from Gatorade baths and champagne showers.
“I’m probably going to turn it over to a family member and make sure that nobody gets their hands on it,” Maciocia said. “Good news is that I’m not coaching this game, so we probably have a better chance of winning it. But I will be looking at the clock, there’s no question about it.”
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes will meet in the 110th Grey Cup on November 19 at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton. Kickoff is slated for 6:00 p.m. EST.
