Edmonton Elks request permission to interview Ticats’ GM Ed Hervey for general manager job: report

Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym/RFB Sport Photography

The Edmonton Elks have requested permission to interview current Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ general manager Ed Hervey for their GM position, according to a report from TSN’s Farhan Lalji.

Hervey has been with the Ticats since December 2021 and was promoted to the general manager role last offseason amid a front office reshuffle. He refused to disclose the length of his contract at the time, though reports have since indicated that it expires at the end of this year. The team went 7-11 in his first season on the job, narrowly missing the playoffs.

The 51-year-old has deep ties to Edmonton and rose through the ranks as a scout in that organization to earn the general manager title back in 2013. He served four years at the helm of the franchise and was the architect behind Edmonton’s Grey Cup championship team in 2015, making three consecutive division finals after going 4-14 in his first season.

Hervey was fired just one season after leading the team to a CFL title due to disagreements with then-president Len Rhodes. He spent the following two years in the same job with the B.C. Lions before resigning in 2020 amid a contract dispute with quarterback Michael Reilly, who alleged the GM had secretly guaranteed money in his contract in contradiction with league rules and without the knowledge of ownership.

Over seven seasons as a general manager with three different teams, Hervey has posted a 61-65 all-time record.

Before making the transition to the front office, Hervey played eight seasons with Edmonton (1999-2006) as a receiver. The Compton, Cal. native registered 476 receptions for 6,715 yards with 43 receiving touchdowns. He was a member of Edmonton’s Grey Cup-winning teams in 2003 and 2005 and was named a CFL all-star on two occasions. He was also a member of the Dallas Cowboys’ Super Bowl-winning team in 1996.

Newly hired Elks president Chris Morris was teammates with Hervey for seven seasons in Green and Gold and the two have remained in contact over the years through his former position as head coach of the University of Alberta. In his introductory press conference on Thursday, Morris set a deadline of November 24 for the hiring of a new general manager and insisted that the team would consider roughly six top candidates, including current interim GM Geroy Simon.

The Elks finished the 2024 season outside the playoffs with a 7-11 record, matching the Ticats. The team fired head coach and general manager Chris Jones after an 0-5 start, only for him to land in Hamilton and help spark that team’s turnaround as defensive coordinator.