The Toronto Argonauts took an unorthodox approach to replacing Corey Mace when he left the organization this past off-season to become the head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, naming assistants Kevin Eiben and William Fields as co-defensive coordinators.
Though they took on a position typically reserved for one person, the colleagues found the move to be a natural fit.
“I think it was (head coach Ryan Dinwiddie) wanting to keep things similar to what it was the year before,” said Fields from media day in Vancouver. “We’ve done so well during our time here as a defence, so we wanted to make sure that we kept things similar to the previous years and build upon what we’ve already done.”
“We both knew the defence in and out and added our own touches to it, so why have one when you can have both minds competing?” added Eiben. “We’re close enough that we worked it out and we made it work. We haven’t had a situation like this before, but we’re in the Grey Cup. It worked out pretty well.”
Toronto’s defence ranked second in takeaways and first in sacks during the regular season, helping them finish second in the East Division and reach the Grey Cup following last week’s East Final win over the Montreal Alouettes. The unit also finished fifth in offensive points allowed, fourth in net offence allowed, second in rushing yards allowed, and eighth in passing yards allowed.
Eiben and Fields are a complementary pair. The former played mostly weak-side linebacker during his 12-year CFL playing career, while the latter was a defensive back. Eiben coaches from the sideline, while Fields works games from the booth.
Fields doesn’t see him and Eiben as Toronto’s only two defensive coordinators, however, suggesting it’s really a four-person job as defensive line coach Demetrious Maxie and secondary coach Myron Lewis are both involved in game-planning. He called Maxie, who joined the Argonauts this off-season following an eight-year run in Edmonton, the best defensive line coach in all of football — not just the CFL.
“We all put our egos aside to come up with a good game plan every week,” said the 46-year-old native of McKeesport, Pa. “We just work well together. I think it’s more of a team aspect of it, as far as the coaching staff. There’s no one person. We all get votes — there’s four votes — and we all decide on what we want to do that week.”
“I think we’re all coordinators in our own right. We put it all together during the week and usually it comes out pretty good.”
Eiben and Fields declined to reveal who calls the plays with the former calling it a “pretty neat” process. Dinwiddie was a little more forthcoming, indicating that the two trade play-calling responsibilities depending on the flow of the game.
“We have a mixture of (the two). Eiben calls (plays), so does Will. You’ve got a back-end guy, you’ve got a front-seven guy. A lot of coordinators call first-half game plan and second-half game plan. We’ve got the luxury of having two guys — one guy up top, one guy on the field — and it’s worked pretty good so far for us.”
“If Kevin’s rolling, he’s calling it. If Kevin’s had a series where they move the ball, then we’ll go with Will. They’ve done a great job of working together and making it work.”
Eiben identified the late Rich Stubler as his largest coach influence. The native of Glenwood, Co., who passed away last year at the age of 74, coached Eiben over six years in Toronto, including a five-year stint as defensive coordinator and assistant head coach and a one-year stint as head coach.
“(Stubler) gave me my first opportunity, God rest his soul. He was a good man and he was a big, important part of my life,” said Eiben. “I’m sure (Winnipeg defensive coordinator Jordan Younger) would also say the same thing on the other side of the ball. (Stubler) changed a lot of people’s lives and I credit a lot of stuff that he has taught me.”
Eiben and Younger have been friends for a long time, having played together in Toronto for seven seasons. They also served on the same coaching staff at the University of Toronto in 2014 when Eiben was the defensive coordinator and Younger was the defensive backs coach. Fields also cut his teeth in the Canadian postsecondary ranks, serving as the defensive backs coach at Simon Fraser University that same year.
Fields cited Wally Buono and Mike Archer as mentors but considers the legendary Jerry Glanville his top inspiration, calling him a “father figure.” The two coached together in Hamilton in 2018 and have remained close ever since, talking almost daily.
“His attitude and the way he sees the game, the way he’s able to bring players together, the simplicity of football is how he thinks (is all special). Nothing is ever complicated. And then there’s his optimism — he always believes everything is gonna work out, no matter how difficult it is. He’s been big for me.”
It’s odd for a team to have two defensive coordinators, especially when they appear to take turns on the fly calling plays. It’s only silly if it doesn’t work, however, and it’s certainly worked so far this season.
Toronto held the Blue Bombers to only 25 points over two regular-season meetings this year, sacking Zach Collaros a whopping 12 times. If the club’s defence performs like that again on Sunday, there’s a strong chance the Argonauts will be Grey Cup champions.
