Ryan Dinwiddie: Ottawa Redblacks ownership supportive but not happy with results

Samantha Keen/3DownNation. All rights reserved.

The Ottawa Redblacks are entering a period of transition, as the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) announced on Monday that Adrian Sciarra will no longer serve as the team’s president.

For head coach and general manager Ryan Dinwiddie, it doesn’t seem much will change on a day-to-day basis. On Tuesday, he indicated that he has a direct line of communication to team ownership, which remains supportive despite poor on-field results.

“I’ve had constant communication (with ownership). I have breakfast with Roger Greenberg once a month, and I’ve talked to John Ruddy quite a bit, we’ve jumped on some Zoom calls. They’re heavily involved,” Dinwiddie told the media.

“Me and (vice-president of football operations Shawn Burke) relay a lot of that through Adrian, and then Adrian will go to them, but now we’ll go to (OSEG president and CEO) Mark Goudie, and then he’ll go to the owner, so we’re in constant communication.

“Obviously, they’re frustrated, we’re frustrated. They’re not happy with the results. We thought it’d be a faster change, but they’ve been supportive.”

Greenberg and Ruddy are both managing partners of OSEG, the corporate entity that owns the Redblacks, and each have seats on the CFL’s board of governors. Both men played significant roles in founding the team back in 2014 with Ruddy having played defensive back at Carleton University during the 1970s. Greenberg also serves as the organization’s executive chairman.

“John Ruddy and I are committed to winning football in Ottawa and to building a football organization that will be here for the long term,” said Greenberg in a statement on Monday.

“That commitment is reflected in our investment in players, coaches, and facilities, and now in the new football leadership that we will bring to this club. We owe it to our fans and to this city to build a team that wins consistently, and that is exactly what we intend to do.”

Sciarra will remain at OSEG to serve as president and alternate governor of the Ottawa 67’s of the Ontario Hockey League.

“Adrian’s a great guy. He’s done a great job, he’s been a great communicator. I had some great conversations with him. He came in a few days ago, kind of let me know what was going on,” said Dinwiddie.

“It’s unfortunate for Adrian, but the great part is he’s involved with the 67’s, and he does a great job there as well. It just takes a little bit off of his plate, so we can bring the next guy, and they can focus solely on football.”

Goudie has been tasked with finding a new president, and indicated he’d like to hire one with a football background.

The Ottawa native spoke to 3DownNation on Monday and reiterated OSEG’s commitment to the team. He also spoke enthusiastically about the ongoing construction around TD Place Stadium, and hopes to host a Grey Cup not long after the north grandstand is replaced for 2031.

Though brighter days likely lay ahead, the team is currently a disaster.

The Redblacks have lost 15 straight games, setting a modern CFL record for longest losing skid. They have also become just the tenth team in CFL history to begin a season 0-9.

With a 27-85-1 (.243) record since the start of the 2019 season, crowds at TD Place Stadium have dwindled considerably. Attendance in 2026 has fallen 16.6 percent year-over-year to an average of 15,124, which would set a new all-time low in the city.

Clearly, the new president will have plenty of work cut out for them.

In the meantime, Dinwiddie believes his players have continued to fight despite the mounting losses, and he’s encouraging them to stay positive.

“Sitting at 0-9, it could really snowball at this stage, and it could turn into finger-pointing, you lose the locker room. I thought the guys have found ways to stick together, and that’s not easy to do. I commend them on that, but at the same time, we’ve got to go out there and play winning football,” said Dinwiddie.

“We’re going to continue to keep fighting. I just told the guys, just play for the love of the game. We get paid to do this, we’re judged off wins and losses, but they’ve got to find that inner child that loves to go out to practice, loves to go out to compete, loves to be around the guys, and that’s where we’re focused on.”

The tests aren’t getting any easier for the Redblacks, as they’re set to visit the first-place Montreal Alouettes on Thursday night. The teams played a relatively close game in Ottawa in June, though Montreal dominated last month’s meeting by a score of 34-13.

“They’re clearly the top team, playing good football,” said Dinwiddie. “I think it’s a good thing for us. We understand what we’re going into. We’re gonna have a great crowd environment, they feed off of that. It’s a good challenge for us.”

The Ottawa Redblacks (0-9) will visit the Montreal Alouettes (8-1) at Percival Molson Stadium on Thursday, August 20 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT. Last week, the Redblacks extended their modern CFL record losing streak to 15 games, while the Alouettes were on bye.

The weather forecast in Montreal calls for 23 degrees and a mix of sun and cloud. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS in Canada, CBS Sports Network in the United States, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on TSN 1200 in Ottawa or TSN 690 (English) or 99.5 Montreal (French) in Montreal.