B.C. Lions admonish Josh Hagerty’s ‘huge mistake’ but will not release him

Photo courtesy: David Dermer/B.C. Lions

The B.C. Lions are standing by defensive back Josh Hagerty after he was suspended two games for punching Montreal Alouettes running back Liam Talbot.

“I think Josh is a great kid that succumbed to the emotions of the game. It’s not who he is, it’s not who the B.C. Lions are. It’s unacceptable. I don’t know anybody in our building that thinks that’s tolerable,” said Lions general manager Ryan Rigmaiden on Monday.

“He’s going to serve his suspension. He’s already reached out to Liam, I know he’s done that, and then he’s talking to our in-house people that can help him just move forward, so it’s something that I’ve never seen in football, and we should never see again.”

The CFL suspended Hagerty after it determined he struck Talbot twice during the team’s 48-29 win on September 12. Video of the incidents appear to show punches to the groin area on two separate special teams plays, neither of which was penalized at the time.

An exclusive report from 3DownNation on Wednesday revealed that Talbot underwent season-ending surgery for an injury sustained as a result of the punches, which was described as potentially “life-altering” by sources familiar with the situation.

The subsequent suspension was tied for the longest ever in the CFL for a single on-field incident, though many critics felt it did not go far enough.

“Just knowing who Josh is, this is the last guy that I think any of us would have thought that something like this would have happened, so just knowing who he is, who his character is, we feel like he can he can get past this and move forward,” said Rigmaiden.

“It’s an emotional game, especially that game, as you guys saw. It was extremely chippy. There’s no excuse for it. (Head coach) Buck (Pierce) and I talked at length about what direction we’re going to go. We took everything into account. We love Josh, we respect Josh, but he made a huge mistake, and he’s got to own up to it.”

“(Hagerty’s conduct was) absolutely unacceptable at any level, not something that we’re about or who we are,” added Pierce. “The league has handled it.”

Hagerty was not in attendance at B.C. Lions’ practice on Monday following the team’s bye week and has not been made available to the media. The team indicated that the native of Regina, Sask. has returned home to serve out his suspension.

“I think he wanted to be with his family this week, and frankly, we felt it was best for him to go home and talk to the resources that we have available in-house,” said Rigmaiden. “I think he wants some answers himself. I think he wants to know why he behaved that way, and so we just felt it was better for him to be home.”

The 28-year-old has played 13 regular-season games with B.C. this year and made two starts, tallying 11 defensive tackles and nine special teams tackles. He has played 69 career regular-season CFL games with the Toronto Argonauts, Edmonton Elks, and Lions, amassing 34 defensive tackles, 40 special teams tackles, and one forced fumble.

B.C. defensive back Ronald Kent Jr. and Montreal defensive back Don Callis were each suspended one game for actions in the Week 15 matchup, while three additional members of the Alouettes were fined for their conduct.

Rigmaiden indicated that the Lions can’t impose their own supplemental discipline once the CFL has made its own ruling, likening it to “double jeopardy.” Pierce does not believe Hagerty nor the suspension will be a distraction to the team moving forward.

“(Hagerty) knows he made a huge mistake,” said Rigmaiden. “It’s one of those that I think he’s going to have to live with for the rest of his career. Right or wrong, that’s what happened, and he’s going to have to take all that in to move forward.”