Cats Make Front Office Moves

The Ticats made four hirings in their front office on Friday, naming Danny McManus the director of U.S. scouting, Drew Allemang the director of Canadian scouting, Shawn Burke as director of football administration and Eric Tillman as a consultant.

McManus, Allemang and Burke have all worked for the team previously, so the big news to come out of these hirings is bringing in Tillman.

To put it mildly, Eric Tillman is a polarizing figure. On the plus side, he has been a general manager for five different CFL teams over the course of his career and has won three Grey Cups in those stints. He is an astute football mind who has helped build winners almost everywhere he has been.

But a lot of opinions on Tillman changed two Decembers ago when he made perhaps the worst trade in pro sports history, sending future Hall of Fame quarterback Ricky Ray to the Toronto Argonauts. He has also had some troubles in his personal life. He plead guilty to sexual assault on a teenage girl in 2010 while general manager of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and was immediately dismissed as the team's GM.

But people shouldn't start worrying that Tillman will trade Henry Burris for a bag of shuttlecocks and $200 in pennies. Tillman is only a consultant and the final say on all matters still rests with Kent Austin. Austin will be the guy pulling the trigger, not Tillman.

And aside from the Ray deal, Tillman has shown he usually is right when dealing a player. The best example is when he shipped Kerry Joseph to Toronto in 2008. Many panned the move because Joseph had just led the Roughriders to their first Grey Cup win since 1989 and was named the league's Most Outstanding Player, but Tillman didn't believe Joseph was worth what he thought he was worth and sent him to Toronto. Joseph never recaptured his 2007 form and the Riders went to two Grey Cups with the team Tillman built (though he wasn't around for the second trip).

There really is no downside to bringing Tillman on as a consultant. He has a history of building teams into winners – say what you want about the Ray trade, but the Eskimos made the playoffs in both of Tillman's season as general manager – and has a good relationship with Austin, and can help the first-time GM navigate the waters in his first season at the helm of the Tiger-Cats.

Tillman brings invaluable experience and a history as a winner. He also has a chance to rehab his image with the Cats. This is a win-win from both sides, with little risk for Tillman and the team. All signs point to this being a successful marriage.

Bodog, TSN and Five QBs

Quite a bit of news regarding the Tiger-Cats came out over the last few days, especially last night thanks mostly to TSN, but also from the team itself.

For starters, Bodog (a gambling website) released their odds for the upcoming CFL season and they like the Cats. Bodog has the Ti-Cats as the favourites to win the East Division, while placing them behind just the BC Lions as favourites to the Grey Cup.

TSN spent three hours on Monday night covering the CFL. They continued their excellent series of "Road to the Grey Cup" features which looked at last year's champs, the BC Lions. One of the big stories: last season's trade of Arland Bruce. While I concede that the team looks better this year without Bruce, I still have a hard time stomaching just how little the Cats got in return for Bruce. But I don't want to harp on it. What's done is done and it is time (for me) to move on and shut up about it.

TSN followed up their look at last year's Lions by unveiling their list of the Top 50 players of 2012. Out of the 50, seven of them were Tiger-Cats, with Jamall Johnson being the highest ranked at No. 22. Avon Cobourne (No. 46), Markeith Knowlton (No. 39), Chris Williams (No. 34), Henry Burris (No. 32), Rey Williams (No. 28) and Andy Fantuz (No. 25) were the other six. Matt Duingian noted that only four linebackers made the list, and three of them were Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Best linebacking group in the CFL? Damn right!

Marwan Hage did not make the list, which was somewhat of a surprise. My guess is that his injury last season caused his stock to plummet. Should he regain his form, he'll find himself on the list in 2013.

TSN also aired their annual CFL on TSN season preview show, which means analysts gave their predictions. Four panelists picked the Cats to go to the Grey Cup. Milt Stegall, Doug Brown and Matt Dunigan had the Tabbies losing to the Lions in Toronto, but it was Jock Climie who tossed out the dream match of all dream matches, at least as far as I am concerned: Hamilton versus Toronto for the title. Climie believes that with a weaker West Division, the Argos will crossover into the West and win the West Final to earn the right to take on the Tiger-Cats in Toronto for the Grey Cup. That would just be awesome. While I think it is unlikely to happen, I wouldn't be the least bit upset if it did.

And last, but certainly not least, the Ti-Cats themselves unvieled (via the Tiger-Cats Show on AM900 CHML) who are the five quarterbacks that fans will get to choose between for the All-Time Tiger-Cat team. Voting on the team began today, and will continue from now until October 5th, with a new batch of players being unvieled each week until Labour Day on the Tiger-Cats Show. Anyway, here are the five QBs to choose from:

• Danny McManus
• Bernie Faloney
• Joe Zuger
• Mike Kerrigan
• Tom Clements

No real surprises on the list, and I would have to think, as I posited previously, that the battle is between Danny Mac and Bernie Faloney. Only one QB will make the team and my vote is going to Danny Mac. I respect what Faloney did for the team, but I never got to see him play. In my opinion, it would be unfair of me to vote for a player simply on reputation when I saw another player dominate during his time here. If any of the five are voted as the QB, it is deserving, but my vote is going to McManus.

Hall of Fame Adds Seven

The CFL announced the 2011 Canadian Football Hall of Fame class, which will include Danny McManus, Joe Montford, Terry Vaughn, Chris Flynn and Ken Lehmann in the player category, and Gino Fracas and Don Matthews in the builder category.

When I read on Wednesday that the Hall of Fame announcement would be made this week, my first thought was, "Is this the year Danny Mac gets the call? What about Joe Montford?"

I'm not entirely sure what the process is for inductees into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame (such as length of time, post-retirement, before someone is eligible), but I figured that McManus and Montford were due to be inducted soon.

Danny Mac is probably my favourite Ti-Cat of all time. In fact, I named him as the greatest Tiger-Cat of my lifetime (roughly 30 years) about a year ago. I stand by that opinion. I gave the #3 spot to Joe Montford, so to say that I hold both of these gentlemen in high regard would be an understatement.

Congratulations to all seven men, but especially to two of the greatest living Tiger-Cats I ever had the privilege of watching play.

The Greatest Tiger-Cats of My Lifetime: #1

Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for. The #1 Greatest Tiger-Cat of My Lifetime. But before I unveil the #1 player, let's recap the list:

#10: Paul Osbaldiston
#9: Mike Morreale
#8: Tony Champion
#7: Rob Hitchcock
#6: Grover Covington
#5: Rocky DiPietro
#4: Darren Flutie
#3: Joe Montford
#2: Earl Winfield

Those were the other Top 10 players, all of whom are very deserving members of this list. But there can only be one #1. And now, without further ado, the #1 Greatest Tiger-Cat of my lifetime is.....

#1: Danny McManus
Did you expect someone else? In all honesty, who else could it have been? Without a doubt, Danny McManus is the greatest player to play for the Tiger-Cats during my lifetime. McManus spent 8 seasons in Hamilton, amassing accomplishments that any player would be proud to boast about. Without a doubt 1999 was McManus's best season. That year he was a CFL All Star for the only time in his career, the CFL's Most Outstanding Player, and he led the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to their most recent Grey Cup Championship, a game in which he won the Most Valuable Player award after throwing for 347 yards and 2 TDs in a 32-21 victory over the Calgary Stampeders.

After McManus's time in Hamilton came to an end he held the franchise mark for career passing yards, pass attempts, completions and touchdowns. McManus retired from the CFL following the 2006 season, and his career accomplishments rank up there with the all-time greats. He ranks 3rd all-time in passing yards, pass attempts and pass completions, all behind Damon Allen and Anthony Calvillo.

The intangibles at what separate McManus from every other Tiger-Cat in my lifetime. As soon as McManus put on that Black & Gold #14 jersey, fans knew we were about to witness something special. In his first season in Tigertown he guided the Cats to a Grey Cup appearance. In his second year, the Cats won the title. For most of the rest of his tenure he kept the Tabbies competitive. During the later years the team began to fall apart, and a lot of the blame went to McManus. He always got the benefit of the doubt from me. He was the reason we won as many games as we did between 1998-2005, and he is, without a doubt in my mind, the single Greatest Tiger-Cat of My Lifetime.

I've had my say; now it's time for you to have yours. Feel free to sound off in the comment section about the list. Do you agree with it? Disagree? What would you change? Feel free to name your #1 player or your Top 3 or Top 5 or Top 10. I open up the floor now, to you, my faithful readers. Let the debate begin.

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