Don Matthews

Donald J. Matthews,[1] a.k.a. "The Don", (June 22, 1939 – June 14, 2017) was a head coach of several professional football teams, mostly in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He won 231 games in the CFL, the second highest win total by a head coach in the league's history. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in September 2011.

Don Matthews

Biographical details
Born	June 22, 1939 Amesbury, Massachusetts
Died	June 14, 2017 (aged 77) Beaverton, Oregon
Playing career
1960–1963	Idaho
Position(s)	Linebacker
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1964	Idaho (GA)
1965	Ely HS (NV) (assistant)
1966–1968	Ely (NV) HS
1969–1970	Joel E. Ferris HS (WA)
1971–1972	Idaho (OL)
1973	Idaho (OC)
1974–1976	Sunset HS (OR)
1977	Edmonton Eskimos (LB)
1978–1982	Edmonton Eskimos (DC)
1983–1987	BC Lions
1989	Edmonton Eskimos (DC)
1990	Toronto Argonauts
1991	Orlando Thunder
1991–1993	Saskatchewan Roughriders
1994–1995	Baltimore Stallions
1996–1998	Toronto Argonauts
1999–2000	Edmonton Eskimos
2002–2006	Montreal Alouettes
2008	Toronto Argonauts
Head coaching record
Overall	231–132–1 (CFL) 5–5 (WLAF)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Grey Cups (5): 73rd, 83rd, 84th, 85th, 90th
Awards
CFL Coach of the Year (5) 1985, 1994, 1995, 1997, and 2002.
Records
2nd highest win total by CFL coach

Early life and college

Matthews was born in Amesbury, Massachusetts, the son of Canadian-born parents, Ida (Babin), from Tracadie, New Brunswick, and Fred Matthews, a steel mill worker from Prince Edward Island.[2] From a large family of limited means and education, he quit high school in Amesbury after his senior season of football in 1956 and served three years in the U.S. Marine Corps.[3]

Matthews returned home and earned his high school diploma and then on the advice of a teacher, ventured west in 1960 as a 21-year-old freshman to Moscow, Idaho. He walked-on at Idaho as a linebacker on the freshman team;[4] he was awarded a scholarship by varsity head coach Skip Stahley after his first semester.[5] He earned three letters and was a team captain in his senior season of 1963, when the Vandals, in their second year under Dee Andros, achieved their first winning season in a quarter century.[6] Matthews graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in education in 1964.[3][7][8]

Early career

Matthews was a graduate assistant for the Vandals in Moscow for the 1964 season under Andros and freshman coach Bud Riley.[9] Matthews then coached high school football in Nevada at Ely for four years and won a state title. He relocated to eastern Washington at Spokane in 1969 as head coach at Ferris, where he led the Saxons to the city title in his second and final year.[10]

Matthews became a collegiate assistant coach back at his alma mater in 1971 as offensive line coach (later as offensive coordinator), under second-year head coach Don Robbins.[7] After an 0–2 start, the Vandals finished at 8–3, which included an eight-game winning streak, and won the Big Sky title. At the time it was the best record in school history, and three seniors were selected in the 1972 NFL Draft. Two years later, Robbins was fired following the 1973 season and Matthews moved to the Portland area. He took over a winless program at Sunset High School in Beaverton and won consecutive state championships in 1975 and 1976, going undefeated in his third and final year.[3] He left Sunset after the 1976 season to become a CFL assistant coach in Edmonton, Alberta.[11]

Pro coaching career

Matthews was formerly head coach of the CFL's BC Lions, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Baltimore Stallions, Toronto Argonauts, Edmonton Eskimos, and Montreal Alouettes. He was also head coach of the Orlando Thunder of the World League of American Football in 1991.[12]

In October 2006, Matthews stepped down as head coach of the Alouettes expressing undisclosed health issues that were "affecting his ability to perform".[13]

In May 2008, Matthews was announced as an advisor to the Jeff Hunt-led group's conditional Ottawa franchise.[14]

Don Matthews returned to Toronto on September 9, 2008 as the interim coach for the Argonauts, after they started the season with a 4–6 record.[15] In that press conference, Matthews revealed that the major health reason that caused him to step down as head coach of the Alouettes was an anxiety disorder. He also went further to say that he had been prescribed to some medication and the anxiety attacks are now under control.[16][17] On October 31, 2008, he resigned from the Argonauts a day after the conclusion of the Argonauts 2008 regular season, which saw the Argos fail to win a game in the eight games under his leadership and finishing out of the playoffs for the first time since the 2001 CFL season.[18]

Matthews was selected for induction in the Builder category into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame on February 10, 2011.[19]

On November 5, 2012, Matthews announced he was battling cancer and therefore would not be able to participate in any of the festivities for the 100th Grey Cup in Toronto.[20]

The Montreal Alouettes announced on July 30, 2014, that Matthews had joined the team in a coaching consultant role for the second consecutive year.[21]

Coaching records

Don Matthews holds several coaching records:[22]

• Most Grey Cup appearances (9 – tied)
• Most Grey Cup wins (5 – tied)

He also has an additional five Grey Cup titles as defensive co-ordinator of the Edmonton Eskimos.

CFL head coaching record

Source: justsportsstats.com

Team	Year	Regular season					Post-season
		Won	Lost	Ties	Win %	Finish	Won	Lost	Result
BC	1983	11	5	0	.688	1st in West Division	1	1	Lost in Grey Cup
BC	1984	12	3	1	.800	1st in West Division	0	1	Lost in Division Finals
BC	1985	13	3	0	.813	1st in West Division	2	0	Won Grey Cup
BC	1986	12	6	0	.667	2nd in West Division	1	1	Lost in Division Finals
BC	1987	8	6	0	.573	1st in West Division	–	–	(fired)
TOR	1990	10	8	0	.556	2nd in East Division	1	1	Lost in Division Finals
SSK	1991	5	6	0	.455	4th in West Division	–	–	Missed Playoffs
SSK	1992	9	9	0	.500	3rd in West Division	0	1	Lost in Division Semi-Finals
SSK	1993	11	7	0	.611	3rd in West Division	0	1	Lost in Division Semi-Finals
BAL	1994	12	6	0	.667	2nd in East Division	2	1	Lost in Grey Cup
BAL	1995	15	3	0	.833	1st in South Division	3	0	Won Grey Cup
TOR	1996	15	3	0	.833	1st in East Division	2	0	Won Grey Cup
TOR	1997	15	3	0	.833	1st in East Division	2	0	Won Grey Cup
TOR	1998	9	9	0	.500	3rd in East Division	0	1	Lost in Division Semi-Finals
EDM	1999	6	12	0	.333	3rd in West Division	0	1	Lost in Division Semi-Finals
EDM	2000	10	8	0	.556	2nd in West Division	0	1	Lost in Division Semi-Finals
MTL	2002	13	5	0	.722	1st in East Division	2	0	Won Grey Cup
MTL	2003	13	5	0	.722	1st in East Division	1	1	Lost in Grey Cup
MTL	2004	14	4	0	.778	1st in East Division	0	1	Lost in Division Finals
MTL	2005	10	8	0	.556	2nd in East Division	2	1	Lost in Grey Cup
MTL	2006	8	6	0	.571	1st in East Division	–	–	(stepped down)
TOR	2008	0	8	0	.000	3rd in East Division	–	–	missed playoffs
	Team totals
BC	1983–1987	56	23	1	.700	4 West Division Championships	4	3	1 Grey Cup
TOR	1990, 1996– 1998, 2008	49	31	0	.613	2 East Division Championships	5	2	2 Grey Cups
SSK	1991–1993	25	22	0	.532	0 West Division Championships	0	2	0 Grey Cups
BAL	1994–1995	27	9	0	.750	1 South Division Championship	5	1	1 Grey Cup
EDM	1999–2000	16	20	0	.444	0 West Division Championships	0	2	0 Grey Cups
MTL	2002–2006	58	28	0	.674	4 East Division Championships	5	2	1 Grey Cup
Total		231	133	1	.633	11 Division Championships	19	13	5 Grey Cups

Personal

Matthews' mother, Ida, was a francophone from Tracadie, New Brunswick, while his father, Fred, was from Prince Edward Island. Had current Canadian nationality laws been in effect in 1939, Matthews would have become a Canadian citizen under the principle of jus sanguines, but separate Canadian citizenship was not enacted until 1947 and was not extended retroactively to anyone born outside the country prior to 1947. In 2004, Matthews became a naturalized Canadian citizen.[23]

Matthews has three sons and six grandchildren. He lived in Beaverton, Oregon, with his wife Stephanie and stepson Blaze.[24]

After a long 5-year battle with cancer, Matthews died on June 14, 2017.[25]

See also

• List of Canadian Football League head coaches by wins
• List of professional gridiron football coaches with 200 wins

References

1. Rogers Digital Media. "The life and legacy of the incomparable Don Matthews". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
2. Bill Beacon (October 20, 2004). "Matthews chooses to become citizen". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
3. Portland Tribune Archived February 15, 2010, at the Wayback Machine - A new game plan for famed coach - 2010-02-11
4. "Vandal babe standouts". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. 1961. p. 154.
5. Blanchette, John (February 9, 1983). "Things are not so shaky for Don Matthews anymore". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. C1.
6. "Football". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. 1964. p. 255.
7. Go Vandals.com - lifetime achievement - Don Matthews - accessed 2011-10-22
8. Lawton, James (January 15, 1983). "Matthews has travelled a long, tough highway". Vancouver Sun. British Columbia. p. E1.
9. "Football". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. 1965. p. 252.
10. "Ferris coach takes post as aide with Vandals". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). January 29, 1971. p. 15.
11. "Don Matthews, local and legendary football coach, dies at 77". OregonLive.com. June 16, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
12. "Orlando Thunder History". Worldleagueofamericanfootball.com. Retrieved June 18, 2017. The Orlando Thunder was a member of the World League of American Football from 1991 to 1992 (known as NFL Europe from 1995 onwards). The team played their games in the 70,000 seat Citrus Bowl, and was coached by Don Matthews in 1991 and Galen Hall in 1992...
13. "Als coach Matthews resigns". CBC Sports. October 4, 2006. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
14. Brennan, Don (September 12, 2008). "Hunt: Matthews inspired by Kilrea". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved September 12, 2008.
15. "Argos fire Stubler, bring back Matthews". CBC Sports. September 9, 2008. Retrieved September 9, 2008.
16. "Hamilton's online newspaper | Today's Spectator stories". TheSpec.com. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
17. O’Connor, Joe (October 29, 2008). "Argos' Matthews winning battle with anxiety". National Post. Canada. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
18. "Matthews quits as Argos coach". CBC Sports. October 31, 2008. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
19. "Canadian Football Hall of Fame announces Class of 2011," Canadian Football Hall of Fame & Museum, Thursday, February 10, 2011. Archived July 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
20. "Don Matthews battling cancer". Calgary Sun. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
21. "Don Matthews, Turk Schonert join Alouettes as consultants | Metro News". Metronews.ca. July 30, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
22. "Hall of Fame Builder: Don Matthews. Inducted in 2011". Canadian Football Hall of Fame. 2011. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
23. "Alouettes hammer Renegades at the Big O". CBC News. October 23, 2004.
24. Canada (July 19, 2013). "Legendary coach Don Matthews 'making a comeback'". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
25. "Legendary CFL coach Don Matthews dead at age 77". CBC News. June 14, 2017.

External links

• Toronto Argonauts profile
• Canadian Football Hall of Fame profile