Cal Murphy
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Born: | 1956 BC Lions | | March 12, 1932
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Awards | 2× Annis Stukus Trophy (1983, 1984) | |
Career stats | ||
Cal Murphy (March 12, 1932 – February 18, 2012) was a Canadian football coach, general manager and scout, most notably for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. In his career as a coach and/or general manager, he led various teams to nine Grey Cup championships, earning a spot in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. In his retirement years he spent some time as a scout for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League.
Early life
Murphy, one of seven children, was born in
-
U. of Hawaii coaching staff ca 1968
Coaching career
Cal Murphy joined the CFL coaching ranks in
In 1983, Murphy was hired by Paul Robson of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and spent 14 years as head coach and general manager. He developed a reputation for finding top talent, and developed one of the most feared defenses in CFL history with the likes of Tyrone Jones, James "Wild" West, and Aaron Brown. In a controversial move, he traded away strong-armed and popular starting QB Dieter Brock to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for the smarts of lesser known QB Tom Clements. Although Clements would suffer a season-ending collarbone injury, and the Bombers would lose in the 1983 Western Final to the BC Lions, they would crush the Brock-led Tiger-Cats in 1984 by a score of 47–17 in a frigid Grey Cup in Edmonton, bringing the city of Winnipeg its first Grey Cup in 22 years.
Murphy was awarded the
CFL coaching record
Team | Year | Regular Season | Post Season | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Result | |||
BC | 1975 | 5 | 5 | 0 | .500 | 5th in West Division | – | – | Missed Playoffs | |
BC | 1976 | 5 | 9 | 2 | .375 | 4th in West Division | – | – | Missed Playoffs | |
BC Total | 10 | 14 | 2 | .423 | 0 West Division Championships |
- | - | 0 Grey Cups | ||
WPG | 1983 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 2nd in West Division | 1 | 1 | Lost in Division Finals | |
WPG | 1984 | 11 | 4 | 1 | .712 | 2nd in West Division | 3 | 0 | Won Grey Cup | |
WPG | 1985 | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 2nd in West Division | 1 | 1 | Lost in Division Finals | |
WPG | 1986 | 11 | 7 | 0 | .611 | 3rd in West Division | 0 | 1 | Lost in Division Semi-Finals | |
WPG | 1993 | 14 | 4 | 0 | .778 | 1st in East Division | 1 | 1 | Lost Grey Cup | |
WPG | 1994 | 13 | 5 | 0 | .722 | 1st in East Division | 1 | 1 | Lost in Division Finals | |
WPG | 1995 | 7 | 11 | 0 | .389 | 5th in North Division | 0 | 1 | Lost in Division Semi-Finals | |
WPG | 1996 | 9 | 9 | 0 | .500 | 3rd in West Division | 0 | 1 | Lost in Division Semi-Finals | |
WPG Total | 86 | 51 | 1 | .627 | 2 East Division Championships |
7 | 7 | 1 Grey Cup | ||
SSK | 1999 | 3 | 15 | 0 | .167 | 5th in West Division | – | – | Missed Playoffs | |
SSK Total | 3 | 15 | 0 | .167 | 0 West Division Championships |
- | - | 0 Grey Cups | ||
CFL Total | 99 | 80 | 3 | .552 | 2 East Division Championships |
7 | 7 | 1 Grey Cup |
Personal life
After suffering heart attacks in 1978 and 1985, in 1992 Murphy underwent emergency heart bypass surgery that kept him alive before being saved by a last-second donor and successful heart transplant surgery. In January 1993, the Governor General of Canada presented Cal Murphy with the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal in recognition of the significant contribution to compatriots, community and to Canada. His eldest son, Mike, is a scout with the NFL's New York Giants, and son-in-law, Sammy Garza, is a scout with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys. He had seven children: Carol, Mike, Barbara, Erin, Shannon, Brian and Kelly.
Cal Murphy died in Regina, Saskatchewan on February 18, 2012, aged 79.[2]
References
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 13, 2010. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Cal Murphy dead at age 79". News Talk 650 CKOM. Rawlco Communications. February 19, 2012. Archived from the original on February 22, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2012.