Kent Austin is very smart.
And observant.
He knows his winless Hamilton Tiger-Cats tuned him out. It showed on the field and it showed in the locker room.
Ron Lancaster, the Canadian Football Hall of Fame quarterback who also had a Hall-worthy coaching career, totally understood that phenomenon.
“After a while, the players don’t hear you anymore,” Ronnie would say. “That’s when it’s time for the coach to move on.”
Austin did exactly that. After 4.5 years as Hamilton’s head coach, Austin backed away from the sideline to concentrate on his job as the vice-president of football operations.
Never mind that he already has a general manager, Eric Tillman, who handles most of the personnel decisions.
June Jones, a famously unsuccessful head coach from the U.S., joined the Tiger-Cats as a consultant a month ago. Jones is now Hamilton’s head coach.
The Tabbies are 0-8, so it can’t get any worse.