Potential candidates for Riders head coach prepare to face off in Grey Cup

The search is on for the next Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach, and two of the potential candidates will do battle in this weekend’s Grey Cup.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive coordinator Buck Pierce and Montreal Alouettes defensive coordinator Noel Thorpe will see their units going head to head in Sunday’s Grey Cup at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton. Kickoff for the game is set for 5 p.m.

The Riders are looking for a new bench boss after the team elected to not renew Craig Dickenson’s contract following his second straight 6-12 season as head coach. General manager Jeremy O’Day then began his search for who will be tasked with getting Saskatchewan back into the playoffs.

Saskatchewan Roughriders general manager Jeremy O’Day announced Craig Dickenson would no longer be the team’s head coach on Oct. 23, 2023. (Britton Gray/980 CJME)

Pierce was a quarterback in the CFL for the B.C. Lions (2005-09, 2013) and the Bombers (2010-13) prior to joining Winnipeg’s coaching staff in 2014. He was the running backs coach and quarterbacks coach before he took over as offensive coordinator in 2020.

The Bombers will be playing in their fourth straight Grey Cup on Sunday, with the Bombers’ offence playing a key role in their recent success.

If given a shot at being a head coach, Pierce is confident he could handle the role, but he’s not looking to far into the future.

“I’m all about focusing on the now and where I am,” Pierce said. “I’ve always lived my life that way. Wherever I am, I am going to put everything I have into it and continue to learn and grow.

“Obviously at some point (I’d take the next step). There is some intrigue behind it, but I got into football as a kid because I love football. I didn’t get into it to be a professional football player.”

He said he started as a coach for similar reasons.

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“I got into coaching because I am passionate about teaching and learning and competition and watching people grow. I didn’t get into coaching to climb the ladder, so to speak,” he said.

“I’ve always believed in doing your best in what you are doing and not looking behind or forward. Be where your feet are and put everything you have into that process, and that’s what I have done.”

Pierce’s players said they fell like he has what it takes to make the jump into a head coaching role if he’s called on.

“You see what he does with this team and with this offence,” said running back Brady Oliveira. “He is an offensive mastermind. He does such a good job of getting guys the balls that can do damage in this offence. He’s great, and I think he would be a great head coach.”

Thorpe, meanwhile, has been a coach in the CFL since 2002 with a quick stop with the U Sports’ Montreal Carabins from 2011 to 2012. Thorpe hasn’t been a head coach in the CFL yet but his Als’ defence is one of the main reasons they are battling for the CFL’s top prize this weekend. On top of an impressive season, they forced nine turnovers from the Toronto Argonauts in their 38-17 win in the east final. He also has a Grey Cup ring, which he earned as the Als’ special teams coordinator back in 2002.

But right now, all of Thorpe’s focus is on trying to win another ring for Montreal.

“There is 100-per-cent focus on this football game and this day. We talk about WIN: What’s Important Now,” Thorpe said.

“If you can take care of the WINs and stack the days, the rest will take care of itself.”

The Bombers’ offence comes into the game after scoring a CFL-high 594 points (33 per game) with 2,503 rushing yards (first in the CFL) and 5,263 yards in the air (second-most).

Meanwhile, the Als’ defence has been stout all season, only surrendering 21.8 points per game – only the Bombers’ defence gave up fewer points. The defence has also been bolstered with the in-season additions of defensive end Shawn Lemon and linebacker Darnell Sankey.

So while the Riders aren’t in this year’s Grey Cup, there could be a lot of intrigue from the organization about who emerges victorious in this showdown.