Two former Gryphons were honoured at the sixth annual Friends of Gryphon Football Gala Dinner Saturday at the Delta Guelph Hotel and Convention Centre.
Don Taylor was named the first recipient of the Gryphons’ Distinguished Alumni Ring. He played for the Gryphons’ forerunners, the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) Redmen, in the early 1960s and has been a supporter of the team and its academic endeavours.
“This is a huge honour,” Taylor said. “It’s a huge honour to be associated with Stuart (Lang, former Gryphon head coach) and all that he’s done for the university since he’s been here.”
A team captain who graduated with a BSA from OAC in 1964 and an MBA from York University in 1967, Taylor went on to work for Ford Motor Company, Swedish shipbuilder Kockums Naval Solutions and Canadian grain and liquid storage manufacturer Westeel of Winnipeg. While at Westeel, he was its president and general manager and also a member of the board of directors of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
“My first game ever (with the Redmen) was against Western and I was playing defensive end and Meco Poliziani, who went on to play 10 years in the CFL for Montreal, went right through my arm and hand and everything,” Taylor said. "I had quite an initiation. He broke my wrist, but I played the rest of the year in a cast. I had a lot of fun and that team was incredible.
“For a freshman coming in and playing with the fourth-year guys and being one of them was really something else. It was very enjoyable.”
A highlight for Taylor was playing in the 1959 Atlantic Bowl game against the St. Francis Xavier X-Men, the first time the game featured two university or college teams. It was also the only time a Guelph-based team played in the game that was held annually in Halifax until 2001.
“We lost (26-14), but it was quite an experience,” he said.
The distinguished alumni award was born as a result of this year’s annual trip to the coaches clinic at the University of Alabama when defensive line coach Brian Cluff brought back a program of that university’s awards.
“The one that caught my attention was the distinguished alumni award,” Lang said. “We thought it was a good idea to honour an alumni, not just his football career but what he’d done afterwards and to acknowledge that. The whole part of our program is to create this big family beyond just the football team. The more you acknowledge, award and bring the alumni back, the bigger and stronger your family becomes.”
Taylor was selected by the Friends of Gryphon Football from all nominations received from Gryphon alumni. It’s hoped that the inaugural awarding of the ring will spur an influx of nominations in the future.
Included on the Distinguished Alumni Ring are the recipient’s name, number, position, a Gryphon logo and the university’s coat of arms.
This year’s Honourable Jersey Award winner was Mike Hudson, an all-Canadian and OUA all-star tight end and slotback in the early 1980s who was inducted into the Gryphon Hall of Fame in 1990.
“This is a fantastic honour,” said Hudson, who was thrilled to see former teammates at the banquet. “The nicest thing is I haven’t been back very often and just to see my old teammates — quite a few of them were here tonight.”
He was an all-Canadian and OUA first-team all-star three consecutive years starting in 1980. A member of the Gryphons’ 1980’s Team of the Decade and winner of the Don Cameron Award as most improved player in 1980, Hudson played six seasons with the Ottawa Rough Riders following his time with the Gryphons.
“The biggest thing was how when we just started, the program was a rebuild and we built it up to the point where we won the OUAA in our senior season,” Hudson said of his playing days. “Every year we got a little better and finally after I left, in 1984 they won the Vanier Cup. A friend of mine, Parri Ceci, who also lives in Ottawa, was on that team and that was a memorable moment because I knew quite a few guys on that team.”
The Gryphons recognized their current crop of Canadian Football League players. Gryphs who played in the CFL last season were offensive lineman Ryan Bomben with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, receiver Alex Charette, defensive lineman Jeff Finley and offensive lineman Jake Piotrowski with the Montreal Alouettes, punter Rob Maver with the Calgary Stampeders, long snapper Jake Reinhart and defensive lineman Cam Walker with the Toronto Argonauts and offensive lineman Cam Thorn with the British Columbia Lions. Two members of last year’s Yates Cup-winning team signed CFL contracts after the season: linebacker John Rush with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and long snapper Dan MacDonald with the Argos.
Comedian Nigel Downer, a Gryphon receiver during the 1990s, entertained and interviewed all nine of the Gryphon CFLers who were in attendance while former Gryphon quarterback Justin Dunk was the master of ceremonies.
The Gryphs also announced the members of their Team of the Decade for the 1990s.
Named on offence were, in alphabetical order, quarterback Nathan Body, wide receiver Shane Dougherty, quarterback Wally Gabler, wide receiver Dave Irwin, slotback Frank Marof, centre Jeff McIntyre, guard Graham Meagher, tackle Chris Portwood, slotback Kevin Reid, running back Chuck Sims, running back Gerrit Stam, guard Jim Stewart, tackle Rob Wesseling, slotback Kip Wigmore and guard Kip Zavitz.
Named on defence were defensive back Charles Assmann, defensive back Bill Brown, defensive end Chris Camboia, cornerback Dan Conroy, defensive tackle Brent Dallmore, safety Rob Di Gravio, linebacker Nick Gallo, defensive end Shawn Hagarty, defensive back Matt Hammer, linebacker Steve Mckee, linebacker Kevin Mellow, linebacker Mike O’Shea, defensive tackle Jeremy Oxley, defensive end Todd Storms, cornerback Heron Tait, defensive tackle Hugh Tharby, defensive end Bill Vastis and safety Kyle Walters.
Named on special teams were punt returner Brad Bunn, punter Wally Gabler, kick returner Scott Gordon and kickers Krystan Stringer and Danny Walker.
And as the Gryphons look ahead to defending their OUA championship Yates Cup win, honourees Taylor and Hudson have advice.
“I think they just have to build on what they’ve got,” Hudson said. “It sounds like they’ve got a lot of building blocks in place. They’ve just got to keep doing what they’re doing. A lot of the coaches are the same coaches and they’ve got their quarterback back. It should be, hopefully, good.”
“They’ve got to play hard,” Taylor said. “So much in the game relies on the quarterback, with all teams. But you can win it with a really good defence.”