Photo: Ottawa Redblacks/Brandon Tretter
The Ottawa Redblacks made significant organizational changes this week, and Ryan Dinwiddie blames himself for why they had to take place.
The head coach and general manager spoke to the media for the first time since the firing of vice president of football operations Shawn Burke on Wednesday, admitting that he felt partially responsible for his colleague’s involuntary departure.
“It’s tough news. I know he brought me in to change the fortune of this organization and his as well. He knew he was on the hot seat; that’s why he brought me in. I feel like I let him down,” Dinwiddie told reporters.
“Shawn’s a good friend of mine, as well. We got to be close throughout this process. We spent every day together since I took the job. That’s always tough to see someone leave, especially a quality person like Shawn.”
Ottawa made a splash this offseason when they poached Dinwiddie from the Toronto Argonauts. The two-time Grey Cup-winning head coach was only able to make the jump because taking on the additional title of general manager constituted a promotion. Burke, who had served as GM since 2022, voluntarily ceded the position in order to make the hire, though he continued to perform most of his previous duties once he became vice president.
“It was great. Our offices were right next to each other. We’d walk back and forth, and he did a lot of the GM stuff,” Dinwiddie recalled. “The paperwork and the scouting part, organizing those things, that was stuff that he did, so it allowed me to focus on the football club.”
Unfortunately, that arrangement didn’t bear fruit. The Redblacks have yet to win a game this season, sitting at the bottom of the standings with an 0-10 record. The franchise has now dropped 16 straight games dating back to last season, marking the longest losing streak in modern CFL history. After posting a 21-60-1 record over five years with the organization, Burke was shown the door following a blowout loss to Montreal.
While it may have been Dinwiddie’s failure to record a win this season that sealed Burke’s fate, the coach was just as responsible for attracting his replacement. Ottawa lured Jim Popp, a five-time Grey Cup champion, back north of the border to fill the gap as a senior football advisor, and the 61-year-old made clear that the man on the sidelines was the number one reason he took the job.
“I’ve been a real believer of his, being a player and a coach, and watching him grow. I was doing my best to try to get him to Toronto before I ever left Toronto. They made a very good decision bringing him in when they did, and then they’ve made a great decision of getting him here to Ottawa,” Popp said. “Watching from the outside, I’ve got a lot to understand and learn. I hate to see anybody lose their job, but I get a call, and if I can help Ryan and (Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group president Mark Goudie) and this organization bring itself back up as much as we can, and get it going this year, and then next year, I want to do that.”
Popp and Dinwiddie’s relationship dates back more than two decades. The longtime Montreal Alouettes executive scouted him when he was a college QB at Boise State, grading him highly for his intelligence and renegade streak. That led to Dinwiddie signing in Montreal at the end of the 2005 season. Knowing that there would be no real opportunity behind Anthony Calvillo, Popp encouraged former Alouettes offensive coordinator Doug Berry to take Dinwiddie when he became the head coach in Winnipeg the following year.
Once the quarterback finally retired and turned to coaching in 2013, Popp was there waiting to give him his start once again.
“When he had a chance to be a coach, I wanted him there (in Montreal), and then we went through some different things and had some tough times. He got a chance to actually coordinate a little bit, did fantastic,” he recalled. “I realized sitting in meetings or sitting next to him while we’re coordinating stuff, and he’s not the coordinator, and he would give us the answer before the coordinator would, I knew he really had a great chance.”
“Then different things happened there, and coaches wanted different people to be that guy. I wanted him to be the guy, and he had a chance to go to Calgary; I supported him.”
Popp later attempted to reunite with Dinwiddie when he was general manager of the Toronto Argonauts, but his attempt was foiled. Nevertheless, he laid the groundwork for him to be hired as the Double Blue’s head coach following his departure, which led to a pair of championships.
“I wanted him to come in. Not everybody wanted that, and I laid a game plan out, and it was to have him there someday,” he explained. “They hired him, so some people got really smart, and he’s proved it, proved how valuable he is, and he’s had some great teachers around him. When this opportunity was presented, knowing what I know about him, I want to help him. I want to be a part of his success.”
Despite their longstanding rapport, Dinwiddie insists that he had no say in the Redblacks’ hiring of Popp. However, when Goudie informed him of management’s decision, he couldn’t have been more pleased.
“Look at his resume. I coached for him and played for him. I know he’s really good at bringing in American talent. His track record speaks for itself,” Dinwiddie said. “That’s a decision that they made, and I was all for working with Jim.”
Though Popp will fill Burke’s spot under the football operations cap, the native of Mooresville, N.C., won’t assume all the duties that the ex-Redblacks GM previously handled. Instead, he’ll be leveraging his recent experience as vice president of player personnel with the United Football League to deliver a fast infusion of talent, all of which will need to be rubber-stamped by Dinwiddie. Other day-to-day tasks will continue to be handled by incumbent staff.
“(Director of player personnel) Brendan Taman has taken on more of the logistics stuff, the paperwork and all the transactions and things that Burkey was doing,” Dinwiddie explained. “Jim’s sole focus right now is finding American talent. He’s got a lot of connections in the States, and that’s why we brought him on.”
The reality is that while Burke’s firing cut deep for those who worked with him, it has done little to dampen calls for change outside of the organization. Dinwiddie acknowledged everybody from management to fans remains frustrated, describing their current situation as “Groundhog Day.”
At least, Bill Murray was funny in that particular comedy. Nobody is laughing in Ottawa right now, though Popp’s fresh eyes do offer some optimism. He does not feel the Redblacks are as bad as their record might suggest, and sees plenty of reasons to remain hopeful so long as Dinwiddie is at the helm.
“Believe. Just believe,” he responded when asked if he had a message for the fanbase. “You’ve been in times where you weren’t winning, and you even had teams fold, and then you came back, and you’ve won Grey Cups after that. Things kind of go in waves sometimes. It might be within a season. It might be within a couple years, and sometimes, through your ups and downs, you may win games. It may not be that you haven’t won a game, but just believe because the tide will turn, and you’ll be very proud of this team.”
The Ottawa Redblacks (0-10) will host the B.C. Lions (4-5) at TD Place Stadium on Sunday, August 30, with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT.
