It’s no secret that the University of Guelph has been called home by a variety of talented individuals, successes ranging across almost everything. There are four significant notables however, that walked the grounds and wore the Gryphon colours before leaving their mark on the large stage of the sporting world.
4. Kyle Walters, CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers General Manager
With coaching experience at both the CIS (University of Guelph) and CFL (Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Winnipeg Blue Bombers) levels, Walters moved upstairs to join management as the Assistant General Manger and Director of Canadian Scouting for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2013. The St. Thomas, Ontario native was later named the 17th General Manager in franchise history in November of the same year.
As a player, Walters was selected in the second round (10th overall) in the 1996 CFL Draft by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats where he played safety and halfback, contributing to their Grey Cup win in 1999. With 78 special teams tackles, Walters is ranked fourth all-time in Tiger-Cat history.
3. Mike O’Shea, CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers Head Coach
Before being named the 30th Head Coach in Blue Bombers history on Dec. 4, 2013, O’Shea was a defensive dominance on the field for 16 seasons – 12 with the Toronto Argonauts and four with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. O’Shea played in 271 regular season games, the most ever recorded by a defensive player. The North Bay, Ontario native is also second on the CFL’s all-time tackles list (1,151) and was the first Canadian to make 1,000 tackles in a career (2006). The five-time East Division All-Star (‘94-‘95, ‘97, ‘99, ‘00) and CFL All-Star spent four seasons as the Argonauts’ Special Teams Coordinator, adding a fourth Grey Cup in 2012 to his already decorated resume of three (‘96-‘97, ‘04) from his playing days.
2. Thomas Dimitroff, NFL’s Atlanta Falcons General Manager
The two-time Sporting News Executive of the Year (2008 and 2010) began his trek to the NFL ranks as the Canadian Scouting Coordinator for the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1990. Continuing to take steps through scouting, Dimitroff became a College Scout in 1994 for the Detroit Lions. The Barberton, Ohio native also made stops in Cleveland followed by New England, where he served as the Director of College Scouting (2003-07), experiencing two of the Patriots’ Super Bowl wins (XXXVIII and XXXIX).
Since being hired as the General Manager of the Atlanta Falcons in 2008, Atlanta has posted five consecutive winning seasons and earned three straight playoff berths for the first time in franchise history (2010-12).
1. Cassie Campbell, Canadian National Women’s Hockey star
The only captain, male or female, to lead Canada to two Olympic gold medals and the longest serving captain in Canadian hockey history (2001-2006), Campbell donned the red and white jersey for a 129-26-2 record. The Brampton, Ontario native has a decorated total of 21 medals (17 gold and four silver) with Canada’s National Women’s teams, recording 32 goals and 68 assists for 100 points in 157 career games.
Campbell went on to become the first woman to do colour commentating on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada (2006), and later the first female to work on the NHL Network.