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New Hall of Fame inductee Ben Cahoon on how his football dreams came true in Montreal
REGINA—On some levels, Ben Cahoon was the unlikeliest of CFL stars. Who would have imagined that a 5'9'', 185-pound slotback from Orem, Utah by way of BYU would turn into one of Canadian football's all-time greatest receiving threats? Cahoon pulled that off, though, putting up an incredible 13-year career with the Montreal Alouettes that saw him win three Grey Cups, earn three league all-star nods and set a CFL record with 1,017 career receptions (which stood until Geroy Simon broke it this year). That career saw him become part of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame's newest class Friday night, and he said while it wasn't the football stardom he'd initially envisioned growing up, it proved out to be beyond his dreams.
"It was a dream come true to make a professional football team," Cahoon said. "Every single day I tried not to take that for granted, I tried to go out there and grind, every single day, every single practice to earn my keep. It was a dream to play professional football. I can't see I dreamed of playing for the Montreal Alouettes, but it turned out to be a dream career. I'm really fortunate."
Cahoon said he was thrilled to get the call from the Hall.
"It's fantastic to be honoured, to get to this point," he said. "It was surprising and shocking."
He said a lot of his success came from the great players he was surrounded with in Montreal.
"Playing with a quarterback like Anthony Calvillo, just being surrounded by a great team, is what allowed me to go out there and make plays," he said.
Cahoon said his best memories from his career are the Grey Cups the Alouettes won in 2002, 2009 and 2010.
"It's hard to win championships in this league," he said. "There's only eight teams, but for whatever reason, that championship was a real mishit for us. We went to eight different Grey Cups and we only won three, so each of those three championships...when I think back on that, the special moments, the celebrations afterwards, that's what I enjoy dwelling on."
After retiring, Cahoon worked as a receivers coach at BYU for the 2011 and 2012 seasons. He said it was fun to try and pass on what he's learned to younger players.
"I enjoy coaching, I did it for a couple years," Cahoon said. "I'm not doing it this year, but I really enjoyed it. I felt like I've acquired some valuable knowledge over the years, nuances of the position that I can pass on. So that's enjoyable."
While many players have second thoughts after retirement and contemplate returning, Cahoon said that was never the case for him. In fact, while he loved his time playing football, he doesn't itch to go out there and suit up again.
"I haven't missed it and that's kind of a blessing," Cahoon said. "I felt I got out at the right time and got the most out of the game. I haven't felt like "Eh, maybe I could play one more year," I just haven't had those thoughts. Athletes, most of the time they're forced out, they don't get to go out on their terms, so I consider myself lucky that that wasn't the case for me."
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