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Jeff Tedford officially named B.C. Lions' head coach; what will the team look like under him?
The B.C. Lions officially announced the long-rumoured hiring of Jeff Tedford Friday, so now the question is how he'll remake the team. Tedford has CFL experience (and experience with B.C. general manager Wally Buono) from his time with the Calgary Stampeders from 1989-91, but he's been south of the border since then with Fresno State, Oregon, Cal and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His most recent jobs include being the head coach at Cal from 2002-2012 and being the offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers this year (although he missed most of the season thanks to a recovery from heart surgery and a decision not to go back and disrupt them). What sort of changes is Tedford likely to make to the Lions? Well, according to Lowell Ullrich of The Province, one could be a reunion with recently-fired Saskatchewan offensive coordinator George Cortez:
But the Lions now have an offensive-minded coach in Tedford, who has been partial to up-tempo, no-huddle schemes depending on his personnel. Though [current Calgary coach John] Hufnagel gets a lot of the credit, it was Tedford who helped design the six-receiver offence in Calgary that is prevalent throughout today’s game.
Tedford will have the ability to reshape the Lions' offensive thinking as well, meaning it will only be a matter of time before others who have worked with and under him in the past, most notably former Cal offensive coordinator George Cortez, are listed as possible replacements for Khari Jones. That remains speculative for now. B.C. has recharted with a new man at the top.
Cortez would certainly be an intriguing addition; he's found a huge amount of success with all sorts of offences in this league, including pass-wacky ones like his Ticats' attack in 2012 and run-heavy ones like he featured with the Roughriders the past two seasons. As Ullrich writes, that's speculative, though. What may be even more notable than who Tedford hires as offensive coordinator is what sort of offensive scheme he wants to try and install. Yes, he's famed for his "six-pack" design with Hufnagel during his CFL days, but he also ran more straightforward NFL pro-style offences at Fresno State and Cal (with quarterbacks like Trent Dilfer and Aaron Rodgers) and more uptempo ones with spread elements at Oregon (with quarterbacks like Joey Harrington and Akili Smith). It's going to be interesting to see what sort of offensive look Tedford elects to go with this time around.
Something that may make the scheme decision even more notable is that the Lions seemingly have the offensive personnel for a variety of different approaches. Most of their offensive players seem set to return, with quarterback Kevin Glenn and wide receiver Ernest Jackson the only pending free agents; they'll probably try to resign Jackson, but seem set to part ways with Glenn (unless they can get him at a tiny salary and keep him as a backup). If Travis Lulay can return to health, the Lions seemingly have the quarterback, the offensive line and the receiving corps to run a high-octane passing offence, but Lulay could also do well in a more pro-style approach. B.C. also has a couple of brilliantly-talented running backs in Andrew Harris and Stefan Logan, so a more ground-and-pound approach could work for them as well.
On defence, there should be lots of continuity; first-year coordinator Mark Washington did a great job with that unit last season, and he looks set to return, along with most of the team's defensive stars (although some veterans like Dante Marsh may be moved). Put that together with the talented offence, and B.C.'s situation looks pretty good. Tedford's move to take over the Lions is an unusual one, certainly, but he's walking into a situation that's anything but bare talentwise. It will be interesting to see what he does with it.
