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Kevin Strasser, who lost his job for pawning a student’s watch, could resurface in Edmonton

Andrew Bucholtz

When an unusual story popped up in August about former Edmonton Eskimos' offensive coordinator and long-time CFL assistant coach Kevin Strasser being arrested on charges of stealing a student's watchat the Oregon high school he was coaching at, it seemed just like an odd tale of how badly things had gone for someone after his CFL career. Now, though, it sounds like Strasser may be coming back to Edmonton, and that's even more unusual considering that he pleaded guilty to one charge of second-degree theft in December and had to give up his coaching and teaching jobs, plus was sentenced to five days in jail, 18 months of probation and 60 days of community service. The judge in the case mentioned that he could leave to take a job in Edmonton, though, and Strasser has long ties to new Eskimos' head coach Chris Jones and general manager Ed Hervey. It sounds like he may well be heading back north, and that will ignite debate on if he deserves another chance.

TSN 1260's Jason Gregor initially reported Friday that Strasser would be the Esks' new offensive coordinator, but Terry Jones refuted that. Gregor updated to say that Strasser's likely the the new receivers coach, though, with Toronto's Bob McAdoo as OC and Jarious Jackson as QB coach/passing game coordinator. That information can be found halfway down this Oilers Nation piece from Gregor. Meanwhile, Chris O'Leary of The Edmonton Journal writes that Strasser has long worked well with Jones and Hervey:

Strasser is no stranger to Edmonton and certainly not to general manager Ed Hervey and head coach Chris Jones. Strasser was the Eskimos’ receiver coach in 2000 and 2001, when Hervey was just at the beginning of his CFL career. He later assumed O.C. duties in 2009 and through the 2010 season. Strasser goes back with Jones to 2000, when he was a guest coach at the Eskimos camp. The two grew closer in Montreal, where they coached under Don Matthews from 2002 to 2006.

“He’s just a really good guy,” Jones told the Journal’s Mario Annicchiarico of Strasser in November, 2009. “We were together, gosh, for five years, and we became real close.

“I don’t have very many of those (relationships) in the league, but I spend so much time with him. I know a lot of people in the league, but it’s not very often you hook up with somebody because you have to guard what you say. But it is nice to have somebody close to in the league. When you’re around someone as long as we were, it’s pretty tough not to get close to them.”

There's no dispute that Strasser's a talented coach. He spent nine years in the CFL and also had a prolific NCAA career (including working with legendary coaches Mouse Davis and Jerry Glanville at Portland State); he also was doing well at Oregon City, leading them to a surprise turnaround from 4-7 to 8-5 and a playoff berth in his first season. They went 5-4 in 2012 before a first-round playoff loss and 8-1 this year before a second-round playoff loss. Strasser knows plenty about football and has worked well with both Jones and Hervey, so that would seem to make him a great addition.

Some are going to question why the Eskimos would hire someone who admitted to theft, though. The Edmonton Journal's John Mackinnon has doubts about this move:

The whole episode reeks of terrible judgment committed by a school teacher, the head football coach at a high school, and Strasser acknowledged that.

Something about the story resonates badly with me. The obvious and easy remedies here included turning the watches over to the principal’s office, or simply handing the student his watch when he came — twice — to Strasser to ask whether he had seen it.

At any rate, the process of assembling a staff of assistants seems to be a bit of a bumpy one for Jones and the Eskimos, who have hit plenty of bumps in the road since they won their most recent Grey Cup in 2005.

There is no question that Strasser is a capable coach, who has had success at every level of the game. But this watch episode speaks to character, and not in a good way.

It's worth pointing out that not everyone's up in arms against Strasser, however. Some of his supporters told Steve Mayes of The Oregonian the judge was too harsh on him:

"This is not justice at all," said Kevin Maughan, a Strasser supporter.

"This ripped a family apart over nothing," said Bryan Mitchell, another supporter. "They didn't have to take his livelihood."

Maughan and Mitchell said the high school did not have a clear end-of-the-year policy on disposing of lost items. Instead of disposing of the lost items on the last day of school, Strasser made a bad decision, they said.

"Should he have pawned the watch? No," Maughan said. "He just wanted to get rid of lost stuff" rather than throwing it in the trash, Maughan said.

The CFL has a long history of second chances for those who run into trouble with the law, including Eric Tillman (don't mention him in Edmonton, though), Odell Willis (who you can currently mention in Edmonton) and Jonathan Hefney, so Strasser's hire would be far from unprecedented if it comes to pass. The Eskimos' organization will have to decide if they're willing to take a risk on him and take some heat for the move, though. Strasser's history as a coach could make him a valuable asset, but the team will have to decide if his recent legal trouble represents a one-time lapse in judgement or something more problematic.