Saskatchewan coach Chamblin says he isn’t worried about job security
On Monday, Saskatchewan Roughriders general manager Brendan Taman publicly gave head coach Corey Chamblin a vote of confidence.
On Tuesday, Chamblin suggested it wasn’t entirely necessary.
“It’s the same vote of confidence that those guys (in the CFL team’s hierarchy) have been giving me,” Chamblin said following the Roughriders’ practice at Mosaic Stadium. “It more so had to be done just to silence you guys (in the media) and show the direction of the organization and where they were. That’s the biggest thing.
“Those guys had given me that vote of confidence weeks ago. That’s what it was and we went forward.”
Chamblin’s job security has been a hot topic for fans, media types and CFL observers for weeks.
The Roughriders’ slow start to the season (they’re 0-6) fuelled the speculation, but Chamblin’s future was thrown into serious doubt Saturday.
According to a TSN report that day, Taman was to meet with president-CEO Craig Reynolds and seek permission to fire the head coach. The report suggested the move could come as early as next week, when the Roughriders have a bye.
On Monday, Taman told reporters that he hadn’t sought clearance to relieve Chamblin of his duties and that he expects the head coach to guide the team for the rest of the season.
On Tuesday, Chamblin said he handled the speculation about his job on the weekend “with a laugh.” He simply went back to work to prepare for Saturday’s game against the host Toronto Argonauts.
“Like I’ve always told Brendan, at some time, we’re all going to be relieved from our job, whether that’s through promotion or just getting out of here,” Chamblin said. “I didn’t put a lot of thought into it.” He wasn’t alone. Guard Brendon LaBatte said he hadn’t heard any of the speculation about Chamblin’s future. Besides, LaBatte’s focus isn’t on anything other than his own job — and he already knew how to deal with distractions.
“Being a veteran guy in the league, I’ve unfortunately been through this sort of thing before,” said LaBatte, who’s in his eighth CFL season.
“If you’re a professional football player, your agenda never changes. You want to come to work every day to try and get better at your craft. Anything that’s going to deter you or take your mind away from that, that’s noise and you’ve just got to block that out.”
Chamblin called the hubbub about his future “one of the biggest distractions to ever come through,” so he has been trying to get the players refocused on the task at hand.
“Anytime they read (something in the media), because they don’t know, it doesn’t matter what I say; it has to be proven,” Chamblin said.
“That’s what led to all those things being put to bed so we can give those guys some confidence to understand that, ‘This is the coach I’m playing for and the things that he’s saying, we can abide by knowing that we’re not going to get somebody new next week.’”
Chamblin had been an assistant coach with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Calgary Stampeders and Hamilton Tiger-Cats when he was picked by Taman to become the Roughriders’ head coach in December of 2011.
Chamblin guided Saskatchewan to a Grey Cup title at Mosaic Stadium in 2013 and later was named the CFL’s coach of the year for the 2013 campaign.
Because of his relationship with Taman, Chamblin felt he didn’t need to contact the GM on the weekend to discuss the TSN report. Instead, Chamblin said, he knew that Taman stood behind him.
With his job apparently secure, Chamblin now is tasked with the chore of turning around the Roughriders’ 2015 season. With onethird of the team’s regular season done and with a horde of veterans out with injuries, he faces an uphill climb.
Further struggles could once again put Chamblin in the line of fire, but he noted Tuesday that he learned during his playing career to be prepared for every situation. He also has prepared his family for anything.
“When they read stuff (about his job security), they know the work that I put in, they know who I am as a coach and they know that there’s a lot of things that are unsaid that we’re never going to say to the media,” Chamblin said. “They know what goes on behind closed doors.
“A lot of it, sometimes it seems unfair and different things like that, but they adjust to it. My wife and my family, they’re used to that. They’re used to the criticism and the speculation that I’m going to get.”