OSEG ‘Dream Team’ off to Hall of Fame

Ten years after first discussing plans to bring the CFL back to the nation’s capital, The “Dream Team” is headed into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame.

It was announced Friday all five partners of the Ottawa Sport and Entertainment Group — Roger Greenberg, John Ruddy, Jeff Hunt, John Pugh and Bill Shenkman — will be inducted on June 2 at Lansdowne Park’s Horticultural Building.

It is a worthy tribute to a group of local guys who did something fantastic for the community when they didn’t have to. It’s not like they were in it for the money. They have more than they could spend.

Along with being the driving force behind the salvation of Lansdowne Park, topping OSEG’s list of accomplishments is the Redblacks’ victory in last November’s Grey Cup, ending a 40-year drought for Ottawa football.

The group also owns the Ottawa Fury and the Ottawa 67’s.

“It’s an honour, obviously, but it’s especially great to be recognized with my partners,” said Hunt, OS EG’s president of sports. “It may seem like we haven’t been around that long but this is almost a decade in the making. Sometimes I still can’t believe we got this thing done and it became such a big part of the community. We’re all very proud of what OSEG has been able to accomplish, and how the city has responded and embraced the teams and the whole redevelopment of Lansdowne and TD Place.”

OSEG’s immediate future includes hosting the 2017 Grey Cup game — and growing the products.

“I think this is a very dynamic sports city,” said Hunt, who guiding the 67’s to a Memorial Cup title in 1999, his first year as their sole owner. “People here support their teams and we win here. That’s a great reputation we’re building.

“I think we’re going to have a good football team for a long time and the Fury’s fan base is growing, as Ottawa becomes more and more of a soccer city. There is a great buzz. In my mind OSEG has created a whole new district within the city that people associate with fun, entertainment and now success.”