Grant ready for opportunity
Corey Grant always knew that he wanted to be a football coach.
That’s why he found time to complete his teaching degree and earn a teaching certificate during his 11-year CFL career as a nonimport receiver with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Montreal Alouettes. That commitment was rewarded Thursday when he was named Hamilton’s running backs coach and offensive quality coach.
“Coaching is teaching and just because you’ve played doesn’t mean you’re able to transfer the information that is needed,’’ Grant said Friday from the CFL Combine in Toronto. “Everything that goes into that is part of teaching. I thought the best way of doing that was going to teacher’s college and then getting my masters. I wanted to learn the art of communication and teaching, which coaching is.
“I know that every guy who plays wants to coach when they are done, but they have to realize that there is a process and it’s a long road. I went to teacher’s college and then I got my coaching credentials. I became a learning facilitator so I was able to coach amateur coaches in Ontario. I took those steps and I just kept pounding at it.’’
Grant became more involved in coaching after retiring from the CFL in 2009. He spent the 2010 and 2011 seasons as a receivers coach with the McMaster Marauders. He stepped aside last year to concentrate on his family (Grant and his wife, Jennifer have two small children) and his full-time job teaching Grades 5 and 6 in Hamilton.
Grant kept an eye on the happenings with the TigerCats. Whenever a coaching opportunity opened up, he submitted his name for the vacancy. He followed the same procedure when Kent Austin was hired as vicepresident of football operations, general manager and head coach on Dec. 17.
“They knew from over the years that I was really interested in coaching,’’ said Grant. “The personnel guys threw my name out there and then contacted me to see if I was still interested. I couldn’t say yes fast enough.’’
Grant, who played six-plus seasons for the Roughriders, shared in Saskatchewan’s 23-19 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the 2007 Grey Cup game. The Grey Cup victory capped Austin’s lone season as the head coach of the Riders. Grant appreciated how Austin handled being a head coach during the 2007 season.
“I had been there a while before he got there and we just couldn’t seem to get over that hump,’’ said Grant, who dressed for 87 games and recorded 2,093 yards and seven touchdowns on 166 receptions with the Riders. “When he got in there, he added the motivation piece. The demands and the accountability that he put on everybody from the players to the coaches seemed to turn everything around for us.’’
Grant spent the first three years of his 11-season career with the Tiger-Cats, with whom he was the 1999 East Division rookie-of-theyear. He also played in Hamilton’s 32-21 victory over the Calgary Stampeders in the 1999 Grey Cup. In 2002, he played 13 games with the Montreal Alouettes before being traded to the Riders. He was released by the Riders after the 2008 season and joined the Tiger-Cats for the second half of the 2009 season before retiring.
“I wasn’t a superstar or anything like that,’’ said Grant, who concluded his CFL career with 325 receptions for 4,461 yards and 16 touchdowns. “I was a hardworking player who just did his job to the best of his ability. To play that long and not be a superstar means I had some other intangibles that I try to instil in the players I coach. A lot of the players I coached (at McMaster) where better than me at the time.’’
Grant is looking forward to the challenge of coaching a different position.
“Everyone asks me why I’m not a receivers coach,’’ Grant said. “This is an opportunity for me to learn something new and really dig deep into that position.’’