Tuesday, January 23rd, 2018
Since the retirement of head coach Bruce Arians a few weeks ago; the Arizona Cardinals front office and ownership have been in search of a new head man. Today the search has come to an end with the hiring of head coach Derek Bryant.
Bryant, 40, has spent the last four seasons with the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League. Bryant was also personally recommended by former Arizona Cardinals Coach Bruce Arians who crossed paths with Bryant during the Redblacks signing of former Cardinals' QB Ryan Lindley. Bryant got his first head coaching job when he was named the Redblacks first head coach in the history of the franchise in 2014. Bryant won his first game as a CFL head coach on July 17, 2014, when the Redblacks defeated the Toronto Argonauts, 18-17. Despite the initial momentum, Bryant's team finished their inaugural season at 2-16, which was the worst record in the CFL.
Bryant's second season saw a vast improvement as the Redblacks went from 2-16 in their inaugural season to a 12-6 record, which included clinching the franchise's first-ever playoff berth. The Redblacks would also clinch a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the CFL East Division Finals. Under Bryant's tutelage, the Redblacks became the first Ottawa-based CFL team to have a winning record since 1979, along with being the first Ottawa-based CFL team to finish first in the East Division since 1978 and the first Ottawa-based team ever to finish with 12 regular season wins. Bryant won the Annis Stukus Trophy as the CFL's Coach of the Year on November 26, 2015. Bryant guided the Redblacks to the 103rd Grey Cup game, in which the team fell 26-20 to the Edmonton Eskimos.
Bryant's third season saw the team regress to an 8-9-1 record but earned a dubious distinction of being the first division champion to win with a sub .500 record. Bryant guided the Redblacks franchise to their first Grey Cup championship, defeating the Calgary Stampeders 39-33 in overtime in the 104th Grey Cup. The victory was the first by an Ottawa franchise since the Ottawa Rough Riders won in 1976.
Bryant's fourth season saw the team finish with an identical 8-9-1 record from the season before, which was good enough for second place in the East Division, behind the Toronto Argonauts. The Redblacks struggled with injuries and inconsistent play throughout the course of the season. Bryant's team lost to the Saskatchewan Roughriders, who crossed over to play the Redblacks in the East Division Semi-final.
Bryant is from Louisiana and accepted a scholarship to play quarterback at Louisiana Tech University. Unfortunately for Bryant, he was never afforded the opportunity to start for the Bulldogs; backing up Tim Rattay is first three years(1997-99) and losing a quarterback battle to Luke McCown his senior year(2000). Both Rattay and McCown would finish in the top 25 in all-time collegiate passing yards and go on to NFL careers.
Bryant took the opportunity as a backup to develop a foundation for coaching after playing football. In 2001, Bryant returned to Louisiana Tech as a graduate assistant. Following the 2003 season, Bryant was brought on by the Edmonton Eskimos; to serve as the team's special teams and wide receivers assistant coach, earning a Grey Cup ring in 2003. Bryant served in those capacities until 2004, when he was promoted to quarterbacks coach under new head coach Danny Maciocia. Campbell earned his second Grey Cup ring in 2005 and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2006, staying on in that position until 2008.
Shortly after Hall's hiring, Bryant left the Eskimos and was appointed the quarterbacks and special teams coordinator under new the Winnipeg Blue Bombers head coach Mike Kelly. The Bombers 2009 campaign was a disaster as the team finished the season at 7-11, and Kelly was fired in the off-season due to personal conduct issues. Bryant would resign from his post shortly after Kelly's dismissal.
Following his departure from Winnipeg, Bryant returned to Alberta, but this time with the provincial rival Calgary Stampeders. Bryant served as the running backs coach, under John Hufnagel. Bryant resigned at the end of the 2010 season.
Bryant then returned to the Edmonton Eskimos, for the 2011 season, to serve as the assistant head coach and special teams coordinator under new head coach Kavis Reed. Once again, his stint in Edmonton only last one year.
Bryant then returned to the Calgary Stampeders, in 2012, to replace Chris Jones, who left the Stamps that off-season to accept a defensive coordinator role with the Toronto Argonauts. Under Bryant's tutelage, the Stamps recorded 63 sacks, en route to the league's best record for two consecutive seasons. The Stamps defense under Bryant were known for their aggressive style of play, leading the league in turnovers on downs and second in fewest points allowed. Bryant's work with the Stampeders led him to be considered as a prime candidate for various coaching vacancies around the league before inking with the upstart Ottawa Redblacks.
While NFL teams recruiting coaches from our neighbors to the north is nothing new. Arizona fans will hope that Bryant's time with the Cardinals will be more reminiscent of Marv Levy of the Buffalo Bills, minus all the SuperBowl losses, and less like the tenure of former Chicago Bears coach Marc Trestman.
Cardinals GM Steve Keim and Owner Bill Bidwill were both in attendance for Bryant's introduction to the media, summing up the day by saying " It's a great day for Cardinal Nation!"
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