All in the Hall: Dressler, Goldsmith, Owens and Jauch have Roughriders ties
03/05/2024 18:01
Weston Dressler and Vince Goldsmith are the only two Saskatchewan Roughriders players to receive CFL rookie-of-the-year honours.
It is most fitting, then, that their names are connected once again — as part of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2024.
"I always tell people that this wasn't why I played football," said Dressler, who starred for the Green and White from 2008 to 2015.
"I just loved playing the game. I was never something like, 'I want to be a Hall of Fame-type player, so I think the reality of this honour is still setting in for me a little bit.
"I'm super-grateful to all the coaches and teammates that I had along the way — and obviously to the fans in Saskatchewan and in Winnipeg as well. I'm kind of at a loss for words so far as far as what it all means."
Dressler was similarly self-effacing when he was recognized as the league's top rookie in 2008, following a season in which he caught 56 passes for 1,128 yards in 15 games. He averaged an eye-popping 20.1 yards per reception.
The trophy presentation took place in Montreal where, 27 years earlier, Goldsmith had likewise been decorated for a dazzling debut season — one in which he recorded 17 sacks in 16 games.
"Being inducted into the Hall of Fame, that kind of sums up my career," Goldsmith reflected. "That puts a bow on it, to say that, 'Yes, I arrived.' I don't have anything else to prove."
Goldsmith didn't require much time to prove himself as a CFLer.
In his second game of professional football, he erupted for four sacks against the visiting Winnipeg Blue Bombers on July 12, 1981.
The Bombers' Head Coach at the time was Ray Jauch, who is entering the Hall of Fame as a builder.
Jauch is sixth All-Time in CFL coaching victories (127). He compiled those wins during stays in Edmonton (1970 to 1976), Winnipeg (1978 to 1982) and Saskatchewan (1994 and 1995).
He was an assistant with the Roughriders for three seasons before being named the Head Coach. Most notable was a 1994 season in which he guided Saskatchewan to an 11-7 record despite the departures of stars such as Kent Austin, Jeff Fairholm, Jearld Baylis, Barry Wilburn and Charles Anthony.
Chad Owens, another member of the aforementioned Class of 2024, gives the Roughriders four Hall of Fame enshrinees for only the second time since the shrine was established 61 years ago.
Brian Timmis (player), Eddie James (player), Piffles Taylor (builder) and Al Ritchie (builder) were among the charter inductees in 1963.
Owens dressed for three regular-season games and both playoff contests with the 2017 Roughriders.
He enjoyed his greatest success as an explosive receiver and returner with the Toronto Argonauts.
Owens, Dressler and Goldsmith give the Roughriders three player inductees for only the second time. Henry Burris, Fred Childress and Clyde Brock were called to the Hall in 2020.
Goldsmith and Dressler have much more in common than mutual rookie-of-the-year recognition.
Both of them signed with the Roughriders during the month of May, shortly before training camp.
Dressler, at 5-foot-7, was thought to be undersized. Ditto for the 5-foot-11, 240-pound Goldsmith, whose height was not in line with that of a prototypical pass rusher.
"I was at the University of Oregon," Goldsmith, 64, recalled from Edgewood, Wash. "At that time, the NFL had done the draft. I wasn't in it, so I had rolled into track, because I was also involved in the shot put.
"I was working with the track team and I got a call from the coach, who told me that Ed Alsman, who was the player-personnel director at Saskatchewan, had contacted them and they were interested in me.
"At that time, I really didn't have a whole lot of options, but I wanted to continue to play football. If I wanted to play, the CFL seemed to be the path to take.
"I think they had a contract and it was open for three players. I was one of the three and the first one who took it was going to get it. That's how it happened. I just took the contract and came to Canada and did the best I could."
Which was plenty.
Over 10 CFL seasons — including six with the Roughriders — he amassed 130½ sacks (eighth All-Time) in 163 games.
With Saskatchewan in 1983, Goldsmith registered 20 sacks to set a franchise single-season record. Bobby Jurasin topped that total by two in 1987.
On May 14, 1984, Goldsmith was traded to Toronto for fellow defensive lineman Rick Mohr.
Goldsmith spent one season with Toronto and three years with the Calgary Stampeders before rejoining the Roughriders in a May 26, 1988 deal that also brought defensive back Richie Hall to Saskatchewan.
Hall and Goldsmith helped Saskatchewan go 11-7 in 1988 and snap an 11-year playoff drought. The following year, they were part of the second Grey Cup-winning team in Roughriders history.
On May 7, 1991, Goldsmith's rights were traded to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for defensive back Sonny Gordon.
Like Goldsmith, Dressler was part of a championship team while in Saskatchewan. He caught a touchdown pass on Nov. 24, 2013 to help the Roughriders defeat Hamilton 45-23 in the 101st Grey Cup Game.
Dressler is third on the Roughriders' career list in catches (539) and receiving yards (7,797).
With three punt-return TDs, Dressler is tied with Willis Jacox and Christion Jones for third on the Roughriders' lifetime list. Corey Holmes leads the way with five, one more than current Roughriders returner Mario Alford.
Dressler registered his first punt-return TD in 2012, when he added 13 majors via receptions en route to being named the Roughriders' Most Outstanding Player for the second successive season.
A West Division All-Star in 2009 and 2011, he also received All-Canadian laurels in 2012 and 2013.
Dressler spent his final three CFL seasons (2016 to 2018) with Winnipeg. As a first-year Bomber, he exceeded the 1,000 mark in receiving yardage for the sixth time in his career.
He caught two TD passes, one of which was an 87-yarder, for Winnipeg on July 1, 2017 in the first regular-season game at new Mosaic Stadium.
Overall, he caught 715 passes (13th in league history) for 10,026 yards (17th).
Dressler, Goldsmith and Owens will be joined in the Hall by two other players —defensive back Marvin Coleman (Calgary, 1994-2000; Winnipeg 2001-03) and receiver S.J. Green (Montreal, 2010-16; Toronto, 2017-19).
Jauch and the late Ray Laverty, a prominent proponent of touch football, will be inducted as builders.
The Hall's media wing will be expanded by two with the additions of Farhan Lalji (TSN) and Steve Daniel (the CFL's Associate Vice-President of Football Analytics).
The latest Hall of Famers will be formally inducted during a Sept. 13 ceremony in Hamilton. The annual Hall of Fame Game will be held the following evening at Tim Hortons Field, where the host Tiger-Cats will square off against the Ottawa REDBLACKS.
The Roughriders are now represented in the Hall by 37 players and 12 builders. Here is the complete list of Roughriders-affiliated inductees:
PLAYERS
Eddie James, 1963
Brian Timmis, 1963
Dean Griffing, 1965
Andy Currie, 1974
Martin Ruby, 1974
Ron Atchison, 1978
George Reed, 1979
Gerry James, 1981
Ron Lancaster, 1982
Ed McQuarters, 1988
Ted Urness, 1989
Ken Charlton, 1992
Tom Clements, 1994
Bill Baker, 1994
Bill Clarke, 1996
Al Benecick, 1996
Ray Elgaard, 2002
Roger Aldag, 2002
Dave Ridgway, 2003
Willie Pless, 2005
Bobby Jurasin, 2006
Alondra Johnson, 2009
Don Narcisse, 2010
Jack Abendschan, 2012
Tyrone Jones, 2012
Eddie Davis, 2015
Gene Makowsky, 2015
Geroy Simon, 2017
Clyde Brock, 2020
Henry Burris, 2020
Fred Childress, 2020
Will Johnson, 2021
Paul McCallum, 2022
Solomon Elimimian, 2023
Weston Dressler, 2024
Vince Goldsmith, 2024
Chad Owens, 2024
BUILDERS
Neil J. (Piffles) Taylor, 1963
Al Ritchie, 1963
Clair Warner, 1965
Don McPherson, 1983
Bob Kramer, 1987
Ken Preston, 1990
Eagle Keys, 1990
Cal Murphy, 2004
Tom Shepherd, 2008
Don Matthews, 2011
Jim Hopson, 2019
Roy Shivers, 2022
