 Hall in 2007 | |
| Winnipeg Blue Bombers | |
|---|---|
| Title | Defensive coach |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1960-10-04)October 4, 1960 (age 65) San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
| Weight | 160 lb (73 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Colorado State |
| Position | Defensive back, No. 7 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1983–1987 | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1988–1991 | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
Coaching | |
| 1994–2000 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (Defensive Secondary) |
| 2001–2008 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (Defensive coordinator) |
| 2009–2010 | Edmonton Eskimos (Head coach) |
| 2010 | Edmonton Eskimos (Defensive coordinator) |
| 2011–2014 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (Defensive coordinator) |
| 2015–2023 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers (Defensive coordinator) |
| 2024–present | Winnipeg Blue Bombers (Defensive coach) |
| Awards and highlights | |
Richie Hall (born October 4, 1960) is adefensive assistant coach for theWinnipeg Blue Bombers of theCanadian Football League (CFL). He played professionally as aCanadian footballdefensive back for nine seasons for theCalgary Stampeders andSaskatchewan Roughriders where he was a CFL All-Star in 1983 and a four-time divisional All-Star. He is a five-timeGrey Cup champion, once as a player and four times as adefensive coordinator. He was formerly thehead coach of theEdmonton Eskimos from 2009 to 2010.
Hall was born October 4, 1960, inSan Antonio, Texas. He was in a car accident as a child that catapulted him through the windshield of the car and nearly killed him, leaving him with permanent scars above his right eye.
He was a star two-wayAmerican football player in high school despite his height of just 5 feet 6 inches (1.68 m).[1]
Hall was a walk oncollege football player atColorado State University, where he majored in social work.[1] He played for theRams from 1980 to 1982.[2]
Hall originally signed with theCalgary Stampeders in May 1983 and, in his rookie season, was a CFL All-Stardefensive back, playing in 16 games recording fourinterceptions and twofumble recoveries.[3] He also returned 50 punts on special teams for 561 yards including onetouchdown and onekickoff return for 12 yards. He earnedWest Division All-Star honours in the1986 CFL season for his defensive work recording foursacks, eight interceptions for 116 yards, and one fumble recovery for 50 yards. He also returned 16 punts that year for 260 yards.[4][5]
Hall was traded to theSaskatchewan Roughriders in May 1988 for a fourth-round pick in the1989 CFL draft and returned as a1988 CFL season and1990 CFL seasonWest Division All-Star.[4][5] He won his firstGrey Cup championship in1989.[4]
In all, he appeared in 153 career regular-season games between 1983 and 1991 playing both defensive back andpunt returner, was a four-timeWest Division all-star, a League All-Star in 1983, and was selected for theTom Pate Memorial Award in 1990.[6][7]
After being released by the Roughriders, Hall used his social work degree and got a job at Regina's Cornwall Alternative School for high-risk kids and joined Regina'sArchbishop M.C. O'Neill High School football coaching staff in 1993 before embarking on his professional coaching career.[1][8]
In 1994, Hall was hired by theSaskatchewan Roughriders to coach theirdefensive backfield and worked his way up todefensive coordinator by 2000. He gained a reputation as one of the top minds for defensive schemes in the CFL and served as Saskatchewan's defensive coordinator for eight years including the95th Grey Cup victory for Saskatchewan in 2007.[1] His2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders defence finished the season with the best in fewest yards allowed (354 per game), second in pass defence (266 yards per game) and fewest passing TDs allowed (28) and third in fewest TDs (44) and points allowed (25.1 per game).[7]
Hall interviewed for at least seven head coaching positions beginning after the2004 CFL season and, on December 17, 2008, Hall was hired as the head coach for the Edmonton Eskimos, the firstblack head coach in the Edmonton Eskimos history. When looking for a new coach, Eskimos General ManagerDanny Maciocia said he asked his quarterbacks to name the toughest defensive co-ordinator they've played against and was given the unanimous response of Richie Hall.[7][9][10]
Hall has said that he wants his players to enjoy the game, work hard, appreciate everything, and take nothing for granted. "I want our players to have a selfless attitude. I want them to be there for each other," Hall said. "I like to think football is a way for them to live their lives."[1]
During his first training camp ashead coach, arguably the most competitive battle was betweenTumbo Abanikanda andMark Restelli for the startingweakside linebacker spot.[11][12] Hall stated that he hoped the battle would end when,"one player outperforms the other player".[13] Eventually, Abanikanda was released with Restelli winning the job.[14]
On November 12, 2010, Hall was fired as the Eskimos head coach after two seasons coaching the team.
On February 1, 2011, it was announced that Hall had rejoined the Roughriders as their defensive coordinator.[15] He won his third Grey Cup following the team's victory in the101st Grey Cup in 2013.
Hall was hired as the defensive coordinator for theWinnipeg Blue Bombers on January 20, 2015.[16] After missing the playoffs in 2015, the Blue Bombers made the playoffs for each season that Hall served as defensive coordinator, and played in four consecutive Grey Cups, including two championship victories in2019 and2021. On January 8, 2024, it was announced thatJordan Younger had been promoted to defensive coordinator, but that Hall would remain on the defensive coaching staff.[17]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Result | |||
| EDM | 2009 | 9 | 9 | 0 | .500 | 3rd in West Division | 0 | 1 | LostWest Semi-Final | |
| EDM | 2010 | 7 | 11 | 0 | .388 | 4th in West Division | – | – | Missed Playoffs | |
| Total | 16 | 20 | 0 | .444 | 0 West Division Championships | 0 | 1 | 0 Grey Cups | ||