The BC Lions are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of head coach, Grey Cup champion and Canadian Football Hall of Fame member Dave Ritchie.
Said Lions co-general manager and director of football operations Neil McEvoy:
“Coach Ritchie was a champion at heart who represented the BC Lions with the utmost class and professionalism. Anyone who had the good fortune to work with him was better for it. He will be dearly missed by everyone across the Canadian Football League.”
Ritchie served as Lions head coach from 1993-95 and would engineer one of the greatest turnarounds in CFL history, inheriting a squad that finished 3-15 in the year prior to his arrival and moulding them into Grey Cup champions in the unforgettable 1994 season. Ritchie’s 31 victories are good for sixth all-time among Lion head coaches.
Following head coaching stints in Montreal (1997-98) and Winnipeg (1999-04), Ritchie returned to the Lions as defensive coordinator from 2005-07, earning a second Grey Cup ring with the organization in 2006. Ritchie was inducted to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame as part of the 2022 class while his 1994 Grey Cup champions are enshrined on the BC Lions Wall of Fame.