Is Bob Wetenhall The Worst Owner In CFL History?

[USABomberfan]

I say yes, all this news coming out of Montreal is getting crazier by the story, and I'd say Als fans have one man to blame for this.  This is 100% owner Robert Wetenhall's fault.  Why?  Because he pulled all kinds of bogus moves since Trestman left.

 

1.  He was the one who brought in Dan Hawkins last year and set him up to fail.  Jim Popp had to bail out the team in the wake of that one and the Calvillo retirement.

 

2.  He cut Popp out of the shot to remain on as head coach and sent Doug Berry and the competent coaching staff packing.  He also waited until late February to hire Higgins out of a pool of leftovers.  This in turn brought about a dysfunction between him and Popp.  This also brought about a bad timing with Worman and Higgins and has caused the OC debacle we've all witnessed.

 

3.  Rumor is, Mr W planned to fire Popp if things went in the crapper before the year was up and give Higgins both the HC and GM title, but after Higgins fired Worman, he decided against that and to extend Popp for an extra 3 years.

 

But the bottom line, Popp at least as a HC was able to get the most out of his players.  It's funny how everyone talks about how bad Smith and Marsh are at QB, yet how come they both were winning games last year and nobody was seeing all these crazy inaccuracy issues that've been milling around out there?  You also weren't seeing receivers running faulty routes and missed assignment blocking on the line.  The answer - coaching plain and simple.

 

The Als are in a coaching mess and it's Rob Wetenhall's fault.  If I'm a fan, I'm thinking stop buying tickets thereby pulling the money from the guy's pocket and see if that'll force him to sell the team to a more competent owner or sell it to local stock holders so the franchise becomes community-owned like the Green Bay Packers.

[Bigblue204]

i'm voting only because of the way the question is asked...lol He's not the worst in history. Might be the worst out of everyone today. But certainly not in the history of the cfl.

[Rich]

I think Glieberman or Feterik would have to take worst owner in CFL history.

[17to85]

There have been too many terrible owners in the CFL to call Wettenhall the worst. Quite frankly his willingness to lose money on the Als alone puts him ahead of a bunch of guys. That being said he's clearly lost his mind these last few years. 

[TBieber]

Considering the amount of success they have had while he has been there... not even close.

[Mike]

I say yes, all this news coming out of Montreal is getting crazier by the story, and I'd say Als fans have one man to blame for this.  This is 100% owner Robert Wetenhall's fault.  Why?  Because he pulled all kinds of bogus moves since Trestman left.

 

1.  He was the one who brought in Dan Hawkins last year and set him up to fail.  Jim Popp had to bail out the team in the wake of that one and the Calvillo retirement.

 

2.  He cut Popp out of the shot to remain on as head coach and sent Doug Berry and the competent coaching staff packing.  He also waited until late February to hire Higgins out of a pool of leftovers.  This in turn brought about a dysfunction between him and Popp.  This also brought about a bad timing with Worman and Higgins and has caused the OC debacle we've all witnessed.

 

3.  Rumor is, Mr W planned to fire Popp if things went in the crapper before the year was up and give Higgins both the HC and GM title, but after Higgins fired Worman, he decided against that and to extend Popp for an extra 3 years.

 

But the bottom line, Popp at least as a HC was able to get the most out of his players.  It's funny how everyone talks about how bad Smith and Marsh are at QB, yet how come they both were winning games last year and nobody was seeing all these crazy inaccuracy issues that've been milling around out there?  You also weren't seeing receivers running faulty routes and missed assignment blocking on the line.  The answer - coaching plain and simple.

 

The Als are in a coaching mess and it's Rob Wetenhall's fault.  If I'm a fan, I'm thinking stop buying tickets thereby pulling the money from the guy's pocket and see if that'll force him to sell the team to a more competent owner or sell it to local stock holders so the franchise becomes community-owned like the Green Bay Packers.

 

Really? Plenty of us knew Troy Smith sucked last year.

[Tracker]

The Gielberguys were the worst, but there was also Feterik, Skalbania, Ryckman and the list goes on....

[Floyd]

HIggins was considered more of a coup than the last of the castoffs...

 

Wetenhall's mistake is keeping Popp and Higgins - he needed to make a decision one way or the other, instead he waffled.  Now it sure looks like there is an internal power struggle.

 

I still say Popp's focus was on the NFL this past year.

 

Montreal wasn't in on any of the QB bidding...  I mean is David Foucault really worth passing on Kevin Glenn...?

[Stickem]

If we're talking worst owner in the history of the CFL, Murray Pezim, former owner of the leos name, comes to mind. I don't think Wettenhal has hit that level of incompetence.....yet.

[kelownabomberfan]

Feterik, Pezim, Ryckman, Gliebermans, Bruce McNall and the continual clown show of owners in Toronto before Braley bought them...Wettenhall is miles ahead of all of those guys...

[mbrg]

Bob Wettenhall gave his control of the team over to his son - Jeff? - about 2 seasons ago.  Most of the bad decisions you are referring to were not made by Bob.  The decision to extend Popp for 3 years to try and fix the mess his son made was Bob's attempt at some damage control.

[mbrg]

It hurts my brain a little bit to give Suitor credit for anything, but this is a pretty decent write-up of his from a couple weeks ago:

 

http://www.tsn.ca/blogs/glen_suitor/?id=458732

[kelownabomberfan]

Teams rise and fall as coaches come and go and QB's that were once great get old and retire. Look at the Bombers in that golden era from 1957 to 1965. After Bud Grant left and Ken Ploen retired, the Bombers went into a wasteland that lasted until 1984. And now we're in another wasteland that we entered in the mid 1990's that we are seeming to just be wandering out of again (with some brief stops at an oasis like in 2011, 2007 and 2001-2). It's tough to replace coaches and QB's. Montreal is now entering their own wasteland. The difference between them and us is they don't have the fanbase to survive it.

[max power]

One bad year after a gazillion great ones? The owner did pay Calvillo and Trestman's salary, if we're going to chalk up all their success to either of those guys.

[kelownabomberfan]

Bob Wettenhall gave his control of the team over to his son - Jeff? - about 2 seasons ago.  Most of the bad decisions you are referring to were not made by Bob.  The decision to extend Popp for 3 years to try and fix the mess his son made was Bob's attempt at some damage control.

Yeah it sounds like Jeff isn't the brain his dad is. Perhaps Bob should have thought twice before handing off the team to his kid. I still remember watching the son of the Glieberman guy run Ottawa right into the ground. The height of the stupidity was his great idea to have a "date a cheerleader" contest and the whole "Mardi Gras" night fiasco. What a disaster.

[johnzo]

What, no love for Horn Chen?

[The Unknown Poster]

Remember the time the CFL tried to convince Vince McMahon to buy the Argos and he countered with an offer to buy the entire league?  And when that didnt happen, he formed the XFL?

 

Yeah.  Vince might not have been a bad owner.  But he would have probably been in the running for some craziness.

[bearpants]

Unless the Glieberman era can be erased from history.... Wettenhall is far from the worst owner in CFL history... 

[Blueandgold]

In a league with a history of terrible owners, how could the worst one ever be someone who actually supports his team?

[JuranBoldenRules]

HIggins was considered more of a coup than the last of the castoffs...

 

Wetenhall's mistake is keeping Popp and Higgins - he needed to make a decision one way or the other, instead he waffled.  Now it sure looks like there is an internal power struggle.

 

I still say Popp's focus was on the NFL this past year.

 

Montreal wasn't in on any of the QB bidding...  I mean is David Foucault really worth passing on Kevin Glenn...?

 

Not at all.  Higgins has been openly and publicly groveling for interviews for any personnel or coaching job that has come open for years, even when he had a job at the league office.  He's been rarely interviewed for these positions and hasn't been considered a serious candidate for any of them.  Now every team in the league could be wrong, or there's a reason why Higgins spent nearly a decade in exile against his wishes.

[Jacquie]

I say yes, all this news coming out of Montreal is getting crazier by the story, and I'd say Als fans have one man to blame for this.  This is 100% owner Robert Wetenhall's fault.  Why?  Because he pulled all kinds of bogus moves since Trestman left.

 

1.  He was the one who brought in Dan Hawkins last year and set him up to fail.  Jim Popp had to bail out the team in the wake of that one and the Calvillo retirement.

 

2.  He cut Popp out of the shot to remain on as head coach and sent Doug Berry and the competent coaching staff packing.  He also waited until late February to hire Higgins out of a pool of leftovers.  This in turn brought about a dysfunction between him and Popp.  This also brought about a bad timing with Worman and Higgins and has caused the OC debacle we've all witnessed.

 

When listing reasons to support an argument it is best to make sure they are correct.

 

1. Popp hired Hawkins, not Wettenhall. Popp also hired the entire coaching staff. Wettenhall fired Hawkins and asked Popp to coach the team.

 

2. Popp is the one who let Berry go. Popp was still acting a head coach at the time. And it was Wettenhall who hired Higgins, not Popp.

[DR. CFL]

Wetenhall has poured a ton of money into that franchise when it was on life support. Get serious or that team would have been long gone

[SPuDS]

Wetenhall has poured a ton of money into that franchise when it was on life support. Get serious or that team would have been long gone

Baahah. That one hit a bit close to home base or..?

[iso_55]

I say yes, all this news coming out of Montreal is getting crazier by the story, and I'd say Als fans have one man to blame for this.  This is 100% owner Robert Wetenhall's fault.  Why?  Because he pulled all kinds of bogus moves since Trestman left.

 

1.  He was the one who brought in Dan Hawkins last year and set him up to fail.  Jim Popp had to bail out the team in the wake of that one and the Calvillo retirement.

 

2.  He cut Popp out of the shot to remain on as head coach and sent Doug Berry and the competent coaching staff packing.  He also waited until late February to hire Higgins out of a pool of leftovers.  This in turn brought about a dysfunction between him and Popp.  This also brought about a bad timing with Worman and Higgins and has caused the OC debacle we've all witnessed.

 

3.  Rumor is, Mr W planned to fire Popp if things went in the crapper before the year was up and give Higgins both the HC and GM title, but after Higgins fired Worman, he decided against that and to extend Popp for an extra 3 years.

 

But the bottom line, Popp at least as a HC was able to get the most out of his players.  It's funny how everyone talks about how bad Smith and Marsh are at QB, yet how come they both were winning games last year and nobody was seeing all these crazy inaccuracy issues that've been milling around out there?  You also weren't seeing receivers running faulty routes and missed assignment blocking on the line.  The answer - coaching plain and simple.

 

The Als are in a coaching mess and it's Rob Wetenhall's fault.  If I'm a fan, I'm thinking stop buying tickets thereby pulling the money from the guy's pocket and see if that'll force him to sell the team to a more competent owner or sell it to local stock holders so the franchise becomes community-owned like the Green Bay Packers.

How long have you been following the CFL? Do you know who Murray Pezim was? The guy was a gold speculator who bought the Lions & chased young skirts half a century younger than him even though he was a fat old 70 year old bordering on perversion. He would take off his shirt during games & his belly would fall out? He spent a ton of money on former New York Jet Defensive End Mark Gastineau even though the guy could no longer play football anymore.  

How about Nelson Skalbania?? He also owned the Lions. The guy bought the team then never spent a dime on them. More like an absentee owner than anything else & the team suffered on the field & with attendance. 

What about the Gliebermans who owned the Ottawa Rough Riders & then the Renegades. They publicly chastized & threatened coaches in the media to the point that two coordinators resigned mid season from the Rough Riders in their first ownership go round. With the Renegades, Lonnie Glieberman had a contest where women in the crowd would take off their shirts & show their ... !!

How about the endless string of owners in Toronto like Cynnamon & Sokalowski all who were under capitalized & couldn't pay  their bills? They all came & went.  David Braley paid C & S bills instead & then just took over the Argos as they both owed him money.  

Then there was F Troop in Calgary. They were called F Troop in honour of the 1960's sitcom where the US cavalry was portrayed as a bunch of bufoons fighting the hostile Indians. Michael Feterik bought the Stampeders from local owner Sig Gutsche in 2001. The corrugated box magnate from Northern California actually bought the team so  his son Kevin who was a qb from BYU could have a team to play for. He insisted on his son being the starting Stamps qb & it was a disaster. He brought in a so called sports agent named Fred Fateri to be the General Manager. Only problem was Wally Buono was already the GM & Feterik forced the two to co exist for one season upon which Buono was fired & subsequently hired by the Lions. Fred Fateri main claim to fame was his collection of expensive shoes & his comportment on the sidelines usually with one or two female bombshells at his side.

I could go on... Wetttenhall the worst owner of all time?? Not... even... close. 

[iso_55]

 

I say yes, all this news coming out of Montreal is getting crazier by the story, and I'd say Als fans have one man to blame for this.  This is 100% owner Robert Wetenhall's fault.  Why?  Because he pulled all kinds of bogus moves since Trestman left.

 

1.  He was the one who brought in Dan Hawkins last year and set him up to fail.  Jim Popp had to bail out the team in the wake of that one and the Calvillo retirement.

 

2.  He cut Popp out of the shot to remain on as head coach and sent Doug Berry and the competent coaching staff packing.  He also waited until late February to hire Higgins out of a pool of leftovers.  This in turn brought about a dysfunction between him and Popp.  This also brought about a bad timing with Worman and Higgins and has caused the OC debacle we've all witnessed.

 

3.  Rumor is, Mr W planned to fire Popp if things went in the crapper before the year was up and give Higgins both the HC and GM title, but after Higgins fired Worman, he decided against that and to extend Popp for an extra 3 years.

 

But the bottom line, Popp at least as a HC was able to get the most out of his players.  It's funny how everyone talks about how bad Smith and Marsh are at QB, yet how come they both were winning games last year and nobody was seeing all these crazy inaccuracy issues that've been milling around out there?  You also weren't seeing receivers running faulty routes and missed assignment blocking on the line.  The answer - coaching plain and simple.

 

The Als are in a coaching mess and it's Rob Wetenhall's fault.  If I'm a fan, I'm thinking stop buying tickets thereby pulling the money from the guy's pocket and see if that'll force him to sell the team to a more competent owner or sell it to local stock holders so the franchise becomes community-owned like the Green Bay Packers.

How long have you been following the CFL? Do you know who Murray Pezim was? The guy was a gold speculator who bought the Lions & chased young skirts half a century younger than him even though he was a fat old 70 year old bordering on perversion. He would take off his shirt during games & his belly would fall out. He spent a ton of money on former New York Jet Defensive End Mark Gastineau even though the guy could no longer play football anymore.  

How about Nelson Skalbania?? He also owned the Lions. The guy bought the team then never spent a dime on them. More like an absentee owner than anything else & the team suffered on the field & with attendance. 

What about the Gliebermans who owned the Ottawa Rough Riders & then the Renegades. They publicly chastized & threatened coaches in the media to the point that two coordinators resigned mid season from the Rough Riders in their first ownership go round. With the Renegades, Lonnie Glieberman had a contest where women in the crowd would take off their shirts & show their ... !! In their final year of Renegade ownership, story  goes that Lonnie decided he wouldn't spend another dime on the team & they ran out of tape. Trainer told the HC that there was no more tape & practice had to be cancelled. 

How about the endless string of owners in Toronto like Cynnamon & Sokalowski all who were under capitalized & couldn't pay  their bills? They all came & went.  David Braley paid C & S bills instead & then just took over the Argos as they both owed him money.  

Then there was F Troop in Calgary. They were called F Troop in honour of the 1960's sitcom where the US cavalry was portrayed as a bunch of bufoons fighting the hostile Indians. Michael Feterik bought the Stampeders from local owner Sig Gutsche in 2001. The corrugated box magnate from Northern California actually bought the team so  his son Kevin who was a qb from BYU could have a team to play for. He insisted on his son being the starting Stamps qb & it was a disaster. He brought in a so called sports agent named Fred Fateri to be the General Manager. Only problem was Wally Buono was already the GM & Feterik forced the two to co exist for one season upon which Buono was fired & subsequently hired by the Lions. Fred Fateri main claim to fame was his collection of expensive shoes & his comportment on the sidelines usually with one or two female bombshells at his side.

I could go on... Wetttenhall the worst owner of all time?? Not... even... close.