Coach and player salaries in 1982

[ArgoRavi]

Have you ever wondered how much coaches were paid over 30 years ago and how that compared to jobs south of the border? This Globe and Mail article will give you an idea along with average player salaries at that time:

CFL coaches' wages too low, Jauch says
Tuesday, October 26, 1982
MARTY YORK
By MARTY YORK Players aren't the only Canadian Football League employees whose salaries rank near the bottom of the professional sports pay scale - CFL coaches are down there, too.

And at least one CFL head coach, Winnipeg Blue Bombers' Ray Jauch, believes the league's coaches are "highly underpaid" for what he considers one of the most difficult jobs in professional sports.
Salaries compiled by The Globe and Mail show that CFL head coaches get paid from $50,000 a season up, and that assistant coaches make as low as $22,000 a season.
In comparison, no National Football League head coach draws less than $100,000 a season and no assistant NFL coach earns less than $50,000. Similar salaries appear to be the norm in the new United States Football League, although the going rate for USFL assistant coaches will be about $40,000.
Last week, it was disclosed that the average CFL player has a base salary of $40,000, with U.S. imports averaging $60,000 and Canadian players averaging $30,000. CFL Players Association counsel Ed Molstad said that the league's average player salary is the lowest of any major, professional sport in North America.
So, it's understandable that the same might be true for CFL coaches.
Montreal Concordes' Joe Galat, in fact, is the lowest-paid head coach in pro football at $50,000 this season. Last year, as an assistant coach with the NFL's Houston Oilers, Galat's salary was $55,000, but he opted to work in Montreal to establish himself as a head coach.
Mike Faulkiner, who began this season as the offensive coach with the Concordes, had a $22,000 salary for 1982. He more than doubled that when he jumped to the USFL's Washington Federals recently to become their assistant general manager.
Sources say that Calgary Stampeders' Jack Gotta receives about $90,000 as a base salary for the dual position of general manager and head coach, but is also subsidized by the club for payments on his home.
Other CFL head coaches' salaries are roughly as follows (Some are exact, others may vary by a few thousand dollars): Edmonton Eskimos' Hugh Campbell, $90,000; Jauch, $85,000; Ottawa Rough Riders' George Brancato, $68,000; Saskatchewan Roughriders' Joe Faragalli, $65,000; Toronto Argonauts' Bob O'Billovich, $65,000; B.C. Lions' Vic Rapp, $60,000; Hamilton Tiger-Cats' Bud Riley $55,000, and Galat, $50,000. "The coaches in the USFL will be making a lot more than the coaches in the CFL because high-profile coaches are one of our league's selling points," says Jim Spavital, general manager of the USFL's Detroit Panthers and former Roughrider general manager.
Jauch and Campbell already have agreed to join the USFL for significantly larger salaries. Jauch will make about $150,000, so he doesn't mind saying that the CFL salaries are too low for its coaches. "My opinion is that, for what a coach has to go through up here, I truly believe that all coaches in our league are not getting paid what they should be," said Jauch, whose record of wins is fifth-best in CFL history. "Coaching in the CFL is the hardest job anywhere, certainly the hardest in professional football and maybe in professional sports. I don't think a lot of us are appreciated." Asked later to elaborate, Jauch said: "The rules and the regulations of the CFL and the nature of it makes it very difficult to coach. I don't think you can pay enough to a guy who coaches up here because of what they have to deal with and the pressures that go with it." Cincinnati Bengal head coach Forrest Gregg, who made about $60,000 when he was with the Argos in 1979 and is drawing about $150,000 with Cincinnati Bengals, supports Jauch's contention. "I think it's tougher to coach in the CFL than anywhere else," he said. "Number one, you can't have as many assistant coaches in the CFL. And number two, it's always a juggling act up there." "In comparison to NFL coaches, our salaries are very low," George Brancato says. "But if you compare their revenues and gates, I think our salaries are in proportion." Gotta says: "Coaches' salaries have gone up dramatically in the NFL, and some strides have been made up here, but I think there has to be a re-evaluation in our league." CFL assistant coaches average about $36,000, with Calgary offensive- line coach Jim Erkenbeck near the top at $45,000. Toronto defensive coach Dale Lindsey makes about $35,000, as does Concorde offensive-line coach Ardell Wiegandt. Argo secondary coach Dennis Meyer made about $28,000 when with Calgary last season, but received a slight raise this year.

In the NFL, New York Jet assistant coach Joe Walton receives $100,000. Washington Redskin assistant coach Dan Henning and New England Patriot assistant coach Lou Erber receive $75,000 each.
______________________________________
I would suggest that it is still the case that it is harder to be a head coach in the CFL than in the NFL for many of the same reasons which Jauch and Gregg gave over 30 years ago.

[Will]

Ed Molstad has been around a really, really long time.

[Will]

21/10/1982
MARTY YORK
By MARTY YORK Quarterback June Jones is sitting at home in Atlanta, but Toronto Argonauts are paying him his $80,000 salary - twice as much money as the average active player in the Canadian Football League receives.
Quarterback Tony Adams is sitting at home in Kansas City, collecting $80,000 from the Argos.
Quarterback Ken Johnson is on Montreal Concordes' retirement list, collecting $60,000.
Running back David Overstreet and defensive end Keith Gary are on the CFL's injury list, but are at home in the United States, collecting $125,000 each from the Concordes.
Kicker Zenon Andrusyshyn is at home in Oakville, Ont., collecting the rest of his $50,000 salary from Edmonton Eskimos.
And receiver Martin Cox and defensive tackle Mike Raines have been cut by Winnipeg Blue Bombers, but they're still collecting $50,000 and $57,000, respectively.
These are some of the CFL's inactive players who are drawing larger pay cheques than most still knocking heads in the league.
Jones is entitled to his salary because of a knee injury; Adams has a guaranteed contract; Andrusyshyn, Cox and Raines weren't released before Oct. 1, which means they receive their salaries plus a portion of whatever playoff money their respective teams earn.
The Globe and Mail has acquired salary figures drawn by active players. It must be emphasized that these are base salaries, which are often supplemented by various bonuses. Argo receiver Terry Greer, for example, has a $40,000 salary for 1982. But he also received a signing bonus of $30,000. Hamilton Tiger-Cat cornerback David Shaw has a salary of $66,000, but would have received an additional $5,000 as an incentive bonus had he been nominated for a Schenley Award.
The following is a list of the 1982 base salaries of a number of prominent CFL players. Some may vary by no more than $5,000; most are exact: OFFENSIVE PLAYERS Calgary quarterback Gerry Dattilio - $55,000.
Calgary quarterback Bruce Threadgill - $65,000.
B.C. quarterback Roy Dewalt - $55,000.
B.C. quarterback Joe Paopao - $55,000.
Winnipeg quarterback Dieter Brock - $150,000.
Winnipeg quarterback Mark Jackson - $70,000.
Edmonton quarterback Warren Moon - $125,000.
Edmonton quarterback Mike Williams - $40,000.
Saskatchewan quarterback John Hufnagel - $80,000.
Saskatchewan quarterback Joe Adams - $40,000.
Hamilton quarterback Tom Clements - $160,000.
Hamilton quarterback Dave Marler - $110,000.
Toronto quarterback Condredge Holloway - $96,000.
Toronto quarterback Joe Barnes - $110,000.
Ottawa quarterback Chris Isaac - $30,000.
Montreal quarterback Luc Tousignant $30,000 (he had a $15,000 signing bonus).
Ottawa running back Skip Walker - $35,000.
Ottawa running back Jim Reid - $40,000.
Ottawa kicker Gerry Organ - $45,000.
Ottawa Toronto running back Cedric Minter - $70,000.
Toronto running back Bob Bronk - $25,000.
Toronto receiver Terry Greer - $40,000.
Toronto slotback Dave Newman - $50,000.
Toronto slotback Paul Pearson - $37,000.
Toronto kicker Dean Dorsey - $27,000.
Toronto receiver Scott McGhee - $37,000.
Toronto lineman Dan Ferrone - $31,000.
Toronto receiver Geoff Townsend - $28,000.
Montreal running back Lester Brown - $36,000.
Montreal running back Denny Ferdinand - $28,000.
Montreal slotback Nick Arakgi - $40,000.
Montreal lineman John Foubert - $38,000.
Montreal lineman Miles Gorrell - $35,000.
Hamilton slotback Rocky DiPietro - $55,000.
Hamilton kicker Bernie Ruoff - $45,000.
Hamilton receiver Keith Baker - $55,000.
Hamilton receiver Steve Stapler - $38,000.
Winnipeg kicker Trevor Kennerd - $32,000.
Winnipeg slotback Rick House - 52,000.
Winnipeg running back William Miller - $55,000.
Winnipeg lineman Nick Bastaja - $58,000.
Winnipeg slotback Joe Poplawski - $58,000.
Edmonton running back Jim Germany - $60,000.
Edmonton slotback Tom Scott - $60,000.
Edmonton receiver Brian Kelly - $60,000.
Edmonton receiver Waddell Smith - $60,000.
Edmonton fullback Neil Lumsden - $55,000.
Edmonton kicker Dave Cutler - $50,000.
Calgary running back James Sykes - $75,000.
Calgary lineman Lloyd Fairbanks - $70,000.
Calgary receiver Tom Forzani - $60,000.
Calgary receiver-punter Mike McTague - $55,000.
Saskatchewan punter Ken Clark - $50,000.
Saskatchewan receiver Joey Walters - $45,000.
Saskatchewan running back Greg Fieger - $30,000.
B.C. receiver Tyrone Gray - $60,000.
B.C. running back Larry Key - $75,000. DEFENSIVE PLAYERS Ottawa safety Billy Hardee - $57,000.
Ottawa linebacker Rick Sowieta - $43,000.
Toronto safety Zac Henderson - $60,000.
Toronto linebacker John Pointer - $42,000.
Toronto safety Harold Woods - $55,000.
Hamilton lineman Grover Covington - $33,000.
Hamilton linebacker Ben Zambiasi - $80,000.
Hamilton linebacker Carm Carteri - $32,000.
Hamilton cornerback David Shaw - $66,000.
Montreal lineman Doug Scott - $50,000.
Montreal linebacker William Hampton - $35,000.
Montreal safety Mark Young - $35,000.
Montreal safety Preston Young - $55,000.
Montreal safety Alfonso McMillian - $30,000.
Winnipeg lineman John Helton - $90,000.
Winnipeg rover Paul Bennett - $43,000.
Winnipeg safety Vince Phason - $46,000.
Winnipeg linebacker James Reed - $38,000.
Edmonton linebacker Dan Kepley - $75,000.
Edmonton cornerback Larry Highbaugh - $65,000.
Edmonton safety Ed Jones - $55,000.
Calgary linebacker Dan Bass - $42,000 (he had a $20,000 signing bonus).
Calgary lineman Ed McAleney - $75,000.
Calgary cornerback Ray Odums - $70,000.
Calgary cornerback Terry Irvin - $60,000.
Saskatchewan cornerback Marcellus Greene - $60,000.
Saskatchewan safety Ken McEachern - $60,000.
Saskatchewan linebacker Vince Goldsmith - $38,000.
B.C. linebacker Glen Jackson - $55,000.

[paulwoods13]

Ed Molstad has been around a really, really long time.

I'm pretty sure his first negotiation on behalf of the players was 1974.

[gilthethrill]

How in the world did Hamilton QB Dave Marler get paid $110,000?

[argolio]

How in the world did Hamilton QB Dave Marler get paid $110,000?

Police suspect foul play.

[ArgoRavi]

I know that many CFL fans do not like Marty York but he sure seemed to bust his butt during his waking hours coming up with all kinds of valuable information about the league which is something that we just don't see today.

[gilthethrill]

I know that many CFL fans do not like Marty York but he sure seemed to bust his butt during his waking hours coming up with all kinds of valuable information about the league which is something that we just don't see today.

Marty was (is) a passionate CFL fan...I miss his coverage.

[Gill The Thrill]

I echo that...Marty may have had his unorthodox ways of rubbing management the wrong way, but that's because he was what a reporter should be, persistent, and not some shill for the teams that many sports writers and broadcasters are today. The coverage today is vanilla and boring for the most part. Other than the panel who work for TSN and the league and is still quite controlled, it's as if everybody else has no opinion and can't dig up any pertinent info. They ask the obvious questions during post-game interviews that are not even football related.

Steve Simmons asked Milanovich about the Stadium lease and schedule after the Winnipeg home game in the post game on TSN 1050. I thought to myself, what kind of an idiotic question is that for the head coach, who's obviously not in charge of lease deals for the stadium. That should be directed to Braley and and the team President or CEO and not to the coach during a post-game...talk about trying to get a guy fired or a feeble attempt to drum up a crisis between coach and ownership. Yet you heard people criticize Marty for being persistent and breaking stories against the will of the team or league at times, and putting them in the front page of the sports section, something unheard of in today's CFL coverage on all of Toronto's dailies. Today the CFL and the Toronto Argonauts can't even buy that kind of exposure and profile.

[Will]

Police suspect foul play.

Sorry to bump, but how was June Jones making $80,000?

[gilthethrill]

Sorry to bump, but how was June Jones making $80,000?

Odd...going by memory, I thought Jones suffered a knee injury in TC with the Argos in 1982, never played a down but went on to have a very good coaching career.

[Will]

Odd...going by memory, I thought Jones suffered a knee injury in TC with the Argos in 1982, never played a down but went on to have a very good coaching career.

Upon a bit of further research, I'm going to assume that his familiarity with Mouse Davis' "run & shoot" offense might have contributed to a higher salary. Paul Woods might be able to speak to this better as it fits within the time period of his book.

[paulwoods13]

That's correct -- Jones was signed because he knew the Run and Shoot. He might actually have played that season had he not gotten injured in an early season game against Montreal. That and Barnes' lacerated buttock suffered in Week 2 cleared the path for Holloway to emerge as the Schenley winner. Jones and Mouse were the guys who got Holloway using DMSO on his arm, which Marty York turned into a front-page scoop on the day the Schenley noms were announced. It's all outlined in Chapter 7 of Bouncing Back.

[ArgoRavi]

I remember Mouse coming off the bench to replace a struggling Holloway during the third game of that '82 season when the Argos were struggling against the woeful Montreal Concordes. Holloway would come back into that game and IIRC threw the game-winning TD pass late to Terry Greer to give the Argos a 16-13 victory.

[paulwoods13]

Of course you mean June, not Mouse eh Ravi!

[Argo57]

Strictly going by memory but Jones was involved with Ottawa in around 1986 when they also implemented the Run and Shoot offence (with former Argonaut co-ordinator Joe Moss as HC) also later with the Houston Gamblers with Jim Kelly then the Houston Oilers with Warren Moon.
I also remember being pissed that Ottawa would copy the "Argonaut" offence.....not realizing that pro football truly is a copycat sport.

[Rocket]

Marty was (is) a passionate CFL fan...I miss his coverage.

Whatever happened to Marty York? Does anyone know where he is working now? I enjoyed it so much when he was covering the cfl.

[Will]

Strictly going by memory but Jones was involved with Ottawa in around 1986 when they also implemented the Run and Shoot offence (with former Argonaut co-ordinator Joe Moss as HC) also later with the Houston Gamblers with Jim Kelly then the Houston Oilers with Warren Moon.
I also remember being pissed that Ottawa would copy the "Argonaut" offence.....not realizing that pro football truly is a copycat sport.

He was the offensive coordinator in Ottawa that year. I would hazard a guess and say that the quartet of Todd Dillon (ugh), Tom Burgess (worst QB to win a Grey Cup?), Gilbert Renfroe (yes, I know he was OK in 1988) and Julius Caesar Watts (how can you not spell it out?) were not up the standards of Holloway and Barnes.

[ArgoRavi]

Of course you mean June, not Mouse eh Ravi!

Those two run-and-shoot gurus are almost interchangeable, Paul! Yeah, I meant June Jones III and not Mouse.

[ArgoRavi]

Whatever happened to Marty York? Does anyone know where he is working now? I enjoyed it so much when he was covering the cfl.

He is still kicking around. Here is Marty's Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/martyyork