On Monday, the Ottawa Redblacks fired General Manager Marcel Desjardins after the team suffered its ninth loss of the season last Saturday to the Montreal Alouettes 27-16.
Mark Goudie, President, and CEO of Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, thanked Desjardins. “Marcel was the first employee hired by the REDBLACKS back in 2013. He has put everything that he has into our organization. His many accomplishments include bringing Ottawa its first Grey Cup win in 40 years. I respect Marcel very much and thank him for his unwavering commitment to the REDBLACKS, RNation, and our community.”
The Redblacks hired Marcel Desjardins in 2013. He won four Grey Cups as a GM and Assistant GM with the Montreal Alouettes. A year later, the team took to the field in 2014. Their first win came on July 18th, 2014, over the Toronto Argonauts 18-17.
The Redblacks rose to prominence when they beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 35-28 to advance to the 103rd Grey Cup. It was the first time since the Rough Riders in 1981 that Ottawa went to the Grey Cup. However, the Redblacks lost to the Edmonton Eskimos 26-20.
In 2016, the Redblacks won the East Division with an 8-9-1 record. They played in their second Grey Cup against the Calgary Stampeders and won 39-33 in Henry Burris’s last game. In 2018, the two teams would meet in a rematch in the 106th Grey Cup, and the Stampeders won 27-16.
Since then, the Redblacks have been going downhill. After a 2-0 start in 2019, the Redblacks lost eleven straight games, missing the playoffs. Head Coach Rick Campbell and the team parted ways. The Redblacks brought in former Blue Bombers head coach Paul LaPolice for the 2021 season.
Assistant General Manager Jeremy Snyder will assume the General Manager duties with three games left in the season.
The Redblacks host the Calgary Stampeders on Friday, October 29th, at 7 pm on ESPN+.
