Talk to any player who was coached by Marv Levy and they will tell you that they had the chance to play for a legend.
Having spent a greater chunk of his career South of the border, his legendary status was recognized by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in 2001. Closer to home, Levy hasn’t received the same recognition, as the Alouettes’ Head Coach between 1973 and 1977 still hasn’t been admitted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF). Ironically, the Canadian Hall is located in Hamilton, exactly 100 km from the city of Buffalo where Marv worked his magic with the Bills.
“There is no doubt in my mind that Marv deserves to be enshrined into the Canadian Hall of Fame. Not only did he positively influence so many people, but he brought innovation to the Canadian game,” said former Alouettes defensive back from 1972 to 1974 Ron Perowne.
“The one word that comes to mind when I think of Marv is consideration. Marv was always considerate of his players and what they were going through in their lives, regardless of who it was and how important they were to the team. It was no surprise to any of us Alouettes from the seventies to see Marv have so much success in the NFL following his time in Montreal,” added Perowne, a Bishop’s University graduate.
Few people have been elected to both Halls. The most notable is without a doubt Warren Moon who arrived in the CFL the same year that Levy headed back to the NFL. Moon played six seasons in Canada, including four as the starting quarterback in Edmonton.
“Marv changed our game, and definitely for the better. Everything new he did, the other teams ended up copying. On special teams, he put defensive backs in offensive line numbers, so we could go down the field faster to make tackles, and when he introduced blocking on punt returns, we would get good yardage. Before that, teams would just catch the ball without returning it,” said Peter Dalla Riva who played for Coach Levy during his entire five-year stay in Montreal.
“Marv introduced the no-huddle offence in 1975 if my memory serves me well. The other teams couldn’t make a change and from that moment on, we started marching downfield. He brought it down with him to the United States in Kansas City and Buffalo,” added the tight end.
Following an enriching experience in Canada, where he was given his first head coaching opportunity, Levy returned South of the border where he had great success, as his 143 regular-season wins, 11 playoff wins, six division championships, and four Super Bowl participations show.
The next CFHOF class will be announced at the beginning of April. Marv Levy repeated this sentence to his players in both leagues many times: “Where else would you rather be than right here, right now?” As of this year and forever, the bust of this legendary coach should find itself in Hamilton, alongside other Canadian football legends.
To support Marv’s induction into the CFHOF, you can like or share the many social media posts to come and simply use the hashtag #TwoHallsForMarv (or #LaissezEntrerMarv in French).
Come back and visit https://en.montrealalouettes.com/twohallsformarv/
