Eric Tillman knows all too well he'll be judged on much more than just wins and losses.
It is interesting that the Edmonton Eskimos fired a general manager who was not a favourite among the team’s fans and have now hired another individual with his fair share of detractors.
The difference is that Danny Maciocia, a family man with a squeaky-clean image, wasn’t liked because of his football record, which largely was unsuccessful, while his successor, Eric Tillman, also a family man, has a record of success in football but some people are critical of because of a sexual assault for which he pled guilty earlier this year and was given an absolute discharge with no criminal record.
This is why Edmonton Eskimos president and chief executive officer Rick LeLacheur, who has been the head of the franchise since 2006, was lauded for firing Maciocia and why he is being criticized for hiring Tillman.
It is truly one of the most complicated hirings and firings in sports and, for that matter, business too. It’s the kind of discussion and debate reserved for the dinner table and university lecture halls.
The Eskimos are a franchise that makes millions of dollars annually because of its tradition and strong connection to the community. This year’s Grey Cup will be played in Edmonton and the 60,000-seat stadium has already sold out.
It took only one week.
But fans don’t care about the team’s bottom line. They care about the team’s position in the standings. With a record of 2-8 and sitting last in the league, it is purely unacceptable.
LeLacheur, whom some Eskimo supporters were vocally calling for his firing, had to find a capable replacement, and one who could win. Following the firing of Maciocia in late July, LeLacheur talked of a North American search that might not be concluded until after the season, but the team continued to stumble and something had to be done. Though he talked to various candidates, there really was no better available candidate with a winning record than Tillman. But it was the sexual crime that Tillman committed that made this a tough decision, one that will forever be linked in Edmonton Eskimos’ history to LeLacheur.
Though the board endorsed the hiring, ultimately LeLacheur is the one who has to speak to it.
This will likely go down as one of the more interesting (possibly bizarre) moments in the CFL, which prides itself on its code of conduct manifesto. This speaks to those values. It speaks to the people who support the league and expect its employees (be they with the head office or individual football teams) to measure up to those standards of excellent honour and character.
But the hiring must also stand up to what families and women and young girls and the code of conduct that Tillman crossed while in Saskatchewan, and for which he has already paid for in shame and a resignation from the Saskatchewan Roughriders, slightly more than two years after he guided the team to a Grey Cup win.
Tillman has admitted his mistake and received forgiveness from the family of the teenage girl that he assaulted, and the judge who passed sentence without a criminal record.
But his once pristine image had been sullied forevermore.
As Tillman sat beside his wife, Francine, for the formal announcement, this was in some ways like a shamed politician – an Eliot Spitzer or a John Edwards – receiving a high-profile hiring while also having to defend his past.
Those close to Tillman say Francine has provided him moral support all along, and not of the phony kind required to save face. People in Regina uttered some filthy remarks about her husband, words that tested her resolve and love, but she did not run away from it then, nor will she now.
So going forward, it is not only about how Tillman will rekindle the Eskimos’ winning ways – something that will be viewed largely by the diehards that follow the club – but how the organization will convince people who could care less about the team that this is the right move from a moral and ethical perspective.
This was why the introduction of Tillman on Tuesday as the team’s new GM became more about what he had done wrong more than what he had done right. The opinion polls were largely against the hiring for moral reasons.
"Eric has an outstanding success of being a general manager in the Canadian Football League," LeLacheur began and followed with the highlights of Tillman’s career. "Eric is a very talented football guy. I believe that he can win and build a winning football club. The football decision was very easy, however as well know this was not an easy decision. In terms of the community response it has been a tough, difficult call.
"Do I believe this community believes in giving people a second chance? Yes I do and I have seen it. Do I believe Eric Tillman deserves that chance? Yes, I do and I have seen it. Will people in this community give him that chance? We’re asking them to and Eric is committed to everything possible to earn their support."
Tillman talked about the Eskimos’ tradition and why he understood the anxiety and anger about his hiring.
"Based on the other dynamic, I understand it was a very challenging and complicated decision and one that Rick did not take lightly. I know that," he began. "We spent hours, literally hours, talking about my background, my belief system, but he didn’t just listen to me he talked to people that knew me well…People that know me by my character, not by my reputation. The easy thing for Rick to do was just to say no. He was committed to winning. I want to win and he believed I can help make a difference combined with a lot of other people, but he had to have a complete comfort level. He made it very clear what is expected, what the mandate is, that there is a second chance and there will be no third chance.
"I understand (with) this hiring there will be three responses to it. Some people forgive easier than others…A lot of people are going to be in the middle, that will take a wait and see approach and I understand that. And there are other people that are going to feel strongly (against it), and not only do I understand that, I respect it. I have a family, I have a daughter. I understand that girls and women are precious. I understand that the people in this community not only value winning, but just as much they value the good name of the organization.
"The onus is on me. It’s not the responsibility of other people to forgive me. Those that fall in the area that are not pleased by this decision, they have every right to have that feeling. It’s my responsibility to carry myself in a way and conduct myself in a way that will re-earn respect and trust. I’ll do that starting today and I’m committed to helping this franchise win and win at the highest level."
So not only will Tillman have to restore winning to the Eskimos, he will also have to win the hearts and minds of some people who aren’t sure about his hiring.
