Matt Dunigan

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Matt Dunigan
Date of birth:	December 6, 1960 (1960-12-06) (age 47)
Place of birth:	Lakewood, Ohio U.S.
Career information
Position(s):	Quarterback
College:	Louisiana Tech
Organizations
As player:
1983-1987 1988-1989 1990-1991 1992-1994 1995 1996	Edmonton Eskimos B.C. Lions Toronto Argonauts Winnipeg Blue Bombers Birmingham Barracudas Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Career highlights and Awards
Awards:	1989 Tom Pate Memorial Award 1993 Jeff Russel Memorial Trophy
Canadian Football Hall of Fame

Matt Dunigan (born December 6, 1960 in Lakewood, Ohio) is a former quarterback, coach, and executive in the Canadian Football League who is currently a CFL sportscaster for Canadian sports television channel TSN. In 2006, Dunigan joined the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, and was voted one of the CFL's Top 50 players (#39) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network TSN.^[1]

In 2008, he was named the host of Road Grill, a Canadian barbecue cooking series on Food Network Canada.

[edit] Early life & college football career

Although born in Ohio, Dunigan was raised in Dallas, Texas, and grew up admiring Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach. A member of an athletically-inclined family, he attended Louisiana Tech, a school that served as the launching pad for other future professional quarterbacks such as Terry Bradshaw, Luke McCown, and Tim Rattay.

[edit] Professional football career

Dunigan broke into the CFL in 1983 with the Edmonton Eskimos, and remained with them through the 1987 season. He won a Grey Cup championship in Edmonton in his last year with the club, and following this he briefly tried his hand at baseball, signing a minor-league tryout contract in the Montreal Expos farm system.

In 1988, Dunigan joined the B.C. Lions and played with them for two seasons.

From 1990 to 1991, he called the plays for the Toronto Argonauts and won his second Grey Cup title with them in 1991.

Dunigan then became the quarterback of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 1992, staying with them until 1994. On July 14, 1994 in a game against the Eskimos Dunigan achieved one of the most outstanding games ever played in professional football, passing for a remarkable 713 yards in a single game, which is a pro football record.

During Dunigan's tenure in Winnipeg, the CFL made the bold decision to establish franchises in the United States. In 1995, the league awarded franchises to two Southern cities: Birmingham, Alabama (the Barracudas) and Memphis, Tennessee (the Mad Dogs). Although the Memphis franchise pursued Dunigan's services, it was the Barracudas who eventually snared him.

Dunigan had his best year ever as a CFL quarterback in Birmingham. He led the league with 643 pass attempts, 362 completions, 4,911 yards, and 34 touchdowns. These numbers helped catapult his team into the CFL playoffs; however, the Barracudas fell in the first round to the San Antonio Texans.

Unfortunately for the CFL, all of its American-based teams struggled financially, forcing it to disband all of the U.S. teams except the Baltimore Stallions (which moved to Montreal and became the Montreal Alouettes).

In 1996, Dunigan returned north of the border and signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for what would prove to be his final year in the league. He retired after the 1996 season due to chronic head injuries suffered over the years as a quarterback.

Dunigan finished his career with 43,857 passing yards and 306 passing touchdowns. In 2006, Dunigan was voted one of the CFL's Top 50 players (#39) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network TSN.^[1] Dunigan was also elected into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

[edit] Post-football career

After his retirement, Dunigan spent some time at Valdosta State University as their football team's offensive coordinator.

In 1999, Dunigan took a job as a studio analyst with Canadian sports television channel TSN.

In 2004, the Calgary Stampeders lured Dunigan away from TSN and hired him to be their general manager and head coach.

After a disappointing 2004 campaign for Calgary, however, Dunigan was fired, and he returned to his job as a television analyst with TSN, where he remains employed to this day.

In 2006, on a dare from his family, Dunigan auditioned for the position as host of a barbecue TV series Road Grill, which premiered in 2008 with him as host. He has also become a cookbook author, using recipes based on the show. Best known for his line "LET'S TAKE IT UP A NOTCH WITH SOME BACON WRAPPED CORN".

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• The CFL in America: History
• Stick To The Basics
• CFL Legends - Matt Dunigan
• Argos Heroes - Matt Dunigan
• Canadian Football Hall of Fame - Matt Dunigan
• Matt Dunigan at Food Network Canada
• TSN profile