New head coach Greg Knox talks past, present and future of McMaster football

The torch has been passed to familiar hands.

Following Stefan Ptaszek’s departure to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, McMaster’s football program was in need of a head coach. And after a brief search, Greg Knox has been named interim head coach. Knox is a former McMaster defensive coordinator and the job is a realization of work that started two decades ago during his Canadian Football League playing days.

“Back when I was playing, I was heavily involved as a player out in Calgary. I ran a number of different camps at a time when there really weren’t high school camps available for kids,” said Knox.

Knox, known for his intensity, has put together some of the best defences in Marauder history.

Who is Greg Knox?

The new bench boss of the Maroon and Grey carries a stellar resume. The Peterborough, Ont. native was a linebacker for the Laurier Golden Hawks and won the 1991 Vanier Cup. In the CFL, Knox won a Grey Cup in the first and last year of his career, as well as earning nominations for Outstanding Canadian Player and the Tom Pate Memorial Award, recognizing players who show incredible commitment to both club and community.

In 2006, Knox joined the Marauder staff as a defensive coordinator and held the position until 2013. After a one-year stint with the University in Toronto, Knox returned to the McMaster sideline to coordinate the defence that powered Mac to its third Vanier Cup game in four years. Overall, Knox won three Yates Cups and one Vanier as defensive coordinator.

Now, with his children through high school and heading to McMaster, Knox has the time to be a CIS football head coach. By the sounds of it, he could not be happier.

“I believe CIS football, from a coaching perspective, is a sweet spot. Dealing with this type of student-athlete, I enjoy it a great deal. Being able to run a program is an obvious destination for me,” Knox explained.

The head coaching role will be different from his previous gig, though. When asked about what the defence will look like, Knox made it clear that he is not going to come in and overhaul the systems that current defensive coordinator Joe Sardo has in place.

““We’ll collaborate, as every head coach and defensive coordinator will do. We are going to build on what Joe put in last year,” said Knox.

That philosophy applies to “all three phases of the ball” – offence, defence, and special teams – as Knox believes strongly in the abilities of his staff, which includes Jon Behie as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator and Rob Underhill as special teams coordinator.

“I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by good people that I know can do a good job. My role will be to support them, to make sure we are all on the same page and we are playing our definition of Marauder football,” said Knox.

The future of the program

OUA and CIS football has changed since the time the former Calgary Stampeder standout started coaching in Hamilton. The Marauders are among the CIS football elite, but the competition has moved beyond the field of play. Now, programs are being built in boardrooms and through the bank accounts of wealthy donors. Programs like Laval, Montreal, Carleton and the University of British Columbia are leaning on private funding and creating a hierarchy. While they are still well-funded, McMaster lags behind the others. Knox knows how to make up the difference.

“It’s going to take a lot of elbow grease,” Knox said, with a laugh. “We’re going to have to work as hard and as smart as we can, be efficient with the resources we have.”

Realistically, Mac boasts an elite coaching staff with top-tier academics. The football program has experienced the most success during this financial arms race era, and money cannot solve every issue. Money is not be an issue until it is one, and all signs point to “confidence” about the programs future.

What’s up for next year? 

Training camp will open on Aug. 14, but in the mean time, there are broader questions around the program. A new coach means a different direction, even if its only slight changes.

One major question question with coaches at the CIS level, across all sports, is “how do you measure success?” Teams are dynamic, and competition – especially in OUA football – can be lacking. While the casual observer usually judges success by wins and losses, Knox plans to look beyond the standings.

“Success, to me, is being a champion on and off the field. That does not necessarily mean winning your last game. It’s playing to the best of your ability and reaching as close to your potential,” said Knox.

“They don’t say ‘any given Sunday’ for no reason. Any team can win a football game. [Success] is a sustainably successful program, that brings kids who are a good fit academically and athletically for our program, that get plugged in and come out the other end better for it.”

McMaster is already in the position Knox describes. Their on-field success is well documented and the squad just had a record tying six players drafted to the CFL in May. And the wins should keep coming next year.

When asked about what excites the former linebacker, he pointed to the potential for an explosive offence. Asher Hastings returns at QB following a record-breaking campaign, along with a stud receiving group, headlined by Danny Vandevoort. Last year, McMaster finished second in total points scored in the OUA.

The defence improved as the year went along. Knox said they have a “strong group up front” and he’s looking forward to watching the secondary’s continued growth. It was a young group that gave up big passing totals early in the season, but hit their stride towards the end of the year.

McMaster football is coming off the best decade in its history. The price of that success is losing Ptaszek, but with Greg Knox taking over and the rest of the assistant coaches returning, there is every reason to believe that success will continue when the 2016 football season kicks off later this summer.