If reincarnating the spirit of this city’s last Grey Cup championship in 2015 by bringing back head coach Chris Jones was a failed experiment, the Edmonton Elks are giving it another go. This time, it’s with general manager Ed Hervey.
The club announced Tuesday Hervey will return to resume his former GM role, and that of vice-president of football operations.
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Hervey takes over for Jones, who had returned to Edmonton to take on the dual role of head coach and GM in 2022, on the way to missing playoffs with back-to-back seasons of 4-14, before getting fired following an 0-5 start to this year.
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Assistant GM Geroy Simon took over the duties as acting GM, and offensive co-ordinator Jarious Jackson was promoted to acting head coach as the Elks finished the season with a 7-11 record. There was no word if either will be back in any capacity with the club next year.
Edmonton’s last playoff appearance was the 2019 East Division crossover final.
Together, Hervey and Jones went 12-6 in 2014, and 14-4 on the way to the Grey Cup the following season, which also marked the last time Edmonton finished first in the West Division.
Hervey compiled a record of 40-32, reaching playoffs in three of four seasons and winning a Grey Cup during his first tenure as a CFL head coach in Edmonton from 2013-16. He was fired due to an impasse over contract extension talks and a philosophical difference over stakeholder access to players.
He went on to spend two seasons as GM of the B.C. Lions in 2018 and ’19, before spending four seasons with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the last of which saw him become the GM this past season. Prior to that, Hervey worked for six years as a scout with the same Edmonton club he played receiver for from 1999-2006, earning two all-star nods and a pair of Grey Cups.
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Hervey will be reintroduced at a news conference alongside former teammate-turned Elks president Chris Morris on Wednesday morning.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to work with Chris, a former teammate and someone who I respect and admire tremendously,” Hervey said in a news release. “I can’t ask for a better opportunity to come back to. Above everything else, Edmonton is home. When home calls, you answer it.”
The two won Grey Cups together in 2003 and ’05.
“Ed embodies the core values that I’m looking for in Edmonton,” Morris said in the same release. “He’s a man with a tremendous amount of integrity, who believes in consistency and continuity.
“He brings a wealth of experience working as a general manager in this league, but also understands the importance of innovating as we strive to be Grey Cup champions.”
Hervey’s primary task will be the hiring of a head coach and staff, as well as securing the quarterback position heading into the 2025 Canadian Football League season.
E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge
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