It’s a full-circle moment nearly seven decades in the making.
A football that was stolen in the dying minutes of the Edmonton football team’s 1956 Grey Cup victory game has been returned to the son of the player it was originally stolen from nearly 68 years ago.
It was Nov. 24, 1956. Edmonton was about to claim its third Grey Cup title in a row.
With just minutes left in the blowout game, Jackie Parker, one of the CFL’s greatest players, ran the ball into the end zone for his third touchdown of the night for Edmonton.
What happened next made history.
As Parker ran into the end zone, he was swarmed by fans who had made their way onto the field. Security wasn’t as tight in the ‘50s as it is nowadays. Amid the chaos, one of the fans — a man by the name of Doug Bower — stole the ball from Parker, tucked it into his jacket and disappeared.
To make matters worse, it was the only ball they had left to play with.
“Everyone is setting up for the point after and no ball. We started the game with 18 balls and we have no balls left,” said Jeff McWhinney, keeper of the Grey Cup.
The referees were scrambling to figure out what to do next. In a defining moment, it was the players who came together on the field to make the decision on how to proceed.
“It was like a board of directors meeting. And they made the decision. Let’s call the game,” McWhinney recalled. “The game was called. They weren’t able to kick the point after.
“You would have pandemonium if the game was closer. So thank goodness it was a runaway train.”
The final score was Edmonton 50, Montreal Alouettes 27.
But what happened to that ball has remained a mystery — until now.
“Decades later, Mr. Bower — Doug Bower — who on that very day stole that ball, or borrowed that ball, returned it back to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame,” McWhinney said.
The reason behind the fan’s decision to return the ball after all these years remains unknown.
“It was something that I would bet was just hanging over him,” McWhinney guessed.
“I think, as a true Canadian, he borrowed it for a while and brought it back.”
Parker’s son was shocked to learn of the ball’s resurgence.
“It’s pretty special,” Jack Parker Jr said. “It’s part of the CFL history, my dad’s history and double E football club. It’s part of history. It’s amazing. I was shocked and thrilled and touched.
“It goes full circle.”
The younger Parker was presented with the 1956 Grey Cup champion-winning ball at an Edmonton Elks’ annual alumni dinner on Thursday night. He was invited to the event knowing there would be some sort of special presentation, but wasn’t given further details than that.
“I certainly am very touched by the league and Jeff thinking of bringing it back and handing it over to me.”
Parker Jr. said it’s hard to say how his dad, who passed away in 2006, would have felt in this moment.
“He never was one for accolades and honours and stuff. He was extremely humble. He didn’t have a showcase of trophies at home,” he said.
“He just never was much for the limelight. He loved playing the game, he loved his teammates, he loved this city. He would be surprised is what he would be… and he’d have some off-the-cuff remark like, ‘Jeez, I’ve been looking for that.’”
The football is a J5E Spalding with the 1956 Grey Cup logo on it and it has been authenticated. The ball will live in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. McWhinney said it’s a huge piece of the league’s history.
“The DNA that touched this,” he said, carefully handling the ball while wearing white gloves. “I look at this and it just tells me who touched this ball, what history they made.
“We weren’t able to convert a touchdown in 1956, but we did convert ourselves to understand that we all belong. The Canadian Football League is probably the greatest history book of diversity and inclusion that I could even talk about.”