Eric Tillman: embattled Eskimo

Even if Eric Tillman is able to turn the struggling Edmonton Eskimos into a winner, he still may not have many fans in the city.

His hiring on Tuesday as General Manager was a controversial one – he resigned as GM of the Saskatchewan Roughriders in January after pleading guilty to sexual assault of a 16-year-old babysitter in August 2008.

In one online survey for instance, more than 70 per cent of respondents were opposed Tillman’s hiring, some of them threatening to never attend another Eskimos game if he was given the job.

But despite the public opinion, the Eskimos believe his winning track record makes him the best man for the job.

Tillman graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Mississippi in 1979, and got his first job in football in 1981 in the public relations department of the NFL’s Houston Oilers.

He moved over to the CFL in 1982, as director of player personnel with the Montreal Concordes, but returned the U.S. in 1984 to become the executive director of the Senior Bowl – an annual NCAA all-star game in Mobile, Ala.

Grey Cup win

He would spend eight years in Mobile before becoming GM of the B.C. Lions – a job he held for three seasons. Tillman led the Lions’ to their 1994 Grey Cup win.

After a short stint with NFL Europe, he became GM of the Toronto Argonauts where he won another Grey Cup in 1997. He then took on the position of GM of the expansion Ottawa Renegades in 2002.

Tillman worked in broadcasting until finally landing with the Roughriders in 2006. The team had just fired Roy Shivers, the first black GM in pro football history.

Shivers had been with the club since 1999, after the position was turned down by Tillman for personal reasons.

But more than seven years later, Tillman accepted the position. He came in with the team sitting near the bottom of the league standings after starting the season as a legitimate Grey Cup contender.

The Riders were also plagued with legal problems and behaviour issues. Linebacker Trevis Smith had been charged with two counts of aggravated sexual assault the previous year for not disclosing to sexual partners that he was HIV-positive.

Smith was later convicted on both counts and sentenced to six years in prison (he was paroled in February 2009). Then in 2006, teammate Kenton Keith was charged with aggravated assault following an alleged incident outside a Regina nightclub.

The charge was eventually stayed, but it was just the latest incident in a string of legal incidents and issues with players missing practices and games.

Code of conduct

Tillman hired Kent Austin as the team’s head coach in 2007, and instituted a code of conduct that would govern the players’ lives on and off the field, with emphasis placed on honesty, integrity, and respect for the law.

The code is credited with changing the team’s image and performance. It contributed to the dramatic turnaround that season, which culminated in the 2007 Grey Cup championship.

But Austin’s tenure as head coach would be short-lived. On Jan. 16 of last year, he stepped down to become the offensive co-ordinator at his alma mater, the University of Mississippi.

It was only two weeks later that news of the charges against Tillman became public. He originally pled not guilty, but later changed his plea to guilty and made a tearful apology to the girl and her family.

He was given an absolute discharge and does not have a criminal record.

Tillman will replace former Eskimos GM Danny Maciocia, who was fired earlier this summer.

With files from Postmedia News