It has only happened once, and quite likely will never happen again.
The 25th anniversary of the only American-based team to win the Grey Cup is this year.
On a cold day in Regina on November 19 1995, the Baltimore Stallions beat the Calgary Stampeders 37-20 to win the 83rd Grey Cup game.
Demetrious Maxie was a rookie with Baltimore in 1995 and the current Edmonton Eskimos defensive line coach has a hard time believing its been 25 years.
“It went by so fast,” Maxie said with a laugh as he prepares to go into fifth season on the Eskimos coaching staff. “It just seems like it was yesterday, it doesn’t seem like it was 25 years ago until I look at myself in the mirror and say, ‘Yeah, it’s been 25 years.'”
Maxie was a 22-year-old rookie defensive lineman in 1995 and relived the game and that season in Baltimore as a guest on the latest episode of The E-Pod.
“It was freezing cold, the crowd was amazing, it was a great time,” Maxie said. “Regina took take care of us players and coaches.
“It was one of my favorite moments that I remember having.”
Maxie would later go on to play for the Riders along with the Alouettes, Argos and Stampeders during his 13 year CFL career.
Trailing 13-7 in the 2nd quarter the Stallions reeled off 17 straight points to take the lead for good in the 3rd quarter. The key on defense said Maxie was how the Stallions neutralized Calgary quarterback Doug Floutie.
“We needed to get to Doug Floutie, we pressured Doug Floutie — we got in his face, we made him run around, we made him make bad decisions on his throws, we pressured him, we sacked him. We just played great up front, and our back end worked well together and that allowed us to get to the quarterback”
The Grey Cup ring he earned in 1995 with Baltimore was the first of three in he would get in the first three years of his career. Maxie moved with the Stallions to Montreal that off season — but mid year in 1996 he followed his head coach in Baltimore Don Mathews to Toronto, where the Argos won in ’96 and ’97.
Maxie got used to winning.
“I thought I was never going to lose. I thought I was going to win the Grey Cup every year.”
That never happened, as Maxie’s streak ended in 1998 when the Argos lost to Montreal in the Eastern Semi final. Those first three years did set up Maxie’s expectations for the rest of his career.
“I got the mindset that this is where I want to be every year at the end of every football season. When it ended it was hard for me.”
Maxie never played in another Grey Cup game, but did win another ring as a scout and will be trying to get one as a coach with the Eskimos whenever the CFL goes back to work.
Like everyone else involved in the CFL game right now, he is missing it while waiting out the pandemic.
“This is the first time since 1988 that I have not made contact with a football field. Football has been in my life forever. It’s hard.”
Maxie says he is still talking football a lot with ex teammates , the current Eskimos coaching staff and the group of players he is coaching on the Eskimos now.
Like everyone else involved in the CFL though. He is tired of waiting.
Demetrious Maxie was a guest on The E-Pod available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and everywhere else you get your streaming audio. You can also listen at Curiouscast.ca