The Saskatchewan Roughriders showed faith in their general manager Saturday with the announcement of a contract extension for Brendan Taman. The one-year extension will see Taman, who was given full control of football operations for the Riders last November, continue his role with the club through the 2013 season.
“I thought it was important, not just for Brendan but for (head coach) Corey (Chamblin) and the staff to know that we had Brendan on a contract for this year and next and there was stability,” said Jim Hopson, president and CEO of the Riders.
The announcement came as part of the Riders’ annual Green and White Day in Saskatoon, which brought the team to Griffiths Stadium to practice. Saskatoon is Taman’s hometown, making it the perfect occasion for the announcement.
“It worked out pretty well, it’s pretty neat actually,” said Taman.
Hopson has displayed a flair for the dramatic in Saskatoon, after choosing the University of Saskatchewan Huskies’ annual Dogs’ Breakfast event to announce the Riders’ intention to pick Huskies player Ben Heenan with the number one pick in this year’s draft just over a month ago.
According to Hopson, an extension was in the plans for Taman, but they’ve been busy up to this point getting the rest of the organization’s pieces in place.
“It’s something we knew we wanted to do. When we started with the new regime, Brendan was focused on getting a coach in place, and staff, and players. He knew that we were committed to him, and it was just a matter of finding some time later in the spring,” said Hopson.
Taman has been busy since taking over in November, overhauling the team on both the field and the sidelines. The most significant change was likely the hiring of Chamblin, the second new head coach for the Riders in as many seasons.
“Brendan has put his mark on this team. Corey was the coach that he wanted,” said Hopson. “We think it was the right decision and we’re very pleased to have (Taman) on board for this year and next, and we have an option also for the year after, so we think it’s good for the organization long- and short-term.”
As for Taman, his contract seemed to be the last thing he was worried about Saturday.
“I’ve been focusing on getting this team right and getting the coaching staff in place and getting the players on board, so to be honest with you I haven’t really keyed in on it, but it’s obviously a nice gesture,” he said.
The Riders are looking to bounce back from last year’s 5-13 season, which saw them miss the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
“Obviously we need to retool after having a bad year, and there’s a lot of work that needs to be done behind the scenes to get that done,” said Taman.
The first real look at Taman’s new version of the Riders will come Wednesday, when they travel to Vancouver to take on the BC Lions in the first of two preseason games for the year.
“We’ve had a lot of change, and I think any time you do these changes it takes a lot of time to gel. Overall though, it’s coming together pretty nice, and we’ll learn a lot more on Wednesday,” said Taman.
While stability is important to any football club, Taman was clear Saturday about the most important way he and his staff can solidify their roles in the Riders organization.
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