(Football Ontario)
After a 15-year professional career, and lengthy coaching career, Napanee native Leroy Blugh was recently named as part of the inaugural class of inductees into the Football Ontario Hall of Fame.
Blugh, a defensive lineman, played 15 seasons in the CFL, which included winning the league’s Most Outstanding Canadian Award in 1996.
myFM caught up with Blugh, who says that it was those early days playing for the NDSS Golden Hawks that set the stage for a life as a pro athlete.
Blugh went on to become a coach, most recently as a defensive line coach at Queen’s University. He still lives in Napanee.
He fondly recalls coming back home between seasons playing for the Edmonton Eskimos, and later the Toronto Argonauts.
And it wasn’t just football. Blugh points to success in other local sports that helped with team-building skills and discipline.
“So many people involved in baseball and basketball. I had help from so many other people. It’s incredible.”
Blugh says this latest honour, being named to Football Ontario’s Hall of Fame in the “Player” category, was a great surprise. But he was quick to thank others for his success as a player.
Written by David Rockne Corrigan
