So how best to introduce a new football boss whose hiring was fraught with dissension, who hasn’t worked in the CFL for 23 years and whose addition is bound to be second-guessed from Day 1?
Start by trotting out Hall of Famer Joe Poplawski, one of the most popular Blue Bombers of all time, for the introduction, and make sure he calls the process “diligent,” “rigourous,” “extensive” and “unanimous,” all in about 35 seconds.
Never mind that Poplawski has never been the spokesman for the board of directors before, and has no interest in being one in the future.
If Joe Pop says Joe Mack can get the job done, who’s going to argue?
“The professionalism that Joe Mack is going to bring to this organization is going to be exceptional,” old No. 71 said.
Say it is so, Joe. Because after the last few years this organization needs every ounce of professionalism it can muster.
Even Friday, the picture remained somewhat fractured.
For the most important hire the organization has made in a decade, half the board members weren’t even present, including two from the four-man selection committee (the two whose candidate lost out, perhaps?).
I know, they’re business types and they travel.
But what about this: chairman Ken Hildahl, who until now we’d been strictly told was the only spokesman, was pushed to the background.
And the old Mad Dog himself, Paul Robson, the 69-year-old former GM who first hired Mack 26 years ago and whose fingerprints are all over this move, was front-and-centre.
“We’re going to get back to Blue Bomber football,” Robson said, inadvertently borrowing a line used by former coach Mike Kelly on his first day on the job, 13 months ago.
I’m not saying Mack’s going to fail, or even come close to Kelly’s act.
The guy does look and act like a pro, and his resume is pretty impressive, even if it doesn’t have a meaningful entry in nine years, or one related to the three-down game in 23.
Besides, it’s not fair he be saddled with the mistakes that have left this once-proud entity the most wanting franchise in the CFL.
But the very process that brought Mack and his professionalism back to the Bombers was fraught with unprofessionalism.
The search committee’s first choice, Brendan Taman, turned down the job when told he should hire Mack as a consultant. That Taman ran from a place he truly adored says a lot about the working environment.
The obvious second choice, Calgary second-in-command Jim Barker, who’s been part of three Grey Cup winners the last 14 years, was turned away, in part, because Greg Marshall wasn’t in his plans as head coach.
Should board members even be suggesting who to hire?
“Joe’s been hired to lead the football part of this operation,” Robson countered. “I’ve been out of football since 2003. That’s a long time for me. So all I can offer is some guidance. And that’s all I’ll do.”
Asked about the problems between the board and former CEO Lyle Bauer, who foisted Kelly upon it a year ago then stubbornly refused to back down until his resignation last month, Robson said this: “I’ve never been one to look in the rearview mirror. I’ve always been one to look through the front windshield.”
As he said it, highlights from the 1984 Grey Cup game played on the TV monitors. A game featuring a team with a rookie personnel boss named Joe Mack, working under Robson.
“You have to understand the past,” Robson said of the apparent contradiction. “You have to understand the culture of the past, the culture of this community and how important this is to the community.”
Oh, we understand that.
That’s why, going into a 20th year without a Grey Cup, you better have it right.
Or a little bit of the shine is going to come off those 26-year-old championship rings.
