CALGARY -- Quote-unquote, Rick Worman:
"I don't believe I was fired by Richie Hall. I believe I was fired by Danny Maciocia."
Worman knows he isn't going to be rehired by the Eskimos, although right now that might be a damn fine idea. And he still has money coming for the rest of the season. But he doesn't want to see Hall painted as the guy who sacked him and sent the Edmonton Eskimos from first to worst with the decision.
"I've known Richie Hall for 20 years and all I know is what I was told when I asked Richie point blank if it was his decision and he said 'No. It was an organization decision.' All I can deduce from that is that it was Danny's decision. Ultimately he's in charge of football organizational decisions as GM," Worman told Sun Media.
"Danny told me Kevin Strasser was the first choice anyway."
Edge of a cliff
Worman believes he was coaching from the edge of a cliff when the Eskimos lost big to Montreal and B.C. at the same time Strasser became available.
But a comeback from 22 points down in Saskatchewan and a big win against Montreal made bad optics to fire him then. So they hired Strasser as an extra coach and waited. Then they lost 32-8 on Labour Day.
Well, now Strasser has lost 30-7 in Calgary seven games and only two wins later.
"It makes no sense to me. We're in first place," said Worman the day he was fired.
It makes even less sense now.
If the season were to have ended this past weekend, the Eskimos would have been eliminated from the playoffs, West and crossover.
It would be fire the CEO, fire the GM, fire the coach.
It isn't that far from that this morning.
It's definitely fire the offensive co-ordinator. Again.
And Maciocia, who had his feet removed from the fire when he removed himself as coach and kicked himself upstairs into the exclusive role of GM, is definitely back on the hot seat with the fans who haven't had time to warm to him in his new job.
Standing in the hall outside the Eskimos dressing room after the 30-7 loss to the Stampeders here Friday night, your correspondent asked Maciocia again about the Strasser switch.
"There is no second-guessing," he said. "This was something that was brought to the forefront by Richie Hall and it's got the support of the organization.
"Something I value about this organization, over the years that I have been associated with it, is when it's got to do something it does what it's got to do and it doesn't need to get into too many details of why moves are being made."
The old mushroom theory?
Keep the customers in the dark and surrounded by manure?
Whatever, Strasser clearly hasn't done the job. And I repeat the statement made in this column more than a month ago.
Why in the world would anybody think it would be a good idea to bring in a new philosophy with new schemes and new terminology in mid-season?
The offence has been impotent. It's been totally out of sync with no rhythm and not much rhyme.
Ricky Ray wearing a wristband with the plays has looked completely unlike the quarterback he was under Worman, the man who brought him to the Eskimos and the CFL in the first place.
The numbers tell a graphic story.
The Eskimos were in first place before they lost 32-8 here on Labour Day to drop to 5-4. Strasser left after the 30-7 loss with his 2-5 record.
Worman's offence had 20 first downs or more in eight of nine games for a total of 193. Strasser's has had one game over the 20 first downs and a total of 121 with two games to go in his half of the season.
Net yards
Worman's offence, which was either first or second in most league statistical categories, featured 3,654 net yards.
Since Strasser the total is 2,384 with no chance of matching Worman's totals in the final two games.
Ray had seven 300-yard plus passing games under Worman. He's had two under Strasser.
At some point, Maciocia is going to have to be judged on one statistical comparison.
Hugh Campbell coached for six years and was GM/CEO right through to the end of the North American pro sports record of 34 consecutive seasons in the playoffs. But the real stat in that is in his run as coach and then returning from the NFL as GM, he provided Edmonton with a home playoff game in everyone of his 25 years.
Maciocia's total in his five years as head coach and/or GM so far is zero.
terry.jones@sunmedia.ca
