PHOENIX -- Eric Tillman remembers the day Lawrence Tynes came to the CFL.
"We were eight games into the season with the Ottawa Renegades and we'd gone through three kickers," he said in a phone interview. "We were at the point where we couldn't kick a can in a sewer.
"If that wasn't bad enough, we had Miss Canada in a pre-game ceremony and she kicked a 35-yarder. We'd gone through three kickers and she was better than anyone we had.
"I told our coach Joe Paopao 'Joe, we have two options. We can go with Miss Canada or we can go get an import kicker.'
"Because Miss Canada wasn't available, I was thrilled when longtime friend Al Saunders called from Kansas City highly recommending Lawrence Tynes.
"When Lawrence arrived it was the most memorable practice in Ottawa Renegades history. He kicked them all from the 30, kicked them all from the 35, all from the 40 and all from the 45. Practice stopped. Guys were giving him a standing ovation. The rest is history.
"Gosh was I happy for him when he kicked that 47-yarder in Green Bay, where the football is like a brick, to get the Giants to the Super Bowl. It's nice to see good things come to good people."
