North Bay's Mike O'Shea has been inducted into the CFL hall of fame as a player.
Now, he is forging a coaching career that could eclipse his impressive resume as a player.
On the weekend, O'Shea broke the record for most wins as a Blue Bombers head coach Saturday night in a 26-21 Banjo Bowl victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders that pushed his coaching record here to 103-68 – one more win than legendary Bombers coach Bud Grant.
“We talked a lot about it already… there’s just so many people that have been here for a huge chunk of it that make it easy every single day, not only to be successful but to come to work just every single day," O'Shea stated on Bluebombers.com
"My wife’s standing right there… my family’s been there for all of it, the 60-something losses that they feel, too.
“It is what it is. Over time these numbers just add up. But I don’t think we’re a numbers-based team, we’re a process-based team. We’ve got a room, a whole basement full of people that are all in on the process and the outcomes just happen.”
See related: Back to back Grey Cups for O'Shea
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His players adore him too on so many levels.
“Oh man… I could go on about this for a long, long time,” said Blue Bombers receiver Kenny Lawler in a recent chat with bluebombers.com. “He’s been one of the most influential, down-to-earth, loving, respectable people I’ve ever been around.
“He wants the individual to reach his potential on and off the field. Me coming in here, I was a knucklehead. There were probably many times Coach O’Shea could have kicked me off the team. But he saw a young, fiery competitor and he wanted me to become my best and he gave me multiple chances to reach my full potential."
As a coach and player, the former Widdifield Wildcat is a six-time Grey Cup champion.
