Famous NFL coach raves about BC Lions and CFL: 'Jiminy Christmas, I love Canadian football'
One longtime NFL coach is apparently a huge CFL fan.
Not only that, but he backed up his fandom with astounding knowledge of the BC Lions.
Former NFL head coach Jon Gruden went viral earlier this week for wearing a BC Lions hoodie during one of his videos for Barstool. That prompted the Lions to send Gruden a package from up north.
Look what we got here… it's a box all the way from British Columbia!
The BC Lions of the CFL are some of the most fun football you'll ever watch… and they got a heck of a QB!
Thank you Coach Pierce and the @BCLions for this awesome box!! pic.twitter.com/3kVX74Iqvh
— Jon Gruden (@BarstoolGruden) May 28, 2026
Gruden opened the package in another video, where he showcased a surprising wealth of knowledge about the league, citing his love for some of the differences on the offensive side of the ball.
“Jiminy Christmas, I love Canadian football,” Gruden said emphatically.
“What’s great about Canadian football is there’s more passing, there’s more yards, man. The field is bigger, the endzones are deeper, there’s unlimited motion.”
“They got this flying motion where the receiver can start back here, then he comes full speed at you, man, and you can put him into the route at top speed, it’s freaking awesome.”
He showed that he’s been paying attention to the current-day Lions as well.
“Buck Pierce played quarterback in the CFL for a long time,” Gruden said. “I remember him at New Mexico State. He played with BC, played with Winnipeg. He also calls the plays for the BC Lions.”
“[Nathan] Rourke…helluva player at Ohio U. He threw for 5,200 [yards] last year, ran for about 600 [yards].”
Jon Gruden appears to know more about the BC Lions than the average fan. (Orlando Ramirez/Imagn Images)
Gruden apparently has been following two Lions, who were also former players of his during his time as head coach of the Oakland Raiders.
“Ask me who their leading rusher is…James Butler. He had about 1,200 rushing yards.”
“Ask me who’s their leading receiver…Keon Hatcher, man. Arkansas. 1,700 yards, he wears No. 4. I love the freaking BC Lions.”
Gruden, who won a Super Bowl in 2002 as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, also shouted out a couple of Lions players on defence.
“They got a D-lineman named Mathieu Betts,” he said. “He had 18 sacks in 2023. Comes back last year and has 15 more sacks. Wears No. 90. Badass.
“I remember Brett Johnson played there. They also got Jonah Tavai, he’s got about five sacks [last year].”
Perhaps the most impressive part of Gruden’s spiel was that he opened up like an encyclopedia of Lions’ knowledge throughout the clip.
His intel on the team went back to their inception, when he shouted out quarterback Joe Kapp, the first QB to lead the Lions to a Grey Cup. Gruden also acknowledged “Willie the Wisp,” also known as running back William Fleming, another member of the Lions’ first Grey Cup-winning squad in 1964. That win occurred one year after Gruden was born.
He shouted out legendary CFL coach Hugh Campbell, whose son, Rick, coached the Lions until 2024.
Gruden also revealed that one of his favourite players was a BC Lions offensive lineman.
“My favourite player as a kid growing up was Al ‘Dirt’ Wilson,” Gruden said. “He missed zero games. I mean, this guy would play for nothing.”
“They also had Damon Allen, one of the all-time Canadian badasses,” Gruden said. “Ask me who his brother is…Marcus Allen.”
“They used to have a kicker named Lui Passaglia. He scored 4,000 points. I swear to God, he kicked forever, man. He still could kick.”
Pretty impressive stat pull on Passaglia, who finished his CFL career with 3,991 points. Passaglia played for the Lions from 1976 to 2000.
Gruden also admitted he tried to recruit one of the best receivers in Lions history.
“When I was a young coach, they used to have this receiver called Geroy Simon,” Gruden said. “He wore No. 81. Man, that guy was a great player. He played at Maryland. I always wanted him, but he stayed out there in Canada.”
Gruden then gave a synopsis of the Lions heading into this season, speaking as if he were a part of the team.
“We did lose our leading tackler, our linebacker [Micah Awe], but we went out and got Darell Sankey, didn’t we, from the Montreal Alouettes to be our middle linebacker.”
“We lost Robert Carter, who got five picks last year,” he said.
“So who’s it gonna be in the secondary? Is it gonna be TJ Lee? Is it gonna be Ronald Kent? Is it gonna be Jackson Finley? Who’s gonna step up in this Lions secondary?”
Gruden admitted that he’s never been to BC, but perhaps that will change soon.
“Man, I gotta get out there and watch these guys play,” he said. “They’ve got a history of badasses out there in BC.”
“Six Grey Cups…13 titles in the division.”
“If you’re out there in BC, get a ticket, go support the Lions.”