Pick the 4 all-time greatest Blue Bombers. Due to poll restrictions, had to combine Bastaja and Mikawos. Should you vote for either of them, please make a comment in the thread as to which one you are voting for.

My votes remain the same: Brown, Walby and Stegall are the greatest in CFL history at their positions and Bud Grant is not only one of the greatest coaches/managers in CFL history, but in all of pro football. I vehemently argue in favour of those 4...

One man's take:

I love the approach that Noeller took for the most part. If you are the best ever in the CFL at your position, you should be up on that mountain. So Stegall, Walby, and Brown make great sense. I guess Cameron and Herb Gray could fit under that criteria too. But I also look at it from a "brand recognition" point of view. If I am a generic fan from another market, and you ask me to name the greatest Blue Bomber as a rival fan, whose name immediately springs to mind? Doug Flutie is arguably the greatest player to ever play CFL football (some throw Jackie Parker's name into the mix - not me), but he probably doesn't belong on the Toronto or BC Mount Rushmores. Parker is an Edmonton legend, but does he pass Moon (or do they both belong up there?) My short list for other teams:

BC - Joe Kapp, Lui Passaglia, Geroy Simon

Edm - Warren Moon, Jackie Parker, James "Quick" Parker, Dave Fennell, Hugh Campbell

Cal - Doug Flutie, Allan Pitts

Sask - Ron Lancaster, George Reed

Ham - Angelo Mosca

Tor - Michael "Pinball" Clemons, Mike O'Shea

Ott - Russ Jackson, Tony Gabriel

Mtl - Sam Etcheverry, Mike Pringle, Anthony Calvillo

So who springs to mind when you think of the Bombers? Well, Stegall for sure, and Ken Ploen, and Bud Grant. These are slam dunks for an outsider who has a passing knowledge of the club's history.

Then you think of the Ring of Honour. Pecking order gives you a pretty good idea how much regard the football club holds them in. The first 4 there were Walby, Ploen, Gerry James (not on my list since he did not beat out Lewis and Roberts for running back glory), and Stegall. Dieter Brock (another non-qualifier since Ploen beat him out) was 5th, and Leo Lewis was 6th, so Lewis would be 4th on the mountain if that criteria was used.

Then look at who has statues, streets, club suites, gates, or other honorariums named after them. Bud Grant and Cal Murphy have statues. Stegall and Ploen got street names. Ploen, Stegall, Brown, and Poplawski got gates named after them. Stegall (yet again!) and Brown have the club suites dedicated to their numbers.

And speaking of retired numbers, which is supposed to be the ultimate compliment, the club "officially" does not retire them, but Ploen's #11 has never been worn again (Jeff Nicklin's #28 and Tommy Lumsden's #75 are supposedly also on that list). And Stegall's #85, Walby's #63, and Cameron's #6 were removed from circulation (only Cameron's was allowed back into circulation with his blessing, but is not generally passed out as an option without his permission). Roberts #1 and Brown's #97 were pulled but have been brought back in.

All this to say that I see a combination of those factors kicking in. SO.....

Milt Stegall checks the  box in every criteria here, so up he goes. Easy.

Bud Grant is synonymous with the greatest Bomber teams of all time, and if you have been immortalized in bronze outside the stadium, then why not in granite? He's my #2.

Ken Ploen was not the best ever at his position, but he comes closest to Stegall when it comes to club recognition (street name, gate name, ring of honour order, retired number) and he is the QB other teams' fans would think of, so he is #3. If you doubt that, remember who the first person out of the tunnel was at the opening ceremonies when Investor's Group Field opened in 2013. Ploen in full uniform, handing the ball off to Stegall. Ploen gets the third spot.

At this point it is easier to eliminate people than pick #4. If I haven't mentioned their name yet in this post, they are out. So I have Walby, Brown, Cameron, Gray, Lewis, Cal Murphy and Poplawski - 7 people vying for one spot. Gray's name has not survived the passage of time like Ploen or Grant in Bomber lore, so not him. When Poplawski had the gate named after him, some eyebrows were raised as to why he was picked over others (being on the Board of Directors at the time gave off a feeling of an inside vote rigging), and I was one of them, so I won't pick him. Cal Murphy was the personification of the team in the 1980's to the mid '90's, but he became a forgotten man for a long time after his unceremonious departure, so I don't feel the long time love and adoration from the club that other players got. Will leave him off. And Doug Brown never felt like a "lifer" as a Bomber due to his NFL stint and the fact he came in a trade from Calgary. Maybe I devalue the nose tackle position compared to others, or that he never broke any league records, but there is just...something....that makes me not think of him on the short list of best of the best. Lewis has a claim based on greatness (Bud Grant would have him up there) but 3 memebrs of the same team on one wall seems too dismissive of the rest of history, so with twinges of regret not him.

Down to 2, Walby and Cameron. The two longest tenured Bombers ever, so this feels right from a historical perspective. Weird to think a punter and an offensive lineman rank over the sexier positions on the club, but we are a blue collar town. The edge here has to go to the one who was the better at his position compared to the rest of the league, and who was the first ever chosen for the Ring of Honour (I would not have had him first myself, but for sure in the top 4), and as a native Winnipegger, that just seals the deal. Chris Walby is my #4.

Edited May 24, 20196 yr by TrueBlue4ever

Stegall, Walby, Ploen, Grant

Probably should have Jack Jacobs in the poll. May have voted for him.

I fully respect the positions taken above...we've been blessed with some amazing players.

Don't get me wrong, Joe Pop was great, but how Chris Walby is not one of the 4 icons at the IG Field gates is beyond me. IIRC he wasnt even a voting option. An outright travesty. 

Edited May 24, 20196 yr by Bubba Zanetti

11 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

Stegall, Walby, Ploen, Grant

Probably should have Jack Jacobs in the poll. May have voted for him.

Mine too. 

Grant, Stegall, Walby, Joe Pop

Grant, Ploen, Stegall, Walby in that order.  

I'll meet anyone that argues any of them in the parking lot in 10 minutes.

Chronologically: Grant, Ploen, Walby, Stegall.

Doug Brown and his patented forklift maneuver criminally underrated, as always. The ol' Nose Tackle position never gets respect... 

Grant, Ploen, Stegall for all the reasons posted above. Went with Cameron for the 4th pick based on how long he played with the blue. 

1 hour ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

Stegall, Walby, Ploen, Grant

Probably should have Jack Jacobs in the poll. May have voted for him.

That was the hard part of defining the list - keeping it down to only those who top their respective positional categories. Since Ploen beat him out at QB, I did not include him. But certainly worthy of consideration. Sadly, I had to draw a line somewhere on the nominations.

59 minutes ago, MC said:

Grant, Ploen, Stegall, Walby in that order.  

I'll meet anyone that argues any of them in the parking lot in 10 minutes.

Judging by the early voting, it looks like you'll have a lot of partners on your side and no one on the other side to fight with.

Grant, Ploen, Stegall, and Lewis...case closed

Anyone not including Walby is just being silly....he's the Wayne Gretzky of CFL OL....

2 minutes ago, Noeller said:

Anyone not including Walby is just being silly....he's the Wayne Gretzky of CFL OL....

He wouldn't go into the corners and had to have Semenko protect him?

1 hour ago, WBBFanWest said:

He wouldn't go into the corners and had to have Semenko protect him?

He routinely finished last in fitness testing, and Marc Crawford wouldn't trust him in the shootout.

I vote Trent corney 

Stegall, Lewis, Ploen & Grant

On 2019-05-24 at 4:26 PM, Floyd said:

I vote Trent corney 

You need to open a new thread to do that!

On 2019-05-24 at 1:41 PM, Noeller said:

Anyone not including Walby is just being silly....he's the Wayne Gretzky of CFL OL....

Walby was a great one. One reporter even wondered if Walby was the greatest Canadian ever to play in the CFL!

Problem is though, my list would have to include Grant and Ploen (4 or 5 Grey Cup victories) and I would have to put Stegall in there too (no one will ever touch his TD record and he was never caught from behind!). Then there's Leo Lewis who was, arguably, our best RB of all time (plus he was scary on returns) and a man who Bud Grant said was THE greatest player he ever coached - CFL/NFL. So there's that...

With just 4 players someone really, really good will be left out.