Alberta Sports Hall of Fame

Edmonton Eskimo's Five-In-A-Row Chosen as the
"MALE TEAM OF THE CENTURY"

On May 25, 2001, at the Capri Hotel in Red Deer, Alberta, the five-in-a-row Edmonton Eskimo Grey Cup champion football teams were in­ducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame & Museum as the “Male Team of the Century”.  This prestigious honor follows their induction into the Hall three years prior in the Team category.

The Eskimos dominated the CFL during a five-year span from 1978 to 1982. The teams, coached by Hugh Campbell, won a record five consecutive Grey Cups in an amazing six consecutive Grey Cup appear­ances. They compiled an impressive 70-15-5 record during the five years with a winning per­centage of over 80%.

Other notable inductees included:

Wayne Gretzky - Male Athlete of the Century

Glen Sather - Male Builder of the Century

Edmonton Commercial Grads Basketball Team - Female Team of the Century

Greg Greenough - Multi-Sport Builder (served on the Eskimo Board of Directors)

Oilers Hockey Teams 1983/84; 1984/85; 1986/87; 1987/88; 1989/90 in the Team category.

Accepting the Award on behalf of the Eskimos were Angelo Santucci and Dale Potter, representing the offense and defense. The evening was filled with camaraderie that spilled over to the Hall of Fame hos­pitality suite for a long overdue bonding session.

The honor caps off a long list of accomplishments by these teams recognizing the Edmonton Eskimo Football Club as one of the most successful franchises in  all professional sports. Kevin Lowe was on hand to accept the award on behalf of the Edmonton Oilers organization and he praised the Eskimos for their outstanding achievements. He commented, “The five-in-a-row Edmonton Eskimo teams personified the team concept and the Oilers were fortunate to learn from their example.”

With players, executive, directors, on-field staff and families, the Eskimos had 83 people in attendance (the Hall of Fame has never had one organization represented by such large numbers).

Names most of you will recognize were:  Dave Cutler, John Farlinger, Peter Lavorato, Eric Upton, Dale Potter, Hector Pothier, Tom Towns, Dave Fennell, Marco Cyncar, Emilo Frajetta, Ed Jones, Brian Fryer, John Konihowski, Tom Wilkinson, Char­lie Turner, Bill Stevenson, Joe Holli­mon, Angelo Santucci, Dan Kepley, York Hentschel, Sean Kehoe, Dave Zacharko, Ron Estay, Norm Kimball, Frank Morris, Matt Baldwin, Jack McMahon, Don Carlson, Doug Montgomery, Don Matthews, Dr. Richard Cherry, Dr. Jim Adams and Dwayne Mandrusiak.