Not even 24 hours after the passing of George Reed, Craig Reynolds sat before the assembled media and put the player — the person — in perspective.
“The word ‘legend’ gets thrown around a lot, but that’s exactly what George was,” the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ President-CEO reflected on Monday, 84 years to the day after Reed was born. “He was an absolute living legend.
“I’ve never seen another individual enter a room and every eye turns toward them. George just lit up a room.”
He also lit up opposing defences to the tune of 16,116 rushing yards and 137 touchdowns — 134 on the ground and three on receptions — during 13 CFL seasons with the Roughriders.
Off the field, he was just as inexhaustible, as exemplified by his involvement with innumerable charities and community initiatives as a record-setting fullback and in retirement.
“He lit up our organization when he showed up,” Reynolds continued. “When he was coming to games and he would make the trek from the elevator to Section 34, he’d stop and we’d all have a visit with him and it was just an honour to be in his presence.
“And that’s just how I personally felt. I know our staff felt that, every interaction, it was just an honour to be around him. It was an honour to have him be part of the organization and continue to come to the games and want to be associated with our football team.”
As recently as Sept. 15, when the Roughriders played host to the Edmonton Elks, the beloved No. 34 watched the game from his customary perch atop the north-side stands.
Edmonton was also the opponent when Reed played his first CFL game — on Aug. 5, 1963, as a rookie out of Washington State University. He rushed for 74 yards and one touchdown as Saskatchewan won 19-16 in the Alberta capital.
So began a 60-year relationship with the Roughriders, the CFL, and a legion of fans — many of whom had not yet been born when he played his final game, on Nov. 16, 1975 … in Edmonton, naturally.
“He’s one of the most influential figures in the history of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and I think it’s because he inspired a generation to be football fans, and to be Roughrider fans,” reflected Reynolds, who is from Foam Lake. “And, for me, that’s exactly what happened.
“He inspired my dad. My fandom grew from my dad and my parents, and I know many Saskatchewan Roughrider fans had that same experience. My dad revered George Reed. He would light up whenever he talked about George Reed.
“I was born (5 1/2 months before) George retired, so I never saw him play. But the day I met George Reed was a day I’ll never forget.
“I haven’t done this many times in this job, but I called my dad and said, ‘You’ll never guess who I met today.’ It was about two weeks into my working with the Roughriders and George came in to talk about something in my office. I was just so taken aback that I was sitting there having a meeting with George Reed.
“I just think he inspired a generation and that generation passed down the love of him and the love of the Roughriders to them and we’ll continue to do that to the next generation.”
Reynolds was early in his tenure as the team’s Chief Financial Officer when he met Reed in 2009. Shortly before that, Reed had moved back to Regina with his wife, Angie, after living and working in Calgary for 25 years.
Reed had visited the Roughriders’ office to meet with Steve Mazurak, who was then the team’s Vice-President, Marketing and Sales.
Mazurak, a Roughriders receiver from 1973 to 1980, was a teammate of Reed’s for his final three seasons.
Reed, a long-time President of the CFL Players’ Association, also enlisted Mazurak to serve as the union’s first Executive Director in the early 1980s.
“I remember making the ball club (in 1973) and standing in the huddle with George and Ronnie (Lancaster) and all the supporting cast of football players, but particularly those two,” Mazurak said.
“I was sort of learning the game through osmosis, basically, and being close to those guys and learning from their example — their steadfast commitment.
“That went far when it came to folks like Jim Hopson and I learning about the game and learning what it takes to be a Roughrider and to live that Roughrider world.”
Reed got to live it all over again when he was hired late in 2008 as the Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation’s Director of Guest and Community Relations.
“There was a gap — just a huge gap — in the Rider Nation,” Mazurak said, referencing Reed’s quarter-century away from Saskatchewan.
“I’ll never forget. I was in Winnipeg for 13 years and I remember the Blue Bombers alumni welcoming me into their room. I remember being in that room, sitting beside (legendary quarterback) Kenny Ploen, and I’m going, ‘This is really special.’
“To have George come back and be in that alumni room for as many years as we had him, it did so much for us as a local alumni, and for the community, to see this iconic man back where he belongs.”
Once that took place, Reed continued to be a fixture at the Roughriders’ home stadium.
“At the next game, I’ll look over to the Champions Deck and look for George, and he won’t be there,” Mazurak said, referencing Saturday’s date with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (5 p.m., Mosaic Stadium).
“He’ll be missed by so many people.”
