Roy Dewalt
Encyclopedia
Roy Dewalt is a former Canadian Football League
quarterback
who, in a career lasting nine years, played for the BC Lions
between 1980 and 1987, and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
and Ottawa Rough Riders
in 1988.
Dewalt joined the Lions in 1980 after being originally drafted out of Texas-Arlington
as a running back by the Cleveland Browns
in the ninth round of the NFL Draft
that season, and served as the back-up quarterback to Joe "the Throwin' Samoan" Paopao
for two seasons. In 1982 he succeeded Paopao, which coincided with the arrival of Mervyn Fernandez
who became Dewalt's favourite target. The next season Dewalt helped to lead the team to first place in the CFL Western Division, with a 11-5-0 record, and to its first Grey Cup
appearance since 1964. However they lost to the Toronto Argonauts
, 18 to 17. In 1984 Despite a first place record of 12-3-1 the Lions lost the West championship to the Blue Bombers. However in 1985 the Lions came back with a 13-3-0 record, again first in the West, and a 37-24 Grey Cup victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
.
Although in 1985 Dewalt completed 301 out of 476 pass attempts for 4,237 yards and 27 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, his best season, he was not chosen as the division's all-star quarterback. That honour went to Matt Dunigan of the Edmonton Eskimos.
For the next two seasons Dewalt was not as effective of a quarterback, in part due to an injury to Fernandez in 1985 and the receiver's departure for the Los Angeles Raiders in 1986. In 1988 was allowed to sign with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
. The Lions replaced him with Matt Dunigan
. An arm injury led Dewalt to a number of poor performances and he was sent packing to the Ottawa Rough Riders
where, overall, his play did not improve. He retired from pro football after the season.
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
who, in a career lasting nine years, played for the BC Lions
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team competing in the West Division of Canadian Football League . Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, the Lions play their home games at BC Place Stadium in Downtown Vancouver, having previously played at Empire Stadium in East Vancouver from 1954...
between 1980 and 1987, and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded...
and Ottawa Rough Riders
Ottawa Rough Riders
The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. One of the oldest and longest lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine times. Their most dominant era was the 1960s and 1970s, a...
in 1988.
Dewalt joined the Lions in 1980 after being originally drafted out of Texas-Arlington
University of Texas at Arlington
The University of Texas at Arlington is a public research university located in Arlington, Texas, United States. The campus is situated southwest of downtown Arlington, and is located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. The university was founded in 1895 and served primarily a military...
as a running back by the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in the ninth round of the NFL Draft
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
that season, and served as the back-up quarterback to Joe "the Throwin' Samoan" Paopao
Joe Paopao
Joe Paopao is a long-time coach in the Canadian Football League, who last served as a head coach in the CFL for the Ottawa Renegades from 2001–2005....
for two seasons. In 1982 he succeeded Paopao, which coincided with the arrival of Mervyn Fernandez
Mervyn Fernandez
Mervyn "Swervin' Mervyn" Fernandez is a former professional American and Canadian football player who played wide receiver with the NFL Los Angeles-Oakland Raiders and the Canadian Football League BC Lions....
who became Dewalt's favourite target. The next season Dewalt helped to lead the team to first place in the CFL Western Division, with a 11-5-0 record, and to its first Grey Cup
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team. It is Canada's largest annual sports and television event, regularly drawing a Canadian viewing audience of about 3 to 4 million individuals...
appearance since 1964. However they lost to the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
, 18 to 17. In 1984 Despite a first place record of 12-3-1 the Lions lost the West championship to the Blue Bombers. However in 1985 the Lions came back with a 13-3-0 record, again first in the West, and a 37-24 Grey Cup victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
.
Although in 1985 Dewalt completed 301 out of 476 pass attempts for 4,237 yards and 27 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, his best season, he was not chosen as the division's all-star quarterback. That honour went to Matt Dunigan of the Edmonton Eskimos.
For the next two seasons Dewalt was not as effective of a quarterback, in part due to an injury to Fernandez in 1985 and the receiver's departure for the Los Angeles Raiders in 1986. In 1988 was allowed to sign with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded...
. The Lions replaced him with Matt Dunigan
Matt Dunigan
Matt Dunigan is a former quarterback, coach, and executive in the Canadian Football League who is currently a CFL sportscaster for Canadian sports television channel TSN...
. An arm injury led Dewalt to a number of poor performances and he was sent packing to the Ottawa Rough Riders
Ottawa Rough Riders
The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. One of the oldest and longest lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine times. Their most dominant era was the 1960s and 1970s, a...
where, overall, his play did not improve. He retired from pro football after the season.