Joe Faragalli (April 18, 1929 – April 10, 2006) was a
player and coach who had most of his success in the
Canadian Football League (CFL). Faragalli played
guard
Guard or guards may refer to:
Professional occupations
* Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault
* Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street
* Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning
* Prison ...
at
Villanova University from 1950 to 1953, and was the team captain all four years. He was drafted by the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
in the 12th round (138th overall pick) of the
1954 NFL Draft
The 1954 National Football League Draft was held on January 28, 1954, at The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia.
This was the eighth year that the first overall pick was a bonus pick determined by lottery. With the previous seven winners i ...
. He served four years in Germany with the
United States Army and went on to coach
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
in the United States.
Coaching career
Known affectionately throughout the CFL as "Papa Joe," Faragalli joined the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 1967 as an offensive coach. In 1981, he became head coach of the
Saskatchewan Roughriders and was awarded the
Annis Stukus Trophy as Coach of the Year; the team, 2–14 in each of the preceding two seasons, finished with a 9–7 record in 1981 (despite this, the team narrowly missed the playoffs). Faragalli was replaced by Reuben Berry in 1983 after Saskatchewan got off to a 1–5 start to the season.
Faragalli's greatest CFL coaching achievement, in 1987, almost never happened. He began that year as coach of the
Montreal Alouettes, but the franchise ceased operations days before the start of the season. After
Jackie Parker resigned as
Edmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...
coach two games into the year due to health reasons, Faragalli was hired and led the team to a
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...
win against the
Toronto Argonauts.
The Eskimos played in the 1990 Grey Cup game under Faragalli, but lost to Winnipeg. He coached the
Ottawa Rough Riders
The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine ...
in 1991. After departing from the Eskimos in 1990, he served as the offensive co-ordinator for the
World League of American Football's Montreal Machine in 1991 and 1992, in between that one season in Ottawa.
During the 1980s and early 1990s, he worked as an assistant coach with the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
,
Houston Oilers,
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
and the WLAF's
Montreal Machine. His son
Mike
Mike may refer to:
Animals
* Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum
* Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off
* Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documenta ...
also coached in the CFL.
Faragalli died in Narragansett,
Rhode Island on April 10, 2006, of heart failure eight days before his 77th birthday and approximately one month before his 50th wedding anniversary.
Head coaching record
CFL
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Faragalli, Joe
1929 births
2006 deaths
Brown Bears football coaches
Buffalo Bills coaches
Cincinnati Bengals coaches
Edmonton Elks coaches
Houston Oilers coaches
Marshall Thundering Herd football coaches
Montreal Alouettes coaches
Oklahoma State Cowboys football coaches
Ottawa Rough Riders coaches
Saskatchewan Roughriders coaches
Villanova Wildcats football players
Winnipeg Blue Bombers coaches
NFL Europe (WLAF) coaches
Sportspeople from Philadelphia
Players of American football from Philadelphia
United States Army soldiers