Less than a week before the scheduled start of training camp, the Montreal Alouettes have announced that renowned veteran special teams coordinator Jeff Reinebold, has stepped down due to personal reasons.
The 64-year-old Reinebold had only joined Montreal in January of this year after resigning from the Hamilton Tige-Cats following seven years, off and on with the club. He is one of the CFL’s most experienced special teams coordinators and many consider him a special teams legend. He has served as a coordinator with multiple teams since 1991 when he joined the BC Lions. He was also Montreal’s defensive co-ordinator in 2012 and is a former head coach with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He also coached in NFL Europe, winning a title, and was NFL’s Europe’s Senior Manager of International Player Development in 2004.
Reinebold’s special team units were among the league’s best. His players were always aggressive, and he never was reluctant to run trick plays, ensuring the opposition could never relax.
Alouettes general manager Danny Maciocia , refused to provide further details, remaining silent when asked whether Reinebold had resigned or was fired. Neither Reinebold nor his agent, Paul Sheehy, returned messages.
The team also announced that Reinebold will be replaced by 31-year-old Byron Archambault, the team’s linebackers coach.
Training camp is scheduled to begin Sunday morning in Trois-Rivières but could be delayed unless a new collective bargaining agreement is negotiated. The current deal expires Saturday night.