Sports Take

This debate is timeless, who’s the greatest quarterback to ever play the game? Names are thrown around, the younger generations say it’s Tom Brady, or Drew Brees, the older generations say it’s Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, or any number of NFL players. I wanted to enlighten a few people with a new name, a name anyone who watches the Canadian Football League. A five-time CFL all-star, three-time league MVP, all time leader in completions (5892), touchdown passes (455), and the biggest one, most yards thrown in professional football with 79,816 yards. His name is familiar to the folk in La Puente, California where his high school retired is number 13. He’s an icon in Canada and his name is Anthony Calvillo. The former Montreal Alouettes star not only set records in the CFL but in college as well, in his senior year at Utah State he set the school record for most passing yards in a season with 3,260 yards, and his school record with 5 touchdown passes in a game. He did that twice, he also lead that team to it’s first Big West Conference championship since 1979. He also threw for 386 yards and 3 touchdowns to get MVP honours in the Las Vegas Bowl that season, the first bowl win in school history. He went undrafted in the NFL and in 1994 with the CFL expansion, and first professional team in the city, Las Vegas Posse, (sorry Golden Knights, the CFL beat you by 23 years). After a year the team folded and in the dispersal draft, Calvillo was selected first by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. In Hamilton he was the backup to another CFL Hall of Fame member in Matt Dunigan. It wasn’t until 1998 when Calvillo signed with the Montreal Alouettes, the rest is history. Amassing his records and picking up 3 Grey Cup titles in the process, and would’ve had more if it wasn’t so difficult to win the Grey Cup. He should be among the legends in Canton, Ohio as one of the greatest players in professional football history, and the hands down best quarterback in professional football.