The 1976 Ottawa Rough Riders finished in first place in the Eastern Conference with a 9–6–1 record and won the 64th Grey Cup. This would be the last time in their franchise history that they would win the Grey Cup. The Ottawa Redblacks would subsequently win the 104th Grey Cup game at the conclusion of the 2016 CFL season, ending a 40-year Grey Cup drought for the City of Ottawa, which begun subsequent to their Grey Cup victory in 1976 (this ended what was arguably the longest Grey Cup drought in the CFL, though the City of Ottawa was without a CFL team between 1997 and 2001 and again between 2006 and 2013).
Offseason
1976 CFL draft In the first round of the 1976 CFL Draft, Ottawa selected Bill Hatanaka.Who's Who in Canadian Sport, Volume 4, p.307, Bob Ferguson, Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd., Markham, ON and Allston, MA, Bob O'Billovich was hired as an assistant coach.Who's Who in Canadian Sport, Volume 4, p.329, Bob Ferguson, Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd., Markham, ON and Allston, MA,
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record A June 28 vs. Edmonton Eskimos W 40–25 1–0 B July 5 vs. Montreal Alouettes L 22–26 1–1 C July 8 at Calgary Stampeders L 37–39 1–2 D July 14 at Toronto Argonauts W 20–9 2–2
Regular season
Standings + Eastern Football Conference Team GP W L T PF PA Pts Ottawa Rough Riders 16 9 6 1 411 346 19 Hamilton Tiger-Cats 16 8 8 0 269 348 16 Montreal Alouettes 16 7 8 1 305 273 15Toronto Argonauts 16 7 8 1 289 354 15
Schedule Week Game Date Opponent Result Record 1 1 July 21 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 42–16 1–0 2 2 July 27 vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers W 38–27 2–0 3 3 Aug 3 vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders L 16–29 2–1 4 4 Aug 11 at Toronto Argonauts W 27–16 3–1 4 5 Aug 16 vs. Montreal Alouettes W 45–9 4–1 5 6 Aug 21 at Edmonton Eskimos W 20–18 5–1 6 7 Aug 24 at BC Lions L 11–23 5–2 7 8 Sept 1 vs. Toronto Argonauts W 40–27 6–2 8 9 Sept 11 vs. Montreal Alouettes W 21–13 7–2 9 10 Sept 19 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats L 21–28 7–3 10 11 Sept 26 at Montreal Alouettes L 2–23 7–4 11 12 Oct 2 at Toronto Argonauts T 20–20 7–4–1 12 Bye 13 13 Oct 16 vs. Calgary Stampeders W 37–36 8–4–1 14 14 Oct 24 at Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 48–10 9–4–1 15 15 Oct 31 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats L 6–25 9–5–1 16 16 Nov 6 at Montreal Alouettes L 17–26 9–6–1
Postseason
Playoffs Round Date Opponent Result Record East Final Nov 21 vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats W 17–15 1–0 Grey Cup Nov 28 vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders W 23–20 2–0
Grey Cup In the final minute, Saskatchewan punted into a strong wind. Ottawa would have the ball on the Saskatchewan 35-yard line. With 44 seconds left, Ottawa quarterback Tom Clements passed to tight end Tony Gabriel, and Ottawa was at Saskatchewan's 20 yard line.Weird Facts about Canadian Football, p.163, Overtime Books, First Printing 2009, The next pass would win the game, as Gabriel caught the ball in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. Teams 1 Q 2 Q 3 Q 4 Q Final Saskatchewan Roughriders 0 17 3 0 20 Ottawa Rough Riders 10 0 3 10 23CFL.ca - Official Site of the Canadian Football League
Player stats
Passing Player Attempts Completions Percentage Yards Touchdowns InterceptionsTom Clements327 19659.928562013Condredge Holloway10659 55.797396
Receiving Player Games played Receptions Yards Average Long TouchdownsJeff Avery16 21 33816.1622Tony Gabriel16 72 132018.36214Art Green 53 5089.6312
Rushing Player Rushes Yards Average Touchdowns LongArt Green23412575.41369 Roster 1976 Ottawa Rough Riders final rosterQuarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
K/P
Tight ends
Offensive linemen T G C T G
Defensive linemen DE DT DE DT DE DE DT DT Linebackers
FB
Defensive backs
QB
Injured list DB
Italics indicate International player
Awards and honours CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award – Tony Gabriel (TE) Grey Cup Most Valuable Player, Tom Clements, (QB) Tom Clements, All-Eastern QuarterbackCanadian Football Hall of Fame - Tom Clements Art Green, Running Back, CFL All-Star Tony Gabriel, Tight End, CFL All-Star Mark Kosmos, Linebacker, CFL All-Star Jim Reid, Fullback, Rookie of the Year Award
References