Tony Proudfoot John A . " Tony " Proudfoot ( 10 September 1949 – 30 December 2010 ) was an All - Star defensive back in the Canadian Football League , teacher , coach , broadcaster and journalist . He was a Grey Cup champion twice as a player , and twice as special consultant to Montreal Alouettes Head Coach Marc Trestman in 2009 and 2010 . In 2007 Proudfoot was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis , a motor neurone disease for which there is no cure . He wrote regular updates on his deterioration in the " Montreal Gazette " . The courage , grace and determination during his illness was widely admired . He founded the " Tony Proudfoot Fund for ALS Research " at the ALS Society of Quebec , which raised over $ 500 , 000 for research into the disease . Early life . Proudfoot was born in Winnipeg , Manitoba , and later moved to Pointe - Claire , Quebec . He attended John Rennie High School , graduating in 1966 . Proudfoot went on to study at the University of New Brunswick and played as a linebacker for the University ' s football team . In 1970 , he was nominated for the Hec Crighton Trophy , awarded annually to Canada ' s outstanding intercollegiate football player . In 1971 , Proudfoot graduated with a Bachelor ' s degree in Physical Education . CFL career . Proudfoot was a Montreal Alouettes draft pick in 1971 , and played for them for nine seasons ( 1971 – 79 , 107 games ) , including five Grey Cup championship games . Proudfoot initially played as a linebacker , and was cut in that role . However , he was re - signed in 1973 and converted to a defensive back . He played on the Alouette ' s 1974 Grey Cup winning team . After missing much of the 1976 season because of injury , he moved to defensive half - back . With time , Proudfoot and his fellow players became so experienced that they made the calls on the field ; they signalled their plans to defensive coordinator Dick Roach in case he had show to show that they were following his plans . He and the team partied extensively in the bars and restaurants of Crescent Street . In July 1977 , his coach Marv Levy described Proudfoot as a " very smart football player . . . [ who ] gets [ the ] very best out of himself " and who " isn ' t selfishly competing with his own teammates " . Proudfoot later reflected that his success in professional football was due to being able to work , learn , ask good questions and process information , as " I didn ' t have great ability " . During the " Ice Bowl " at Montreal ' s Olympic Stadium , the field was icy and very slippery . Before the game players from the Alouettes and their opponents , the Edmonton Eskimos tried various solutions to avoid falling , including broomball shoes , and various kinds of cleat s , but none were very effective . In the stadium just prior to the pre - game warm - up , Proudfoot saw a Bell Canada electrician with a staple gun , and tried firing staples into the tip of the cleats on his shoes . Over the course of the game , more and more of the Alouettes players followed suit . Proudfoot later recalled " With that little bit of a grip , it gave you extra confidence . We really knew we had something when Gerry Dattilio caught a short pass from Sonny Wade and ran right past Larry Highbaugh for a big gain . Gerry will tell you that he was not . . . well , he was not very fast . And Highbaugh was known as one of the fastest guys in the league . That ' s when we knew we had something . It was a big factor in that 41 - 6 win . Proudfoot was a CFL All - Star in 1977 and 1979 . He also played 3 seasons ( 1980 to 1982 , 41 games ) with the B . C . Lions . He retired from the CFL at the end of the 1982 season . Teaching , coaching and broadcasting . During his playing career , Proudfoot began teaching Physical Education at Dawson College in Montreal in 1978 , and continued to work for there for 30 years . In the years that followed , he also lectured in Exercise Science at Concordia University and Physical Education at McGill . Following his playing career , he received some coaching offers in the CFL , but decided to combine his teaching career , which provided financial stability , with coaching in Montreal . Proudfoot coached youth community teams and school teams in Pointe - Claire , Lower Canada College as well as the Junior Alouettes and the Junior Concordes . In summers , he worked as Waterfront Director at Camp Nominingue in the Laurentians from 1987 to 1995 . For four years , he served as Assistant Coach for the Concordia Stingers , including 1998 when the Stingers reached the Vanier Cup . Proudfoot also pursued further education , and received a master ' s degree in Sports Science at McGill University . When the Alouettes returned to the CFL in 1996 , Proudfoot became the team ' s radio analyst on CJAD . He served as assistant coach to Alouette head coach Rod Rust in 2001 , but continued to work as a broadcast analyst , never betraying the confidences of the team and its players during his broadcasts . In 2002 , Proudfoot began planning a book to examine about which traits and qualities result in greatness in a CFL player . Following several years of interviews , research and writing Proudfoot ' s book entitled " " First and Goal : The CFL and the Pursuit of Excellence " " was published in 2006 . The book includes insights from 44 coaches and players , including Dave Dickenson , Wally Buono and Geroy Simon . Jack Todd described the book as a " compelling analysis of all the factors that make the game entertaining and complex . " Proudfoot saw some of the injured from his office window during the 2006 Dawson College shooting , and descended with his first aid kit . While the shooting continued and until a stretcher arrived about 15 minutes later , he tended to a student who had been shot in the head . The young man survived . Illness and Death . Proudfoot first noticed that his speech was slurred while lecturing at Concordia University in February 2007 . A diagnosis of bulbar onset Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ( ALS ) , a motor neurone disorder , was made in early May at the Montreal Neurological Institute . The disease , also known as " Lou Gehrig ' s disease " , affects the nerve cells of the central nervous system leading to increasing paralysis of muscles that control voluntary movement and , eventually death . Listeners to his broadcasts as a football analyst on CJAD noticed his speech disorder , and some suggested that he was drunk . As a result in June 2007 , Proudfoot publicly revealed that he had ALS . Proudfoot commented at the time " I ' m a physical - education teacher . I ' ve spent my whole life being active , so it ' s ironic to now get a muscle disease . " In addition , Proudfoot noted the irony of a radio broadcaster and teacher losing his ability to speak . Proudfoot was widely admired for the lack of self - pity , bravery and humour he showed in facing the disease , and for using it as an opportunity for education and to raise money for research . He wrote that he had determined to " Suck it up and get on with life ( remember , no whining allowed ! ) and enjoy every day . " Proudfoot retired from Dawson College and Concordia University , but initially continued to work as a football analyst on CJAD . He served as a guest coach for the Alouettes during the team ' s 2008 training camp . He was invited back for 2009 despite no longer being able to communicate verbally , and instead used a small whiteboard on which he wrote notes or drew diagrams . In 2008 , Proudfoot was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame Football Reporters wing . To make his acceptance speech he used a speech generating device , an electronic communication aid that speaks aloud what the user has typed . In 2008 , Proudfoot was awarded an honorary doctorate of science ( kinesiology ) degree from the University of New Brunswick . In November 2010 , he accepted the CFL ' s Hugh Campbell Award for Distinguished Leadership before the Grey Cup Eastern Conference final in Montreal from CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon . He served as special consultant to the Alouettes ' head coach , Marc Trestman during the 2009 and 2010 CFL seasons , which were both Grey Cup winning seasons for the team . He was given a Grey Cup ring in the spring of 2010 . After his diagnosis Proudfoot worked to raise public awareness of ALS . He was interviewed regularly by radio , TV and print media across Canada . With the ALS Society of Quebec , he raised funds for ALS , including setting up the " Tony Proudfoot Fund for ALS research " . The funds provide support to ALS patients and their families as well as , the Tony Proudfoot Post - Doctoral Fellowships in ALS Research at the Montreal Neurological Institute ( MNI ) at McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre . Alouettes such as Anthony Calvillo , Ben Cahoon , Scott Flory and others participated in the fundraising events . Davis Sanchez , a B . C . Lion cornerback and a former Alouette , donated a game cheque to the fund in honour of his former mentor in during his time with the Als . By December 2010 , the fund had raised $ 500 , 000 . Beginning in 2007 , Proudfoot wrote a series of articles about his triumphs and challenges with the disease in the " Montreal Gazette " . In December 2010 the newspaper published an emotional farewell address from Proudfoot , recapping previous articles he had written about his struggle with ALS and thanking supporters . In the article , he stated that it would be his last such piece before his death , which he felt was imminent . The same day , Dawson College announced that they would be naming their gyms the " Tony Proudfoot Gymnasium . " The college cited " his long service to Dawson College , his careers in professional football and education , his life - saving heroics during the Dawson shooting and his establishment of the fund for ALS research . " Proudfoot was married and had two daughters and a son . Following his diagnosis , the two children who had moved away from Montreal returned to the city . Proudfoot moved to The West Island Palliative Care Residence on 28 December 2010 , and died two days later at the age of 61 . A final " Montreal Gazette " column written by Proudfoot and published after his death , expressed his gratitude for his life , family , friends and the care he had received , and his pride that he had fought the illness with determination . Following his death , his brain was donated to research in sports - related brain damage . His brain , unlike others , showed no evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy .