Despite a voice altered by cancer, Jacques Dussault remains open. The man nicknamed “The Coach” has refused to make much of his upcoming induction into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame and incidentally admits he was afraid of dying.

“It’s intense, this illness, he’s slipping. I’m doing a little better now, but I’m slowly recovering from this tonsil cancer.”

The 73-year-old couldn’t paint a better picture, having once been confined to a wheelchair to get around.

“The worst thing is the side effects,” says Dussault. I also had a reaction to the chemotherapy, this treatment did not help me. I was plugged in everywhere, I looked like a computer.

A representative introduction

The trainer talks about life’s trials or his successful career, always maintaining a touch of humour.

Dussault, who now lives “in the woods” in Val-David, will be in Montreal starting Friday night to attend a cocktail party being organized by the Alouettes to pay tribute to five future signings who have shaped the organization. Larry Smith, a master builder like Dussault, will be there, as will former players John Bowman, Josh Bourke and Lloyd Fairbanks. On Saturday night, these football greats will be showcased as part of the halftime game between the Alouettes and the BC Lions.

In the case of Dussault, his entry into the Hall of Fame is of particular significance for Quebec football as he continues to be a true pioneer. He also became the first Franco-Canadian to be included in the master builder category.

“It’s not something that excites me,” Dussault notes of the honor he’s receiving. I’m not being presumptuous in saying this, but being the first Quebecer to achieve something in the world of football is nothing new to me either.

tear down doors

Originally from the Quebec region, the coach was not even 30 years old when he found himself on the coaching staff of the University of Albany in upstate New York, despite a poor knowledge of English.

“At the time it was very important for me to be up to the task, so as not to close the door in case another francophone wanted to follow suit later,” he says.

This experience in the United States then served him to become the coach of the Alouettes and the Concordes in the early 1990s and eventually the head coach of the Montreal Machine in the World League of American Football.

“I’m not a careerist, I’ve always made instinctive decisions,” explained Dussault, who preferred to work extensively with young people at different schools.

From 2002 to 2005 he laid the foundation for the football program at the Université de Montréal Carabins.

“It was a good challenge and I had no intention of letting the carabins go in those years,” said Dussault. I would have received a management call in the NFL in that time period before I was even there.

In his way

Honestly, The Coach has always done things his way. Last Saturday he was present again for the Carabins’ opening game at CEPSUM. Due to ill health, Dussault had left the door open to possibly quit at halftime, but he stayed to watch the University of Montreal beat the McGill Redmen 43-11. Here, too, it was his great passion for football that prevailed.

“Sometimes when you’re young you think it only happens to other people,” he adds, reflecting on his battle with cancer. But that is not true.”

The official induction of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame will take place on Friday, September 15 in Hamilton. Dussault intends to be there and, as he specifies, to begin his speech in French.

“It will be my pleasure to remind the rest of Canada that football is going well in Quebec,” he concludes with humor.