In the CFL, there have been some amazing mustaches. With so many ‘staches in the leagues history, I found it hard to come up with a way to showcase and celebrate them. I thought of doing through the decades, most recent examples, or a top five list. Instead of those I landed on one mustache from each teams history. We have mustaches from all sorts of generations. We even have some active players on the list. Now let’s go down the list starting with the BC Lions.
BC Lions – Glen Jackson
Glen Jackson may have the best mustache on this list. The style of the handlebar is not as common as it once was, but there is no denying that Jackson rocked it. The BC native played for 12 years for his hometown team the BC Lions, from 1976 to 1987. Jackson was able to make it to two Grey Cup finals and won one championship. He was a six time Western All-Star and was selected to the 50th anniversary BC Lions team. On top of that, he is part of the BC Lions Wall of Fame. Glen Jackson was a great BC Lion with an outstanding stache.
Calgary Stampeders – Spencer Wilson
Spencer Wilson has an amazing stache. While the man can grow a mustache, he had to fight for his time in the CFL. He was signed by the Stampeders in 2011 and was on the practice squad for most of that season. In 2012, he was able to play in 10 regular season games and then 12 games plus one postseason game in 2013.
His career really took off in 2014, where he played 18 games at right tackle and two post season games and captured his first of two Grey Cups with Calgary. Wilson would add another Grey Cup in 2018 while being an All-Star in 2015 and 2016. His career ended when he was released by the Alouettes in 2020. Spencer Wilson had a great career and rocked a great stache.
Edmonton Elks – Dan Kepley
Dan Kepley was a beast of a player, a beast of a coach, and has a hell of a stache. He played from 1975 to 1984 as a linebacker for the Eskimos. Kepley was on some amazing Eskimos teams. So amazing that they won six Grey Cups, in 1975 and then from 1978 to 1982 they went on a streak of winning it all.
Kepley was a huge part of the team. He won three CFL Most Outstanding Defensive Player Awards and was a five time All-Star. In 2002, he became an assistant coach for Edmonton and went on to add two more Grey Cups to his resume. Eight Grey Cups, Three Defensive Player Awards, three time All-Star, and to cap it off he was inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in 1996. Amazing player, even better mustache.
Hamilton Tigercats – Mike Filer
Mike Filer was more known for his massive beard but when he had a mustache it was amazing. Filer was drafted by the Stampeders in 2012, but never played for them. He signed in Hamilton and was able to carve out a decent career. He played in nine seasons for the Tigercats and appeared in two Grey Cup Finals. Unfortunately, he was not able to lift the Grey Cup losing to Stampeders and Blue Bombers. He retired after being suspended by the league. The beard and mustache will be remembered.
Montreal Alouettes – Miki Ah You
Miki Ah You had quite the stache and quite the career. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in 1972, but elected to play for the Alouettes. He said the Patriots wanted him to play linebacker and Montreal would let him play his natural position as a defensive end. Ah You would go on to play nine seasons for Montreal and won two Grey Cups. Miki would also win Grey Cup MVP (Defence) and All-Star nods throughout his career. In 1982, he left for the United States Football League. He made an impression on the MVP and had a killer mustache while doing it.
Ottawa Redblacks – Tony Gabriel
Tony Gabriel was a legend on the field. For his play and his stache. He played for decade, splitting his time between the Tigercats and the Ottawa Rough Riders. His tenure in Hamilton was short but sweet. His first season was average. The next year though he was able to help his team to a Grey Cup win. During his time in Ottawa, he had five seasons with over 1000 receiving yards. His time in Ottawa was his best. He was a four time Most Outstanding Canadian, ’78 Most Outstanding Player, and a Grey Cup championship. He was a menace on the field and was very decorated player by the end of his career.
Saskatchewan Roughriders – Roger Aldag
Roger Aldag may not have all the awards, but he has the mustache. He played for the Roughriders from 1976 to 1992. He was a CFL All-Star from 1986-1990 and did help bring Saskatchewan a Grey Cup in 1989. While all that is great, that is not what he will be rememebered most for. Other than his stache, he will be remembered for holdng the games played record for the Roughriders. 271 regular season and 5 playoff games. He was a key player for Saskatchewan during his career.
Toronto Argonauts – A.J. Ouellette
Now we have the first active player. Ouellette does not currently play for the Argonauts, but he still has the best stache from the Argos. While he may have a big beard to go with it, it is still impressive. He had a few short stints in the NFL before making his way up north. During his time in Toronto, he was mainly the backup, but when Andrew Harris went down,
Ouellette stepped in and was quite good. He was a two time CFL East All-Star in 2022 and 2023. In 2022, he was apart of the Argos team that beat the juggernaut Blue Bombers team to capture the Grey Cup. While his tenure in Toronto is over, he made his mark and had an amazing beard mustache combo.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers – Chris Streveler
Chris Streveler may be the most successful player on this list when it comes to time in the NFL. He brought that beard to four different teams in the NFL before returning to the Blue Bombers this season. In Arizona, he was able to do exactly what made him successful in the CFL, run through guys.
He may be a quarterback, but he could run and set up running players quite well. It is what the Bombers a handful to deal with in 2019. His time in Winnipeg was quite good and his return was welcomed by fans this season. He is most remembered by the shirtless fur coat photos from the parade in 2019. He is also known for having just a great beard.
Make sure you keep coming back to see the latest mustache article this month. The schedule is down below and if you missed any choose from the green leagues to check out that Movember article.
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