While many in Burns Lake recognize local business owner Wayne Brown as the former high school arts teacher, few know that he was once part of an undefeated football team in Ontario. The 1962-63 Chatham Collegiate Institute Cougars (CCI Cougars) made history last month by being inducted into the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame.
Brown recently travelled to Chatham, Ontario, where he and his teammates were honoured on Sept. 26. They became the first football team to be inducted into the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame.
Now 79, Brown described the event as “pretty exciting,” as it took him back in time—specifically, 62 years.
“Out of the team, which consisted of about 39 members, 22 of us were still alive to go back and get inducted into the Hall of Fame,” Brown said.
The team's remarkable achievement was that they played the entire season without allowing a single point against them.
“We had three or four undefeated streaks, four years in a row [1960-63] that CCI Cougars was the champions for Southwestern Ontario Secondary Schools Athletic Association (SWOSSAA).”
In 1962, the CCI Cougars finished the regular season and playoffs with a perfect 7-0 record, outscoring their opponents a remarkable 196-0. They also remained undefeated in regular season and ‘A’ playoff games from ’61 to ’63.
“We had an impressive undefeated [streak] plus no points had been scored against us. So we went the entire season, including the playoffs, without anybody scoring against us. So I think we did pretty good on that,” he said.
After moving to Burns Lake in 1974, Brown taught art at the local high school and then at the College of New Caledonia.
However, his biggest disappointment upon arriving was the lack of a football team.
“They didn't have much as far as any sports go,” he said. “I was really hoping to coach a football team. They did not have football here and still don’t have one.”
Instead, he ended up coaching basketball.
“Fortunately, they do have soccer now, but that's not the same as football,” he remarked.
Reflecting on the experience of reuniting with his former teammates in Ontario, Brown said they were all excited to see each other and to notice how they’ve changed over the years. He also discovered a couple of his former teammates live in B.C.
“I just feel so honoured to think that I had a group of guys that I enjoyed playing football with and having such a great season that we scored 196 goals or points against all our competition, and nobody scored against us.”
Brown added it was a privilege for him and his teammates to be recognized, and felt honoured to have even the memories of those who have passed acknowledged.
