A name very familiar to the Ottawa football community, Carl Tolmie will don the headsets for uOttawa this season as the offensive line coach. Tolmie accepted the full-time coaching position earlier this week and is helping to prepare for the team's post-exam spring practices.
"We liked Carl's local connections and he is well-respected in the Ottawa community," said Gee-Gees head coach Jamie Barresi, who also added defensive coordinator Jean-Vincent Posy-Audette this off-season.
Tolmie has most recently been coaching with the Myers Riders, winning two provincial championships with a 32-1 record over three seasons in the OFVL. He also has CIS experience on the sidelines of Sherbrooke, Montreal, and Guelph and is tremendously active in coaches' and players' clinics for offensive line.
"Everything about me is offensive line," says Tolmie in an emphatic but friendly tone. "It's a big time passion for me. Over the past couple of years, I have broadened my knowledge of the game and have a deeper understanding of how the o-line intertwines with everything."
Tolmie, who grew up in Hull, was a Guest Coach for Team Canada Football in 2005, Team Quebec in 2007, coached in the Ottawa Athletes in Action All-Star games in 2010 and 2011 and the CIS East West bowl in 2007 and 2008. He coached the Ottawa Jr. Riders to the championship game in 2009.
Coming up in May, he will attend the annual NFL coaches clinic in Cincinnati as he has done each spring during his coaching career. The newest Gee-Gee was a member of the Carleton Ravens during the final years of the program before its absence, but noted that injuries kept him from the field.
"I've wanted to coach here for a long time," added Tolmie, adding that the timing was now right within his family for him to return to a full-time coaching role. "When Jamie called me up I was very excited. I'd really like to thank all the coaches that have given me an opportunity to hang around them and learn from them."
