In 2015 Stu Lang entered his sixth season as the head coach of the Guelph Gryphon Football Team. He took over the program in 2010 from Kyle Walters who was hired by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL to coach their Special Teams and Running Backs. He is now their General Manager. Last year, Lang coached the Gryphons to their second in a row best ever season record of 7 and 1. Over the past two years, Guelph has won more league games than any other OUA team. In 2012, Lang finished second in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Coach of the Year voting.
In 2009 Lang served as the receivers’ coach with the Gryphons, coaching a veteran group that included OUA all-star Jedd Gardner, an eventual draft pick of the Toronto Argos. To date he has helped build a state-of-the-art High Performance Training Centre in Alumni Stadium for his football players, plus a new artificial turf football field, video display scoreboard and field lighting to go along with a Field House. It has been Lang’s goal from the start to build the best football program in the OUA. Once again the facilities, academic support, and his coaching staff have attracted a talented group of rookies from across Canada.
Prior to coming to Guelph, Lang spent two seasons as the receivers’ coach at Upper Canada College (UCC), his former high school. During that time he was Chair of their Athletic Task Force, and a member of the Principal’s Advisory Committee and Financial Committee. He also donated the funds to build a new SAQ (Speed, Agility and Quickness) Performance Centre for their athletes. In 2013 he created the Lang Scholarship Program at UCC.
During his university playing days, Lang was a four year starter with the Queen’s Golden Gaels in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS). He was a member of the 1970 Yates Cup Championship team, losing in the western playoffs to the University of Manitoba, the eventual Vanier Cup winners. During his time at Queen’s he was also a three year starter with the Gaels Hockey Team and the runner-up for the 1974 Jenkins Trophy award, an honour bestowed to the University’s top athletic and scholastic student-athlete. Lang earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Queen’s in 1974. He was also named to the Queen’s Sports Hall of Fame.
Lang also had a very successful playing career for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1974 to 1981. He played slot-back for eight seasons, going to the Grey Cup seven times and winning the championship five times (1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, and 1981). He was named the team’s 1974 Rookie of the Year and received the Canada Packers Award for Fan’s Favourite Player in 1977. In 1976 he played in the CFL All-Star game.
In addition to his on-field experiences and connection to the University of Guelph football team, Lang brings with him a wealth of leadership and strategic management skills as a former senior business executive from CCL Industries. Most recently, from 2002 – 2005, he served as the President of CCL Label, Europe and is still active as a Director on the company’s Board. CCL Industries Inc., a Lang family controlled business, is a world-class specialty packaging company headquartered in Toronto.
Lang and his wife, Kim, live on a horse farm in Puslinch, Ontario, just outside Guelph. Kim serves on the Pet Trust Board, the fundraising arm of the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), and is the 2014 Artistic Director of the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival.
