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39-863: The trophy was originally presented to the player who best exemplified skill, sportsmanship, and courage in the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union . In 1973, it became the award to the Most Outstanding Player of the Canadian Football League's East Division and either the winner of this trophy or the winner of the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy from the West would go on to win the CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award . The trophy

78-637: The American Football League rose in popularity. During this time, the IRFU became increasingly professionalized. However, in order to keep up the pretense of amateurism, players were usually paid under the table. By the mid-1950s, the IRFU had dropped all pretense of amateurism, and it was clear that it was a far higher calibre competition than the ORFU (the Quebec union had faded from the scene in

117-650: The Canadian Football League , its counterpart being the West Division . Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues. The four teams in the division are the Toronto Argonauts , Hamilton Tiger-Cats , Montreal Alouettes , and Ottawa Redblacks . Several now-defunct teams have also played in the East Division including two teams from

156-770: The Canadian Football League East Division 's Most Outstanding Player was not the winner of the Jeff Russel Memorial Trophy , which was a separate award. The Most Outstanding Player in the Quebec University Football League (QUFL). Beginning in 2003, the winner is awarded the Jeff Russel Memorial Trophy. Interprovincial Rugby Football Union The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of

195-869: The Hamilton Tiger-Cats , in 1869. This was followed by the formation of the Montreal Foot Ball Club in 1872, the Toronto Argonaut Football Club in 1873 and the Ottawa Football Club (the future Ottawa Rough Riders) in 1876. The first organized competitions were formed in 1883, when the Ontario Rugby Football Union (ORFU) and the Quebec Rugby Football Union (QRFU) were founded. At the time

234-913: The Ottawa Renegades commenced play in the nation's capital. With the suspension of the Renegades in 2006, the Blue Bombers again were transferred to the East Division. With the East Division Ottawa Redblacks beginning play in 2014, the Blue Bombers moved back to the West Division again. Prior to 1954, Eastern clubs dominated the Grey Cup. For most of the modern era, however, the West has generally been on an equal footing and in recent decades has often dominated

273-401: The cross-over rule was in force, while four teams qualified in 1994 when there were six teams. In 1997, the present cross-over rule was implemented, allowing the fourth place team from one division to take the play-off place of the third place team in the other division, should the fourth place team earn a better record. From 1997 to 2016, the fourth place team in the West has taken advantage of

312-519: The snap-back system of play used in Ontario. In December 1906, The Gazette reported that a proposal originated from Ottawa for the ORFU and the QRFU to merge, which would allow for higher calibre of play and create rivalries. Hewitt helped organize the meeting which established the IRFU in 1907. In 1907, in a meeting organized by Hewitt, the ORFU's Hamilton Tigers and Toronto Argonauts joined with

351-466: The 1980s, however, rising player salaries had caused considerable financial losses for some teams. In an effort to bolster the league's stability, the CFL decided to proceed with a complete merger of the two regional conferences. In 1981, the CFL's two conferences agreed to a full merger and a full interlocking schedule. Although the EFC has carried on since that time as the CFL's East Division, full authority

390-612: The 1982 season as the Montreal Concordes . The new owners restored the Alouettes name in 1986, but this franchise folded shortly before the start of the 1987 regular season. Consequently, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers , the easternmost team in the West Division, were transferred to the East Division to keep the divisions equal in size. This led to the first "all-Western" Grey Cup in 1988 when the Blue Bombers won

429-595: The Burnside Rules were in force throughout Ontario and Quebec . Although substantial changes (such as forward passing ) were still to come, modern Canadian football would ultimately evolve from John Thrift Meldrum Burnside's code. W. A. Hewitt was vice-president of the ORFU, and represented the Toronto Argonauts. He sought for ORFU to have uniform rules of play with the CRU, with a preference to use

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468-625: The CRU champion. The trophy, which became known as the Grey Cup , was not won by an IRFU club until the Hamilton Tigers captured the trophy in 1913. Following the 1915 season, the IRFU suspended competition because of World War I , and did not fully resume until 1920. From 1925 until 1953, IRFU teams dominated Canadian football, winning 18 of the 26 Grey Cups its clubs contested in that timespan (the IRFU suspended operations from 1942 through 1944 because of World War II ). During this period,

507-829: The East Division championship for the first time. In 1994, the CFL decided to expand further into the United States after admitting the Sacramento Gold Miners as the first U.S. team a year earlier. This led to the addition of the two American -based teams in the East, the Shreveport Pirates and a team in Baltimore that would eventually be called the Stallions after the NFL successfully prevented

546-491: The East Division that same year. In 2003, it was re-established for recognizing the players in the Quebec conference of U Sports football and the winner is nominated for the national Hec Crighton Trophy . Awarded to the player best exemplifying skill, sportsmanship, and courage until 1972, then to The Most Outstanding Player in the East Conference/Division from 1973 until 1993. Note: Prior to 1973

585-403: The East in the regular season. From 1954 to 2016, the East won 27 Grey Cups and lost 35. This is not counting the 1995 season. Two of the East's Grey Cup wins were by the Blue Bombers, who have played in the West for most of their history. Since 1955, three teams have competed in the East playoffs in most seasons. Only the top two teams qualified for the post-season in 1986 when an earlier form of

624-458: The Grey Cup on a regular basis during this decade. Following the 1954 season, the ORFU finally stopped challenging for the Grey Cup, thus making the game a contest between the champions of the IRFU in the East and the WIFU in the West. Although it was another four years before the amateurs were formally locked out of Grey Cup play, this marks the start of the modern era of Canadian football. In 1956,

663-642: The IRFU and WIFU agreed to form the Canadian Football Council . In 1958, the CFC withdrew from the CRU and renamed itself the Canadian Football League . The new league assumed control of the Grey Cup, though it had been the de facto professional championship for four years before then. The IRFU changed its name to the Eastern Football Conference in 1960. In 1961, the EFC agreed to a partial interlocking schedule with what

702-582: The QRFU's Montreal Foot Ball Club and Ottawa Rough Riders (Ottawa had been moving back and forth between the two unions over the past few years) to form an elite competition, the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (also known as the "Big Four"). Montreal won the first championship that year, taking home the James Dixon Trophy. In 1909 Lord Grey , the governor general of Canada , donated a trophy to be awarded to

741-584: The United States and a large number of teams that have played in Hamilton, Montreal, and Ottawa prior to the current teams from those cities. Additionally, current West Division team, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have, in the past, spent a number of seasons in the East over three separate stints. The first organized football club in Canada was the Hamilton Foot Ball Club , a predecessor of

780-718: The calibre of play in the IRFU was recognized as being on par with any league in North America. The Big Four attracted considerable interest in the United States and even had its games televised by the National Broadcasting Company for a time during the 1950s (in fact, these games were more widely available than their NFL counterparts). This interest eventually declined as the National Football League gained prominence and

819-472: The cross-over rule nine times, including four times when there were equal teams in the divisions. However, it was not until 2008 that a West team ( Edmonton ) advanced to the East Final, and only four other teams (the 2009 BC Lions , 2016 Eskimos , 2017 Saskatchewan Roughriders and 2019 Eskimos ) have won a game since. Neither crossover team won more than one playoff game. Since the implementation of

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858-479: The crossover rule, the closest an East team has come to earning a cross-over berth in the West playoffs was in 2001 when fourth place Toronto finished one point behind third place BC . This reflects Winnipeg Blue Bombers , Baltimore Football Club , and Shreveport Pirates results only while in the East Division. Osgoode Hall Osgoode Hall is a landmark building in downtown Toronto , Ontario, Canada. The original 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 -storey building

897-551: The early part of the century), the only purely amateur union still competing for the Grey Cup. Moreover, the Western Interprovincial Football Union had been gaining strength over the last two decades, and its level of play was almost on par with that of the IRFU. The WIFU's champion had faced the Big Four's champion in the Grey Cup final every season since 1945, and it proved capable of winning

936-521: The east. The portico of Osgoode Hall's east wing was built at the head of Toronto's York Street to serve as a terminating vista , though it is now obscured by trees planted on the building's lawn. Osgoode Hall, together from which the Osgoode Hall Law School (affiliated as a professional school at York University ), received its name in honour of William Osgoode, which was lent in turn to the adjacent Osgoode subway station . Between

975-585: The grounds of the hall. Despite this, an incident in the 1950s occurred in which students unsuccessfully attempted to pass a cow through one of the gates. The gates were likely due to Victorian architectural fashion, rather than wandering cattle. Two libraries are housed within Osgoode Hall: the Great Library of the Law Society of Ontario and a smaller library for judges. The Great Library

1014-534: The hall. Today, the building is jointly owned by the Law Society and the Government of Ontario . From 1855 to 1857, the building was refurbished and enlarged again, according to a design by the firm Cumberland and Storm, to accommodate courts with the original 1829 building becoming the east wing. From 1880 to 1891, the building was again expanded twice in order to accommodate its law school. The building

1053-669: The province at the time. The original building was constructed between 1829 and 1832 in the late Georgian Palladian and Neoclassical styles. It currently houses the Ontario Court of Appeal , the Divisional Court of the Superior Court of Justice , the offices of the Law Society of Ontario and the Great Library of the Law Society . The 6-acre (2.4 ha) site at the corner of Lot Street ( Queen Street West today) and College Avenue ( University Avenue today)

1092-474: The rebellions taking place in 1837-8 until 1843, the hall was used as troop barracks . When the Law Society regained possession in 1844, an expansion was designed by Henry Bowyer Lane ; the West Wing and Library were built, with two domes (later removed) over the library to connect the two wings. In 1846 the Law Society entered into an agreement with the government to house the province's Superior Court at

1131-488: The sport was generally called rugby union or rugby football because its rules were similar to rugby union's, although this would change drastically in the coming decades. The following year, the two provincial unions would form the Canadian Rugby Football Union (CRFU), with Montreal winning the first national championship later that year. The CRFU collapsed before the decade was out, but

1170-591: The team from using the name "Colts". Baltimore would go on to win the East Division championship in 1994. For the 1995 season, all eight Canadian teams competed in the North Division, while the five American teams formed the South Division. Prior to the 1996 season however, all of the American clubs disbanded. The owner of one, the Grey Cup champion Stallions, moved his organization to Montreal as

1209-534: The third and current incarnation of the Alouettes. However, while the Alouettes are now officially reckoned as having suspended operations from 1987 to 1995, they do not acknowledge their past as the Stallions. The pre-1987 divisional alignment was restored, only to see Winnipeg return to the East after one season when the Ottawa Rough Riders folded. The Blue Bombers returned to the West in 2002 after

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1248-409: Was acquired by the Law Society in 1828. At the time, the location was on the northwest edge of the city, which has since grown around the building. It was originally bounded on its north side by Osgoode Street, and on its east side by a street that would eventually be known as Chestnut Street. The former no longer exists, and the latter now stops at Armoury Street, as Nathan Phillips Square now lies to

1287-567: Was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1979, and by the City of Toronto under the Ontario Heritage Act in 1990. Despite the expansions, the hall presents a unified design in the late Palladian style. The iron fence surrounding the lawns of Osgoode Hall has become a landmark in itself. Its distinctive iron gates are narrow and restrictive; it is a long-standing myth that they were designed to keep livestock out of

1326-466: Was designed by Cumberland and Storm (1857–1860) and features an ornate plaster ceiling, cork floors, an iron spiral staircase and etched glass windows. A War Memorial by Frances Loring (1887–1968), sculpted in 1928, was added to the Great Library in honour of Ontario lawyers and law students who were killed during the First World War . Behind the Great Library (and accessible through it)

1365-693: Was donated to the Canadian Rugby Union in 1928, to honour former Montreal player, Jeff Russel , who was killed in 1926, while repairing damaged electric lines for the Montreal Power Company . The trophy was officially retired in 1994 at the request of the Russel family, with the Terry Evanshen Trophy replacing the Jeff Russel Memorial Trophy as the official trophy to be awarded to the Most Outstanding Player of

1404-681: Was known by then as the Western Football Conference . Although the EFC was part of the CFL, its merger with the WFC was only a partial merger for the next two decades. During this time, the conferences maintained considerable autonomy, much like Major League Baseball 's two leagues operated during the 20th century. For example, the East had a different playoff format until 1973 and a shorter schedule until 1974. During this time, attendances increased substantially for most clubs and television revenue gained prominence and importance. By

1443-527: Was now vested within the CFL. The decision to create a full interlocking schedule meant that the teams were playing fewer divisional games, consequently the league decided to add two extra divisional games per team, thus extending the schedule to 18 games per team starting in 1986. The East Division has undergone major changes since the dissolution of the EFC. Following the 1981 season the Montreal Alouettes folded. They were refounded in time for

1482-592: Was re-organized as the Canadian Rugby Union (CRU) in 1891, with Osgoode Hall winning the first CRU championship the following year. The turn of the 20th century was marked by fundamental changes in the rules of the game. The ORFU was the first competition to adopt the Burnside Rules , which were to revolutionize the Canadian game. The QRFU and CRU initially resisted the changes, but by 1906

1521-442: Was started in 1829 and finished in 1832 from a design by John Ewart and William Warren Baldwin . The structure is named for William Osgoode , the first Chief Justice of Upper Canada (now the province of Ontario). It originally served to house the regulatory body for lawyers in Ontario along with its law school, formally established as Osgoode Hall Law School in 1889, which was the only recognized professional law school for

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