ARGONAUTS.CA STAFF
Overcast skies bogged down the Toronto skyline above Exhibition Stadium during a chilly afternoon East Semi-Final match between the Argos and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Argos, picked as heavy favourites to take the game, were in a state of shock after falling to a 14-0 first quarter deficit.
In need of a spark and in the shadow of their own goalpost, the Double Blue looked to their workhorse RB Bill Symons.
CLICK HERE to watch Symons’ record setting run versus the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 1968 East Semi-Final.
Symons lined up in a twin-backfield set with himself on the left and RB Jimmy Dillard to the right.
“Wally Gabler handed the ball off to me and I just followed big Charlie Bray”, recalled Symons in a 2007 recount. “Dillard got a good block, Bobby Taylor got a great block and after that it was just a foot race”.
Once past the initial crowd of defenders, Symons headed up the field along the far sidelines and gained separation from two Ticat defenders as he raced over midfield. He would scamper 100-yards to the endzone for a touchdown, bringing the sellout CNE crowd to its feet. The run still stands as the longest post-season rushing play from scrimmage in the CFL record books.
Was it a career-defining moment? It sure was. More importantly, however, it put the Argos on the scoreboard and the comeback was in full swing. Symons, Gabler and the rest of the 1968 Argos went on to defeat the Ticats 33-21 before falling to the Ottawa Roughriders in a two-point series the next week.
Symons and many of his former teammates will be on-hand this Friday night when the Argos turn-back-time to the 1960s for Retro Night. You can meet Bill, Coach Leo Cahill, Jim Stillwagon and Dave Raimey outside Gate 4 at Rogers Centre on Friday from 5:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.