Lui Passaglia’s formative football years growing up and maturing into a professional were spent while residing in North Burnaby.
Passaglia’s family moved to Burnaby in 1968 when he was 14 years old. His parents sent him to school to the other side of Boundary Road to Notre Dame Secondary where he played football for the Jugglers juggernaut coached by the legendary George Oswald (a 2012 Burnaby Sports Hall of Fame inductee) and Al Blesch. Passaglia led Notre Dame to three provincial championships (1968, 1970 and 1971) playing quarterback, safety, punter and place kicker.
After graduation he headed up Burnaby Mountain to play for Simon Fraser University where he played wide receiver to go along with his kicking duties. He also played on SFU’s soccer team. Passaglia’s pigskin exploits caught the eye of the local Canadian Football League team and the BC Lions chose him fifth overall in the 1976 CFL draft. He even caught a 10-yard touchdown pass in his first CFL game, July 22, 1976 against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
He remained living at home in Burnaby during his time at SFU and for the first four seasons with the Leos. A place to eat and sleep weren’t the only thing his parents provided him during those days.
“Their support is what allowed me to have a 25-year pro football career. We all shared in the ups and downs but no matter what they believed and stood by me,” Passaglia tells the Burnaby Sports Hall of Fame.
And what a fabulous football career it was.
All of Passaglia’s 25 CFL seasons were with the Lions. No one has played more CFL games than Passaglia’s 408, and no one has scored more points, 3,991, than Passaglia. He also holds CFL career records for most converts, 1,045 (he only missed three in his career), most field goals, 875, and best single season field goal percentage, 90.9 per cent in 2000 (his final season).
Some of those records — games played, points and field goals — are not only CFL career records but also unsurpassed professional football marks, including the NFL.
Additionally, Passaglia’s punting prowess (3,142 punts for 133,826 yards) is second all-time only to Winnipeg’s Bob Cameron, with 3,142 punts for 133,826 yards. Passaglia also holds the record for most points in a season, 210, and is tied for most field goals in a season with 48. Passaglia was a CFL Western Division all-star nine times and a CFL all-star four times.
Most importantly, he was a member of three Grey Cup championships for the Lions (1985, 1994 and 2000). Passaglia retired after kicking the winning points in the Lions’ 28-26 victory over the Montreal Alouettes in the 2000 Grey Cup. He also kicked the winning field goal on the last play of the 1994 Grey Cup when BC beat Baltimore 26-23 at BC Place. In 2007, the Lions named in the greatest play in the club’s history.
His storied gridiron exploits led him to induction into the BC Lions Wall of Fame, the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, the BC Sports Hall of Fame, and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame prior to being inducted into the Burnaby Sports Hall of Fame.
But it’s not the hardware, accolades and many lines in the CFL record book he remembers and cherishes the most.
“It would be the friendships I made through sports and being apart of the team championships in soccer (Sun Tournament of Champions and the 1973 Canada Summer Games in Burnaby), basketball (BC Junior high school championship) and football (BC high school and the Grey Cups ),” says Passaglia.
He’s been fortunate to have played for many coaches including CFL legends like Cal Murphy, Vic Rapp, Don Matthews, Bob O’Billovich, Dave Ritchie and Adam Rita. But he singles out a local legend that came before all of them for him.
“It is hard to pick out one but … There is one shout out though to George Oswald who coached me at Notre Dame High School who gave me many rides to and from practices/games. (He lived in North Burnaby too). I have never forgotten his generosity and his belief in me,” says Passaglia.
He harkens back to those early days in Burnaby when giving advice to young athletes.
“Step outside your home and go play. Have fun with your friends!” Passaglia preaches. “It’s what I looked forward to every day as a kid and it led me to football.”
