Mark Kilam Lands Edmonton Elks Head Coach Job
After searching far and wide to find their next head coach, the Edmonton Elks are keeping it in Alberta to hire the replacement for former head coach and general manager Chris Jones.
TSN's Farhan Lalji reported Saturday the Elks are set to hire former Calgary Stampeders assistant coach Mark Kilam as their next head coach.
Kilam got off to a tough start to the offseason when Stampeders head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson didn't retain him for the 2025 season after a disappointing 5-12-1 finish for Calgary. It was a surprising move since Kilam had been with the Stampeders organization since 2005.
Hearing that Mark Kilam has agreed to become head coach of the @GoElks @SportsCentre pic.twitter.com/awFya2G0NY
— Farhan Lalji (@FarhanLaljiTSN) November 30, 2024
He started as a strength and conditioning coach before adding defensive assistant, linebackers coach and special teams coordinator to his resume. During that span, he won three Grey Cups with the Stampeders. Dickenson promoted Kilam to assistant head coach in 2019 and he held the position through 2024.
While there were reports of Kilam picking up momentum as the potential head coach of the Elks, it still comes as a surprise with former BC Lions head coach Rick Campbell as the number one name brought up over the past few weeks. Campbell and the Lions parted ways last week after a 9-9 season and an early first-round exit in the postseason.
Edmonton has been busy this offseason reloading the leadership group within the organization. Chris Morris was named president and CEO of the Elks first before the hiring of Ed Hervey as vice president of football operations and general manager. Kilam fills that final void at head coach with the focus now turning to building his coaching staff.
The Elks finished with a 7-11 record and fired Jones as head coach and general manager. Jarious Jackson filled in as interim head coach and the team went 7-6 under Jackson.
With the offseason two months away, the focus shifts to the Elks rebuilding the roster. Their main focus should be to find a way to re-sign their star quarterback Tre Ford and keep him in Edmonton for a long time.
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