Hamilton Tiger-Cats Passion Mirrors Hometown Pittsburgh Steelers for Scott Milanovich
The black-and-gold of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats just feels right for Scott Milanovich. The 27th coach in franchise history grew up with a fandom for another professional football team sporting the same color combination.
But it’s more than just the uniforms for football lifer from Butler, Penn. It’s about the passion.
Milanovich, 50, felt it as a kid, living and dying with his Pittsburgh Steelers. The Milanovichs were “rabid” fans of the Steelers.
He feels the same for the Tiger-Cats.
“I grew up in a fan base very similar to this one and it’s another reason why I feel like things are full circle for me,” Milanovich said. “I understand the passion. I share that passion. It’s just a different black-and-gold team.”
Butler is a working-class steel town about four hours from Hamilton and 35 miles north of Pittsburgh. Milanovich remembers coming into Pittsburgh, sleeping on the cold concrete of long-since-demolished Three Rivers Stadium to get playoff tickets.
He remembers sneaking in Iron City Lights into the stadium inside the pockets of his overalls. Nothing like a cold beer on a cold day.
He remembers what it means to be a fan, what a team means to a community when they both connect. That’s why coaching in Hamilton feels right for Milanovich, who’s on his third heading-coaching job in the CFL.
Milanovich got his first coaching job at 38 years old with the rival Toronto Argonauts. They won a Grey Cup in 2012 and parted ways in 2016.
Milanovich was asked by a reporter in training camp what’s it like to join the “dark side”?
“I said it feels like home and it does to me because I grew up in a town just like this,” Milanovich said.
Milanovich admitted to be somewhat worried about the first game this past season against Toronto, as his wife and daughter were seated near the Box J Boys. Their disdain for the Argos is legendary, but the Ti-Cats diehards had a message for the Milanovich family.
“You’re part of our family now, so shout out to the Box J Boys,” Scott Milanovich said. “I hope now that I’m the head coach, you’ll continue to treat my family with the same kind of respect that you did this year.”
As for the actual coaching job, Hamilton made too much sense for the former NFL assistant. Tim Hortons Field and the team’s facilities are among the best in the CFL.
“I didn’t come here to fail, to not get everybody that ring, that cup that we all want to hoist in this stadium,” Milanovich said. “So that’s kind of the expectation I look forward to sharing that with our players.”
The next few weeks will be about filling out the coaching staff and addressing free agency. The status of quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell is also key. Being on the staff for the last four months as an offensive assistant under former coach Orlondo Steinauer, who became president of football operations, gives Milanovich a leg up.
“Obviously the history that I have with the offensive players is a tremendous head start and when we start talking about personnel, I’m going to know actually what I’m looking at,” he said.
He also knows what he’s looking at just walking down the streets of Hamilton. It’s why this job at this time makes sense for Milanovich.
“I know the people,” he said. “I know what they’re about and it’s a fit for me. The city’s a fit for me.”
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Art Garcia is the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of InsideTheRangers.com and CFL on FanNation. Award-winning stops at various media outlets dot his career.