One way or another, life kept bringing Scott Deibert back to Calgary and the city’s football teams.
The Moose Jaw, Sask., native first came to Cowtown after high school to compete in freestyle skiing. Soon enough, though, a football opportunity came along for the running back.
“My uncle was the vice-president of an insurance company,” explains Deibert, “and Keith Kendall, who was the coach (of the Calgary Colts juniors) at the time, was an insurance adjuster and they knew each other. They just started talking and my uncle thought I should go out and play and try out.”
Deibert made the cut and spent four seasons as a member of the Colts.
“After junior,” he says, “I had some calls from some smaller colleges just south of the border. My ideal goal was to get an education out of it and I wound up going to Minot State (in North Dakota).”
Not only did Deibert pick up his coveted degree, he set school rushing records and was later enshrined in the Minot State Beavers hall of fame. A pro football career wasn’t initially part of his game plan, but after his exploits in the NCAA the Edmonton Eskimos selected him 17th overall in the 1998 CFL draft.
“It was a little icing on the cake, I guess,” says Deibert.
He spent two seasons with the Eskimos and one with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, but the pull of Calgary was strong.
“I knew I was done in Winnipeg (after the 2000 season) and I knew I had to sign somewhere,” he says. “I ultimately wanted to sign here. My wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, was a news anchor and she took a job at ‘A’ Channel in Calgary. I actually gave (Stampeders head coach/general manager) Wally (Buono) a call and never heard back from him.”
As luck would have it, one January night at a Chinese New Year event, Deibert went into the men’s washroom and noticed Buono was right beside him.
“So I started a little conversation with him,” says Deibert, “and he said to come in and see him on Monday. So I went in and met with him, had a quick chat and wound up signing a contract.”
The timing for joining the Stamps was perfect for Deibert.
“It was one of my favourite years of football,” he says of that 2001 campaign. “There were a bunch of injuries in camp. Kelvin Anderson was late coming into camp — I think his brother was getting married — and then two other guys got hurt. So it was me and (Scott) Regimbald, basically. We were the only two running backs in camp for about a week. So he played fullback and I played tailback.”
Anderson eventually rejoined the club but, says Deibert, “I think I was able to show that I was versatile enough to keep around.”
The season culminated with a Grey Cup win over Deibert’s previous team, the heavily favoured Blue Bombers.
“They were dominant,” says Deibert. “You’ve got to remember, we had to go in there the last week (of the regular season). It was a Friday night, it was cold . . . I’ll never forget it. We had to go in there and win just to get into the playoffs. They could have ended us right there. We found a way and we beat them by a touchdown. I think they were pretty (ticked) off that they didn’t knock us out and ultimately, a few weeks later, I’m sure they were really (ticked) off they didn’t knock us out.
“As a kid growing up, you always watched the Grey Cup. To actually get to that game and play in it, it was one of the coolest things I’ve experienced.”
The following season under Buono in Calgary was a unique one for a different reason.
“Of the eight years I played,” he remarks, “that was the only year I had the same coach (from the previous season) which kind of says a lot for what happened after that.”
Buono left for BC after the 2002 campaign, to be replaced by Jim Barker. In 2004, Matt Dunigan was given the keys to the franchise. Calgary went a combined 15-39 over that difficult three-year period.
“I came in, learned my assignments and did my job,” says Deibert. “If you didn’t do that and got caught up in all the other stuff that was going on, it probably could have been pretty distracting but I just my focused on my job.
“I have to say I really enjoyed playing for Jim Barker. I enjoyed playing for all my coaches but I really enjoyed playing for Barks. He was a player’s coach.”
In 2005, another new coach was in charge — Tom Higgins — and the Stamps made a seven-win improvement from the previous season in finishing 11-7.
By that time, Deibert had eight seasons under his belt was ready to concentrate on his second career with Alberta Tubular, a Calgary-based drill pipe, casing and tubing company.