Introduction
For the former world champion sculler see Jake Gaudaur Snr.
Jacob Gill "Jake" Gaudaur, Jr., OC (October 5, 1920 – December 4, 2007) was a Canadian Football League (CFL) player, executive, and commissioner. His 45-year career in Canadian football, including 16 years as the league's fourth commissioner (and its longest-serving commissioner), oversaw the start of the modern era of professional Canadian football. As an amateur artist Gauduar made two important contributions, designing both the Hamilton Tiger-Cats "Leaping Tiger" logo, as well as an early version of the CFL logo.
Early life
Jake Gaudaur, Jr., born in Orillia, Ontario October 5, 1920, was an all-around athlete at Orillia Collegiate Institute. Like his father, Jake Gaudaur Snr., he was a national rowing champion as well as an excellent lacrosse player.
Football career
In 1940, aged 19, he began playing football and joined the Hamilton Tigers. The following year he played for the Toronto Argonauts. Gaudaur served as a pilot in the Second World War and won the 30th Grey Cup with the Toronto RCAF Hurricanes in the 1942 season.
Following the war, Gaudaur played for, and was part owner of, the Toronto Indians of the Ontario Rugby Football Union (1945–1946) and then played for the Montreal Alouettes during the 1947 season.
Gaudaur returned to Hamilton to stay in 1948. When the Tigers merged with the Hamilton Flying Wildcats in 1950, Gaudaur became team captain of the resulting Hamilton Tiger-Cats and played through the 1951 season. In 1952, he left the playing field to become director of the team but returned to play a final year in the 1953 season winning the Tiger-Cats first Grey Cup playing centre.
From 1954, Gaudaur was President of the Tiger-Cats and was President & General Manager from the 1956 season to 1967. The Ti-Cats appeared in 9 Grey Cups over his term as general manager and won in 1957, 1963, 1965, and 1967.
He died at the age of 87 in 2007 following a long battle with prostate cancer.
Honours
- He was inducted as a builder into the Toronto Argonauts Hall of Fame in 1984.
- He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame as a Builder in 1984.
- In 1985, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
- He was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (1990).
- The Jake Gaudaur Veterans' Trophy, presented annually to the CFL player "who best demonstrates the attributes of Canada's veterans in times of war, peace and military conflict", was awarded for the first time in 2010.