Toronto Argonauts players, coaches and staff receive their ’22 Grey Cup rings
TORONTO — The mystery, anticipation and then celebration never get old for Mike (Pinball) Clemons. The Toronto Argonauts received their 2022 Grey Cup rings Thursday night during a private dinner.
TORONTO — The mystery, anticipation and then celebration never get old for Mike (Pinball) Clemons.
The Toronto Argonauts received their 2022 Grey Cup rings Thursday night during a private dinner. For Clemons, the club’s affable GM, it’s the seventh championship ring he’s earned as a player, head coach and executive with the storied franchise since coming aboard in 1990.
“I’d suggest winning the Grey Cup is one of the most refreshing experiences that I’ve had in life,” Clemons said. “It’s a very nice way to put a bow on 2022 and maybe the pandemic itself and the challenges it presented.”
The CFL didn’t stage a season in 2020 due to the global pandemic. It resumed play in 2021 with a reduced 14-game campaign before staging a full 18-game schedule last year without protocols.
Clemons was involved in the ring design but didn’t see the finished product until Thursday. He said it was definitely worth the wait.
“I did get a chance to see the process,” he said. “But the end result was, ‘Wow.'”
The ring features 308 diamonds in 10 carat white gold with a custom blue sapphire top stone in Toronto’s boat logo.
Baron Championship Rings, of Tecumseh, Ont., was the manufacturer. The company specializes in championship rings, having created them for the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers, NBA’s Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto FC of MLS, the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks and Hockey Canada, to name but a few.
“We’re pretty excited about it and really happy with the outcome,” said Baron CEO Peter Kanis. “Everyone put their heads into this, which I think is going to