Don Jonas
Quarterback
Years in CFL: 5
Years in Winnipeg: 3 1/2 (1971-74)
DOB: Dec. 3, 1938
Written By: Judy Owen
One of Don Jonas’ favourite pictures from his days in Winnipeg has nothing to do with what he accomplished on the football field.
While a spokesperson for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Jonas took part in a fundraiser shining shoes for donations. When he heard Peter Warren on the air, he called the former CJOB radio host and offered to come to the studio and shine his shoes.
When he got there, Warren had a guest in the room.
“Peter said to me, ‘Do you know who this guy is?’ I said, ‘No.’ He said, ‘The prime minister of Canada (Pierre Trudeau).’ I said, ‘That’s wonderful, I’ll shine his shoes, too,’ ” Jonas recalls with a laugh from his Florida home.
“He let me shine his shoes and he even gave me money. He gave me 20 bucks. I’ve got a picture (with Trudeau) in my room here.”
Originally signed by Toronto in 1970, Jonas played one season for the Argonauts. Toronto then let him go when they signed quarterbacks Joe Theismann and Greg Barton and Winnipeg picked up his option.
It turned out to be a great move.
Jonas became the team’s first winner of the CFL Most Outstanding Player award in 1971 after leading the league in completions (253), pass attempts (485), passing yards (4,036), passing touchdowns (27) and interceptions (31). He was also a placekicker and led the league in scoring with 121 points.
“We threw that ball and we were so exciting that people came to watch us,” Jonas says with pride. “They were ecstatic about the turnaround of our football program and we filled the stands.”
When Jonas negotiated his last contract with Bomber general manager Earl Lunsford, he told him he wanted to retire in Winnipeg, but Lunsford traded him to Hamilton part way through the 1974 season for QB Chuck Ealey, who became Dieter Brock’s backup.
“The next day I went in and said, ‘Earl, you know the deal we worked out.’ He said, ‘Well Don, it’s a business. We’ve got to do what’s right,’ “ Jonas says.
“What I would have liked to happen was have Dieter take over – if he beat me out — and I would have loved to be a backup and stay two, maybe three, more years.”
Jonas finished the ’74 season with the Ticats and got a job the next year as a colour commentator for CFL TV broadcasts. He and his wife, Rosemary, then returned to Florida.
In 1979, he became the University of Central Florida’s first head football coach. He stayed three years, doing it as a volunteer the first year.
He’s been a high school football referee for more than 30 years and still works part-time as a sales manager for an auto-glass replacement company.
“I loved Winnipeg,” Jonas says. “The people treated us tremendously.”
Career Highlights
Member, Bomber Hall of Fame; CFL Most Outstanding Player, 1971; CFL all-star, 1971, ’72; Division all-star, 1971, ’72; His 12,291 yards passing is fifth on the Bombers’ all-time list; Also a placekicker, he’s 10th on the club’s all-time scoring list with 273 points
– Courtesy of The Winnipeg Free Press, 2006
