Ed Tait
Winnipeg Free Press

It's right there for everyone to see in black and white on the pages of the CFL's Facts, Figures and Records book and in the BC Lions media guide.

Shoot, Google Wally Buono's name or run a Wikipedia search on the man and the same thing always pops up:

He is the CFL's all-time coaching king, having won more games than any other man to roam the sidelines in its history.

And you don't get to the top by being brain-dead.

So when the 60-year-old boss sat down to conduct the autopsy on the 2009 Lions season -- a campaign in which his squad finished with a losing record (8- 10) for just the third time in his 20 years as a coach -- Buono chose to do some serious evaluations, both of his team's and his own performance.

The results have made for an intriguing off-season on the Left Coast.

"Last year was not the kind of team that we had in the past and it was important for us to address changes," Buono said Tuesday in the first CFL state- of-the-franchise conference calls. "And when you look at changes, you always look first at yourself, and I did as a head coach.

"The (Lions) team that won in the semifinals (over Hamilton) was a pretty good football team. And the one up in Montreal (which lost 56-18 in the East Final) was a disgusting team. That was our season. We had the extremes.

"What I want to do is eliminate those extremes."

Usually just free-agent spectators under Buono's watch, the Lions went out this season and signed two key Alouette defenders -- Canadian cornerback Davis Sanchez and defensive tackle Keron Williams -- who should help a defence that finished tied for second-last in points allowed.

They added two veteran offensive weapons in former Winnipeg Blue Bombers receiver Derick Armstrong and ex-Toronto Argonauts tailback Jamal Robertson to add some oomph to an offence that was just sixth in scoring.

Buono tinkered with his coaching staff too, stripping Dan Dorazio of the offensive co-ordinator gig and handing it back to Jacques Chapdelaine, while adding two ex-players, Travis Moore and Barron Miles, to breathe some life into the staff.

In the process, the changes helped recharge Buono's competitive juices as he heads into his 21st season as a head coach with a new contract extension that takes him through to 2014.

"I want to win another Grey Cup," Buono said when asked what's left for him to accomplish. "When you watch the Olympics, when you watch the Super Bowl, the NHL playoffs and you watch a team raise that trophy... you almost envy them. You just want to experience that one more time. It's unfortunate to say this, but it's almost like a drug. When you've been a competitor all your life and you sit there and watch that emotion, that accomplishment, you say to yourself, 'I want to do that again.'

"I still enjoy what I do," he continued. "There's nothing greater than driving home from the game and you're the victorious coach. That's a tremendous feeling of satisfaction.

"If I lose that passion to want those things, then obviously it's an empty shell and it's time to move on."

The Lions

Last year: 8-10, fourth in West; lost to Montreal in East Final as crossover team.

GM and head coach: Wally Buono.

FYI: The Lions are 19-17 in the last two seasons, same as the Edmonton Eskimos during that span. Calgary is 23-12-1 and Saskatchewan 22-13-1 in the competitive West Division.

Notable: Lions will play their home games this year at Empire Field, site of the old Empire Stadium, as work on a retractable roof for BC Place takes them outside for the first time since 1982.

Quotable: "You talk about offence, you talk about excitement, you talk about a guy who raises everybody else up, and the guy that did that for us last year was Casey Printers. When he came here, he worked hard, he won the locker-room and I think he excited not only the players in the locker-room, but everybody in the organization and our fans. It was something we needed." -- Buono on his No. 1 QB.