EDMONTON 鈥� Mark Kilam, the newly hired head coach of the Edmonton Elks, grew up in Lethbridge, playing for junior high and high school football teams decked in green and gold 鈥� the same colours he wore with the University of Alberta Golden Bears."
At the U of A, he was coached by legendary Edmonton quarterback Tom Wilkinson.
With his deep Alberta roots and long-standing ties to green and gold, Kilam鈥檚 move from Calgary to Edmonton to lead the Elks feels like a natural fit.
He was introduced to the media Monday at Commonwealth Stadium, quickly making a pitch to any CFL players listening.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be a group that鈥檚 accountable,鈥� said Kilam. 鈥淣ot only to each other but to everybody who came here before us. We鈥檙e going to stand on the shoulders of the people who built this place and represented the double-E the right way. If that sounds like a group that you want to be a part of, come on down to Edmonton.鈥�
Kilam joined the rival Stampeders in 2005, became special teams coach in 2010, and was named assistant head coach in 2019. Now, he switches allegiances in the Battle of Alberta to join the Elks.
He had previously been interviewed for the Elks coaching job, but the second time was the charm.
General manager Ed Hervey, hired in November, quickly found the Elks' new coach. Despite suggesting the search might take time, he called Kilam the clear choice on Monday.
鈥淢ark鈥檚 excitement about coaching the players, and all the stuff that came with it, was just so different than anyone else," said Hervey. "The few that were down to the final process met many of the things that we would want. But (Mark was} the overwhelming choice for this organization 鈥� for right now and what we want to do moving forward.鈥�
Hervey noted that the modern CFL features frequent player movement and short-term contracts, so the team needed a coach with a strong reputation among players. As part of the process, he reached out to current and former players who had worked with Kilam, and the feedback he received was overwhelmingly positive. Some of the praise also made its way to social media
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have social media. I have a LinkedIn account that I am never on,鈥� said Kilam. 鈥淢y mom would screenshot things to me, and my wife would show me things. It really reinforced that I did things the right way, growing up and working with these guys. That鈥檚 what I took from it. Those relationships were real. Those connections were real.鈥�
Kilam said the spark between Hervey and him was there as soon as they started talking.
鈥淲hen you put like-minded people into a room, and they start spitballing about something they have passion for, the energy jumps up right away,鈥� said the Elks鈥� new coach.
鈥淚f we鈥檙e not aligned, this job is very difficult, it鈥檚 a difficult job anyway. But when we can line up our beliefs and we see things the same way 鈥攚hat a winning culture and a winning program looks, acts and sounds like on a day-to-day basis 鈥� that鈥檚 a really exciting opportunity.鈥�
Kilam鈥檚 hire closes the door on Jarious Jackson, who served as interim head coach after Chris Jones was let go after losing five straight games to start the 2024 season.
Under Jackson, the Elks finished 7-6 but couldn't recover from a poor start. He was open about wanting the "interim" tag removed and returning for 2024.
The Elks have not been to the playoffs since 2019.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 2, 2024.
Steven Sandor, The Canadian Press
