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Jim Popp
American sports executive / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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James Thomas Popp (born December 21, 1964) is an American sports executive and coach. Popp is Vice President, Player Personnel, for the United States Football League (USFL).[1] In 2021, Popp was Chief of Staff, Advisor to the Head Coach for the Charlotte 49ers football and also a running back coach and assistant head coach for the Alabama State Hornets.[2] He worked extensively in the Canadian Football League, and was most recently the general manager of the Toronto Argonauts. Popp spent over two decades as General Manager of the Montreal Alouettes including several stints as Head Coach. Popp served as General Manager for two years for Baltimore Stallions, and the Director of Player Personnel for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. As a CFL general manager, three separate franchises under Popp have won five Grey Cup championship wins out of 11 appearances.
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![]() Popp in front of media at press conference. | |
Date of birth | (1964-12-21) December 21, 1964 (age 59) |
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Place of birth | Elkin, North Carolina, U.S. |
Career information | |
Position(s) | Vice President, General Manager, Director of Football Operations, Director of Player Personnel, Head Coach, Assistant Head Coach, Assistant Coach, Chief of Staff, Advisor to the Head Coach, Director of Player Administration |
US college | Michigan State |
High school | Mooresville High School (Mooresville, North Carolina) |
Career history | |
As administrator | |
1991-1992 | PSFL (Director of Player Personnel) |
1992–1993 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (Director of Player Personnel) |
1994–1995 | Baltimore Stallions (GM, Director of Player Personnel) |
1996–2016 | Montreal Alouettes (VP, GM, Dir. of FB Opts, Dir. of Player Personnel) |
2017–2019 | Toronto Argonauts (GM) |
2021 | UNC Charlotte (Chief of Staff, Advisor to Head Coach) |
2022 - Present | USFL (Vice President, Player Personnel, Director of Player Administration) |
As coach | |
1986 | Michigan State (asst.) |
1987 | North Carolina (asst.) |
1988–1990 | The Citadel (QB, RB, WR) |
1991 | NFL Europe Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks (WR, STC, S&C) |
1992–1993 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (WR) |
2001 | Montreal Alouettes (HC) |
2006–2007 | Montreal Alouettes (HC) |
2013 | Montreal Alouettes (HC) |
2015–2016 | Montreal Alouettes (HC) |
2020–2021 | Alabama State (AHC,RB) |
As player | |
1983–1985 | Michigan State |
Honours | 5x Grey Cup champion (1995, 2002, 2009, 2010, 2017) 18 Divisional Championship appearances 11 Grey Cup appearances |
Popp has led three separate franchises to a total of five Grey Cup championship wins (1995 with the Baltimore Stallions; 2002, 2009, 2010 with the Montreal Alouettes; 2017 with the Toronto Argonauts) and his teams have appeared in 18 Divisional Championship games and 11 Grey Cups.
Popp served as General Manager for 21 years with the Montreal Alouettes, one of the longest stints as a General Manager in sports. The Alouettes had the second highest win percentage of any sport (#1 New England Patriots) during a decade run that saw the team appear in 8 Grey Cups over 11 seasons. In 2011, Popp was named Canada's Sports Executive of the Year.