Garney Henley (born December 21, 1935) is an American former professional football player who played in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL).

College career

Henley was born on December 21, 1935, in

Elgin, North Dakota Elgin is a city in Grant County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 543 at the 2020 census. History Elgin was platted in 1910 when the railroad was extended to that point. The town was originally known as Shanley, but when the Nort ...

. His family moved to Hayti, South Dakota when he was a child. Henley attended Huron College in

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

, where he was a Dean's List honors student and played as a running back from 1956 to 1959 on the varsity football team. In 1959, Henley broke First Team NAIA All-America records with 394 points and more than 4,000 rushing yards.

CFL career

Henley was drafted in 1960 by the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

in the 15th round (173rd overall), but was traded to the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

in Ontario, Canada. As a defensive back, Henley intercepted 59 passes for 916 yards and 5 touchdowns, and was selected as an All Star nine times. Following Henley's transition into an offensive player, he was an All Star for the 10th time in 1972 as a wide receiver. Henley won the CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award in 1972 in which the Tiger-Cats won the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

at their home field,

Ivor Wynne Stadium Ivor Wynne Stadium (formerly Civic Stadium) was a Canadian football stadium located at the corner of Balsam and Beechwood avenues, two blocks west of Gage Avenue North in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The stadium was the home of the Hamilton Tiger ...

, in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. In 2025, his number 26 was retired by the Tiger-Cats. He played in 7

games, winning 4: the 51st Grey Cup of 1963, the

53rd Grey Cup The 53rd Grey Cup, also known as the Wind Bowl, was hosted at CNE Stadium in Toronto on November 27, 1965. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 22–16. Weather conditions and change in punting rule Because of strong winds ...

of 1965 (the so-called 'Wind Bowl'), the 55th Grey Cup of 1967, and the

60th Grey Cup The 60th Grey Cup was played on December 3, 1972, before 33,993 fans at the Ivor Wynne Stadium at Hamilton. It was the last Grey Cup to be played in December until 2021, which, coincidentally, was also held in Hamilton. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats def ...

of 1972, losing 3: the

49th Grey Cup The 49th Grey Cup was the Canadian Football League's championship game of the 1961 season on December 2, 1961. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 21–14 at CNE Stadium in Toronto before 32,651 fans. It is considered to ...

of 1961, the

50th Grey Cup The 50th Grey Cup, also nicknamed the Fog Bowl, was the 1962 Grey Cup Canadian Football League championship game played between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on December 1, 1962, at Toronto's Exhibition Stadium. It remain ...

of 1962, and the

52nd Grey Cup The 52nd Grey Cup was hosted at CNE Stadium in Toronto, Ontario on November 28, 1964. The BC Lions defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 34–24, the first Grey Cup victory for BC. Bill Munsey on offence and defence BC player Bill Munsey scored two ...

of 1964.

Post-football career

While still playing football in Hamilton, Henley was hired at the

University of Guelph The University of Guelph (abbreviated U of G) is a comprehensive Public university, public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald I ...

by athletic director Bill Mitchell. Henley served as the assistant athletic director, advisor to the football team and taught in the Physical Education program. He also took over the Gryphon Basketball program. In 1973–74, Henley coached the team to its first CIAU national championship. Henley became the athletic director and coach at

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Mount Allison was the first university in the British Empire to award a baccal ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, and

Brock University Brock University is a public university, public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada's Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. The ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. From 1989 to 1993, Henley was hired as defense coach with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He coached the Tiger-Cats to the 1989

, losing to the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

40-43. From 1995 to 1996, he served as the Director of Football Operations for the

Ottawa Rough Riders The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded on September 19, 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup cham ...

, where his teams had a combined 6–30 record. In 1996, Henley moved back to his home state of South Dakota after 36 years in Canada. He finished his career as an athletic director at his alma mater,

Huron University Huron University, also known as Si Tanka University at Huron, was a private university formerly located in Huron, South Dakota. Founded in 1883, it closed on April 1, 2005. History Founding What became Huron University was founded in 1883 as P ...

. After Huron University closed, Henley became General Manager for Professional Transportation Inc., transporting railroad engineers and conductors. He retired in 2013. Henley was inducted into the

Canadian Football Hall of Fame The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about the CFL, ...

in 1979, the University of Guelph Athletics Hall of Fame on October 4, 1985, the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

in 2004, and the

Ontario Sports Hall of Fame The Ontario Sports Hall of Fame is an association dedicated to honouring athletes and personalities with outstanding achievement in sports in Ontario, Canada. The hall of fame was established in 1994 by Bruce Prentice, following his 15-year tenure ...

in 2015. Henley was voted the sixth greatest CFL player in a poll conducted by Canadian sports network TSN in 2006.

External links

Canadian Football Hall of Famer
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College career

CFL career

Post-football career

External links

References

Further reading