Ryan Phillips (born November 15, 1982) is the secondary coach and pass game coordinator for the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

of 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) and a former professional

Canadian football Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He played most of his career with the

, where he has been part of two

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 ...

championship teams ( 94th Grey Cup and

99th Grey Cup The 99th Grey Cup was a Canadian football game between the Canadian Football League East Division, East Division champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Canadian Football League West Division, West Division champion BC Lions to decide the champion ...

) and was the last remaining active Lions player from the 2006 roster that won the 2006 Grey Cup. He holds numerous Lions franchise records and had been named a western all-star five times and a league all-star four times. Phillips was known for his durability, having only missed four games in his 12-year career which includes a consecutive games-played streak of 181 games. He was also a member of the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

in 2017. He is a 2006 graduate of

Eastern Washington University Eastern Washington University (EWU) is a public university in Cheney, Washington, United States. It shares its satellite campus in Spokane, Washington with Washington State University. Founded in 1882, the university is academically divided in ...

which is also where he played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Eastern Washington Eagles The Eastern Washington Eagles are the intercollegiate varsity athletic teams that represent Eastern Washington University, located in Cheney, southwest of Spokane. A member of the Big Sky Conference, EWU's athletic program comprises five men's ...

College career

Phillips played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

at Franklin High in his home town of

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

. Following graduation in 2000, Phillips played

junior college A junior college is a type of post-secondary institution that offers vocational and academic training that is designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations or support roles in professions such as engineering, a ...

football at Mt. San Antonio College in

Walnut, California Walnut is a city in the eastern part of Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. According to the 2020 census, the city had a population of 28,430. The greater Walnut Valley is located between the steep San Jose Hills to the nort ...

. Phillips played

as a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

, and

kick returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

. As a senior, Phillips was named to the first-team All-

Big Sky Conference The Big Sky Conference is a List of NCAA conferences, collegiate athletic conference, affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I with college football, football competing in the Football Cha ...

as a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

and

. Phillips had 5 interceptions, 16 kick returns for 330 yards (a 20.6 yard average) during his senior year for the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

, and in 2003, rushed for 85 yards on 11 carries (a 7.7 yard average), with 3 receptions for 17 yards.

Professional career

BC Lions

Following a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

camp in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, Phillips joined the

for the 2005 season. He started all 18 games during his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

season where he recorded 56 tackles, good for third on the team, as well as three

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team bu ...

. In

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, Phillips moved from his defensive halfback position to the defense's

nickel back In American football, a nickelback, also referred to as a slot cornerback or slot corner, is a cornerback or safety who serves as the additional defensive back in a nickel defense. A base defense consists of two cornerbacks and two safeties, ma ...

for all 18 regular season games. Phillips recorded 23 defensive tackles, five

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

tackles, two interceptions (one for a 23-yard

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

), two

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

recoveries and 3 pass knockdowns. Phillips added the

Lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is se ...

sole interception in the Western Division Championship game against 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 ...

and chipped in three tackles in the Lions' 2006 Grey Cup victory over the

. In

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, Phillips led the

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

with 12 interceptions, tying a team record held by former Lions' defensive back, Larry Crawford, in the process. He also set a franchise record for most interception return yards in a season with 299 yards. The previous record had been 188. He also recorded the most tackles in his career with 65 made that year. After the season, Phillips was named a CFL All-Star for the first time in his career.

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

was a stark contrast to the previous year as Phillips recorded only one interception in 18 games. The following year, he bounced back with four interceptions while recording the first fumble-return touchdown of his career, in addition to his third career interception return touchdown. In

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

he recorded his highest sack tally to date with four for the year, to accompany another five interceptions with 49 tackles. Subsequently, he earned his second CFL All-Star selection that year. Phillips was part of the 2011 BC Lions team that began the year with five consecutive losses and finished to win the

in Vancouver, which had never been done before in CFL history. During the season, he recorded 46 defensive tackles with four interceptions and one interception return touchdown. He had two tackles in the Western Final that year and one in the Grey Cup game itself as he won his second Grey Cup championship. For the

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

and

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

seasons, Phillips earned All-Star selections in both years while fostering his reputation as an excellent coverage defensive back. He recorded four interceptions with 32 defensive tackles in 2012 and two interceptions with 36 defensive tackles in 2013. In

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, he added another three interceptions to his tally while registering 36 defensive tackles. For the 2015 season, Phillips led the league with six interceptions and made 26 defensive tackles in just 14 games. For the first time in his professional career, he did not play in a game, ending his consecutive games-played streak at 181 games. Despite playing in only 14 games, Phillips was named to the 2015 CFL Western All-Star team for the fifth time in his career. He scored his fifth career interception return touchdown in a game against the

on August 20, 2015, which tied for the franchise record for interception return touchdowns. He also set the franchise record for defensive touchdowns with six total, including his fumble return touchdown in 2008. He finished the season tied for the franchise record for most interception return yards with Larry Crawford who also had 790 yards. In

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, Phillips set the franchise record for most interception return yards in a career after his 26-yard return against 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 ...

, on July 1, 2016, brought him to 816 yards total. He played in his 200th career game on August 4, 2016, against the Alouettes, which is the sixth-most games played in BC Lions' history. Phillips was signed through the

2017 CFL season Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number) * One of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017, 2117 Science * Chlorine, a halogen in the periodic table * 17 Thetis, an asteroid in the asteroid belt Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American ...

with the Lions after he signed a contract extension on January 24, 2016. Nevertheless, at age 34, he was released by the Lions on February 10, 2017, just prior to the opening of the free agency period.

Montreal Alouettes

Shortly after his release from BC, Phillips signed with the

on February 15, 2017. He dressed in two games for the Alouettes, recording eight tackles, but was released on July 16, 2017.

Coaching career

Following his playing career Ryan Phillips joined the

as a defensive backs coach. He remained in this role for two seasons. On December 15, 2021, the Lions announced they had re-signed Phillips to a contract extension for the

2022 CFL season The 2022 CFL season was the 68th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 64th season of the Canadian Football League. The regular season began on June 9 and ended on October 29, with 18 games played per team over 21 week ...

, and had promoted him to defensive coordinator, where he served in that capacity for three seasons. Following a head coach change for the 2025 season, he was named the team's secondary coach and pass game coordinator while Mike Benevides took over as defensive coordinator.

Personal life

In addition to being a professional football player, Phillips is a high school teacher in the Seattle school system during the off-season. He has two sons, Ryan Jr. and Braylen, with his girlfriend, Fadhila.

References

External links

Montreal Alouettes bioBC Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Ryan 1982 births Living people Contestants on American game shows BC Lions coaches BC Lions players Montreal Alouettes players Canadian football defensive backs Eastern Washington Eagles football players Players of American football from Seattle Players of Canadian football from Seattle Franklin High School (Seattle) alumni