Gee-Gees Football Hall of Fame Inductee Profile: Mike Hendricks

A foursome of fearsome defensive players and one record-setting receiver have been selected as the 2023 inductees to the Gee-Gees Football Hall of Fame. Ettore Lattanzio, Frantz Jacques, Michel Dupuis, Mike Hendricks, and Don Burns will be inducted on Saturday, April 22 as part of the Touchdown Weekend. 

Mike Hendricks is a football lifer

He started playing at the age of six and has only taken two years off of football since then. What started and grew in Montreal and for many years has been rooted in Ottawa, it's a passion for the game that keeps him coaching - the same passion to out-think, out-prepare, out-execute that fed his impressive accomplishments as a player. 

Hendricks was prepared for life as a Gee-Gee football player thanks to his two years at Montreal's Vanier College. He says it's there he learned the game and how to excel as a linebacker after growing up as a tight end or running back. Hendricks's second year at Vanier included a Bol D'Or Championship and coincided with head coach Phil Roberts moving to uOttawa to take over as defensive coordinator under Larry Ring.  

That familiarity in the coaching staff helped bring Hendricks to the Garnet and Grey, but it wasn't the golden ticket. Instead, it was the reception he received from the Gee-Gees veterans on his recruiting visit during spring camp.

"There was a lot of involvement from the vets in terms of welcoming us for the tour," remembers Hendricks. "I was in awe of how many of them were there to show us around, and the same guys showed up for breakfast the next morning. The trip was so amazing, it really slammed the door shut on my decision. I knew it was where I wanted to be." 

In 1992, Hendricks would join Gee-Gees Hall of Famer Steve Glenn in the linebacking corps, and he also remembers the impact Glenn had early on. "Watching him play during spring camp, he stood out. I knew I wanted to come and play alongside him."

With the preparedness he brought from Vanier, Hendricks was able to make an impact in his rookie season in Garnet and Grey. His 39 tackles ranked third on the team, and he recorded two sacks. 

"I was surrounded by great players – Chris Banton, Sean Hall - and I knew Phil's scheme which helped me gel and play at a high level. I was very happy I was able to help out as much as I did as a rookie."

A crucial switch came in 1993 as Hendricks moved from outside linebacker to the inside. "Everything just clicked. Being off the ball, making the calls, seeing the offence from five yards. I loved playing inside linebacker."

Hendricks was selected as the OQIFC Defensive Player of the Year in 1993 as he led the conference with 72 tackles. That total still ranks third in Gee-Gees history. Hendricks also had a career-best four sacks that season and was named to the All-Canadian Team. 

Hendricks and the Gee-Gees were flying high at the start of the 1994 season but what was ultimately a lingering ankle injury sidelined the all-star for much of his third season. Still, he was in the film room and on the sidelines as his teammates pushed into the postseason with a 6-1 regular season record. "It was still just great being around the team and part of the program. I look back at all four years as an awesome time."

In his fourth year, 1995, Hendricks was a team captain as the Gee-Gees built towards the first of three straight Dunsmore Cup championships. "Being a captain was a lot of fun. I was more of a lead by example kind of captain; I was someone who watched a lot of film and thrived on being prepared. I remember our groups watching film started small but grew bigger and bigger as more people wanted to out-think, out-prepare, out-execute." 

Hendricks posted 56 tackles in the 1995 regular season and then helped the Gee-Gees return to the OQIFC conference final for the first time since 1989. The defence limited Concordia to 8 points in the conference semifinal and then held Queen's to just three points and 135 yards of offence in the Dunsmore Cup. Hendricks remembers the intensity of that championship game, as Ottawa recorded an 8-3 victory. 

"Defensively we played a great game. It was a great team win against a very good opponent, definitely one of my most memorable moments of my career." 

With 1:48 left in the Dunsmore tilt, Hendricks was involved in one of the defining plays of the game. "That last play seemed like slow motion," he says. "The missed FG. Seeing the returner break free. I had a shot and it would have been very close if I got there or not but then I was tripped up for a penalty. Crazy way for the game to end, but we battled that day." 

His Gee-Gees career would end in the Churchill Bowl in Calgary, but Hendricks still had plenty of football to contribute to Ottawa. First, he suited up for the Rough Riders in their final season, with Gee-Gees teammate Carlo Disipio right alongside him. Disipio is one of many Gee-Gees teammates that Hendricks has stayed close with.

"It's a lifelong relationship you started as rookies. That's the most enjoyable part of being a university athlete."

After dressing for 16 games and recording 17 tackles, Hendricks remembers the confusion when word came at the end of the 1996 CFL season that the Ottawa Rough Riders were folding. "It was a mad scramble to try to contact people. I don't even remember how I got my hands on it but I was lucky to get a jersey."

Hendricks was selected by Montreal in the 1997 dispersal draft, but saw the writing on the wall when they tried moving him to defensive end. "My pro career was short-lived but still it was fun to get there and make the dream happen," says Hendricks who has enjoyed a long career at the Ottawa Fire Department.

His break from football in 1998 and 1999 was also short-lived. Hendricks started coaching in 2000 and hasn't stopped. "I've been able to coach with friends, and for a while I was coaching my son but he's finished and I'm still going. I still do it for the love of it."

He's coached with the Gee-Gees, high school and city football, but Hendricks has had a longtime home as a defensive coordinator and head coach with the Cumberland Panthers, including coaching alongside Larry Ring.

"I am a firm believer that there's a right way to practice and that you win a Saturday game Monday to Friday. I remember saying that in the huddles as a captain, and I coach with the same philosophy, I use that still with the kids. That element of preparation has always been there and I don't think it's ever gonna change."

One thing in this football lifer's time that has changed? The quality of the video he so enjoys delving into reviewing.  

"I was sending my film to schools for recruiting. All the film was from ground level, and I remember a coach told me, 'I can't even see a number 58 on this film.' I was just a big blur on the field." Hendricks laughs.

That might be how Gee-Gees opponents from 1992-95 remember him too.