Former Argos coach, GM Tommy Hudspeth passes away at the age of 83

Toronto Argonauts' Chad Owens (2) makes some running yards against Edmonton Eskimos quarterback Pat White (5) and fullback Calvin McCarty (31) in Toronto on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2014. (Peter Power / The Canadian Press)

TORONTO -- Tommy Hudspeth, who served as the Toronto Argonauts general manager and head coach, has died at the age of 83.

The Argos announced Thursday that Hudspeth, a native of Tulsa, Okla., passed away Tuesday after battling cancer.

Hudspeth's first CFL job was an assistant coach with the Calgary Stampeders in 1961, spending two seasons with the squad. He then served as a head coach at Brigham Young University and the University of Texas at El Paso.

Hudspeth led BYU to a 39-42-1 record during his eight years as head coach and led the school to its first conference championship in 1965 when the Cougars won the Western Athletic Conference title. He was named the WAC's coach of the year that season.

At the time he left BYU, Hudspeth was second to only Ott Romney (40 wins) in career victories.

Hudspeth also spent two seasons as the head coach of the NFL's Detroit Lions before being hired as Argos GM in 1979.

Two years later, he replaced Willie Wood as the team's head coach, finishing the '81 season with a 2-4 record. Bob O'Billovich took over as Argos coach the following season and led Toronto to victory in the 1983 Grey Cup.