On August 8, 2004, with the Blue Bombers losing three in a row with a 2–5 record to begin their season, Ritchie was relieved of head coaching duties. He finished his Blue Bomber tenure with the third-most wins in club history. BC Lions (II) Ritchie was hired by longtime associate, Wally Buono, on February 25, 2005, to become the defensive coordinator on the BC Lions in 2005. In 2006, he won his third Grey Cup championship as the Lions won the 94th Grey Cup over the Montreal Alouettes. After three seasons with the Lions, Ritchie retired following the end of the 2007 CFL season. He was considered for the 2008 Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach position, which he would have accepted, but the position went to Ken Miller. Zurich Renegades Richie returned to the field in 2011 as head coach of the Zurich Renegades in the top level league in Switzerland Nationalliga A (American football), helping the team reach the semi-finals in 2012. He spent two seasons with the team before returning to the United States. Hall of Fame Ritchie was named to the Fairmont State Hall of Fame in 2010, following five years as a head coach there with two conference titles and one Coal Bowl victory in 1979. He is a member of the Blue Bomber Hall of Fame as the fourth-winningest head coach in team history with a record of 52–44–1 and winning a Grey Cup as an assistant coach in 1990. On June 21, 2022, it was announced that Ritchie would be enshrined in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in the Class of 2022 as a builder. CFL coaching record Personal life Ritchie and his wife, Sharon, live in Rhode Island, as of 2022. They have three children, Phyllis, Susan, and Dave, and eight grandchildren. References 1938 births Living people BC Lions coaches American expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland American expatriate sportspeople in Italy American expatriate players of American football Fairmont State Fighting Falcons football coaches Montreal Alouettes coaches Ottawa Rough Riders coaches Winnipeg Blue Bombers coaches Winnipeg Blue Bombers general managers Sportspeople from New Bedford, Massachusetts BC Lions general managers