Background
Ridgway is the eldest son of Leonard and Mary Ridgway, and has two younger brothers (John and Neil) and one sister (Lyn).
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Dave Ridgway
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Career
His Canadian Football League career began in 1981 when he was drafted by the Montreal Alouettes. He did not make the squad that year and returned to the University of Toledo to complete his degree in Marketing. Prior to the 1982 Canadian Football League season he signed as a free-agent with the Roughriders and began an impressive 14-year career with the club
Ridgway emigrated to Canada in 1974 and began his football career while attending M.M. Robinson High School in Burlington, Ontario.
In 1977 he began his collegiate football career playing in the Mid American Conference with the University of Toledo Rockets. Ridgway is considered one of the best placekickers to ever play the Canadian game and was known for his dependability in clutch situations.
He is one of the most accurate kickers in Canadian Football League history for those who have attempted more than 150 career field goals. During his 14-year tenure he attempted 736 field goals and made 574 (78%).
He played in 238 games, all with the Roughriders.
In 1987 Ridgway made a then Canadian Football League record 60-yard field goal (since surpassed by Paul McCallum in 2001 when he hit from 62 yards). He still holds or shares a number of Canadian Football League records such as 59 field goals made in a season in 1990, and 8 field goals made in a game (which he did twice, in 1984 & 1988). Ridgway held the record for most consecutive field goals made, with 28 in 1993.
This record—particularly impressive because the majority of his kicks were attempted in the windy confines of Taylor Field—was also bested by McCallum who connected on 30 straight field goals in 2011.
Both Ridgway"s and McCallum"s streaks ended with misses in British Columbia Place Stadium. His nickname was "Robokicker". and it also the title of his best selling autobiography, Robokicker: An Odyssey through the Canadian Football League, which was co-written with David A. Poulsen and published in 1995.
Achievements
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Canadian Football League All-Star, 1982, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1993 Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy Winner, 1989, 1990, 1991 Dick Suderman Trophy (Most Outstanding Canadian in a Grey Cup), 1989 His jersey number 36 is one of only eight jerseys retired by the Roughrider organization. Ridgway was inducted into the Roughriders Plaza of Honour in 2000 and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2003.
