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“It says a lot for who he is . . . every part of his game is something we all can be proud of.”

Dickenson, who replaced John Hufnagel as Calgary’s head coach after the ’15 season, said he wasn’t ready to become a full-time coach when Trestman came calling.

“I knew I could learn a lot (from Trestman) but I just hadn’t at that point given up the dream of playing,” Dickenson said. “I told him, ‘Hey, I’m going to try to keep this going,’ and as it turned out the career was pretty much over as a player but then I stayed in Calgary with Huf.

“Football people like talking football and I think both of us would enjoy sitting down and comparing notes and seeing where we’re at. Not this week, though, we’ll keep it for another week.”

Trestman, 61, of Minneapolis, Minn., is in his second stint as a CFL head coach, having amassed a 60-40 regular-season record over six seasons. He was a stellar 59-31 with Montreal (2008-12), leading the Alouettes to three Grey Cup appearances (winning in 2009 and 2010) before leaving to become the Chicago Bears head coach.

Trestman was fired by Chicago following the 2011 season after compiling a 13-19 record. He became the Baltimore Ravens offensive co-ordinator but was let go in October 2016 before resurfacing in Toronto in February when he and former Montreal GM Jim Popp were hired.

Trestman came to Toronto with a well-earned reputation as a quarterback guru. In 2002, as the Oakland Raiders offensive co-ordinator, he helped a 37-year-old Rich Gannon become the NFL’s most valuable player. He also worked with San Francisco’s Steve Young, Arizona’s Jake Plummer and Detroit’s Scott Mitchell.