As a young Chinese-Canadian boy growing up in Vancouver—Bryan Chiu may not have had the same look as many of the football heroes that grew up before him but he blazed a trail of his own to become one of the most elite linemen in CFL history.
Chiu played high school football at Vancouver College and University football for the Pacific Tigers and, later, Washington State before he was drafted in the second round, 18th overall, of the 1996 CFL Draft by the Montreal Alouettes. In an era where few stay in with just one team for their entire playing careers, Bryan bucked that trend by playing his entire 13-season CFL career all with the Montreal Alouettes.
With the Alouettes, Chiu was a eight-time CFL East All-Star (2000-06, 2008, 2009), a seven-time CFL All-Star (2000-06, 2008), and was the CFL’s Most Outstanding Lineman in 2002. He also captured the Grey Cup two times as a player with the Alouettes (2002, 2009), and one Grey cup as the OL coach with the Ottawa REDBLACKS (2016).
Chiu is regarded as one of the best Montreal Alouettes of all-time. He was named to the Alouettes’ Team of the Decade and voted one of the Top 25 Montreal Alouettes of all-time. In 2006, he was also named to the honour roll of TSN Top 50 CFL Players. At the time of his retirement in 2010, he was the Alouettes’ leader in games played with 218 games played.
Following his incredible playing career, Chiu turned to the coaching ranks with stints, as of 2023, with the Concordia Stingers, Toronto Argonauts, Ottawa Redblacks, BC Lions, and his alma mater at Vancouver College.
