He won 231 games in the CFL, the second highest win total by a head coach in the league's history while leading four teams to Grey Cup victories.
[2] From a large family of limited means and education, he quit high school in Amesbury after his senior season of football in 1956 and served three years in the U.S. Marine Corps.
[3] Matthews returned home and earned his high school diploma and then on the advice of a teacher, ventured west in 1960 as a 21-year-old freshman to Moscow, Idaho.
He took over a winless program at Sunset High School in Beaverton and won consecutive state championships in 1975 and 1976, going undefeated in his third and final year.
[11] Matthews was formerly head coach of the CFL's BC Lions, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Baltimore Stallions, Toronto Argonauts, Edmonton Eskimos, and Montreal Alouettes.
[16] In that press conference, Matthews revealed that the major health reason that caused him to step down as head coach of the Alouettes was an anxiety disorder.
[22] Don Matthews holds several head coaching records:[23] He also has an additional five Grey Cup titles as defensive co-ordinator of the Edmonton Eskimos.