[Only The Lonely..]

I came across these two articles in my morning paper and thought it would be interesting to see what everyone thought..

[Only The Lonely..]

Grand CFL expansion plan hasn't got a hope: League in no hurry to revisit U.S. franchises

By: Randy Turner | Winnipeg Free Press

Just the other day, a well-intentioned fellow named Oronde Gadsden, a former Miami Dolphin, had himself a brainstorm.

You see, Gadsden is also a former member of the Arena Football League, now in suspended animation, what with the U.S. economy tanking like a Paris Hilton movie. So this Gadsden guy told a website called RotoExperts.com that he was leading an effort to, get this, set up a couple CFL franchises in places like Detroit or Rochester.

Our first thought was it made some sense. I mean, from what I'm told Detroit could really use a professional football team. Da-bomp-bom.

"Those are two great cities that would support the game and would really fill a niche if we can get agreements from the league, then one of the cities," Gadsden proposed. "With the AFL not active, there are some great players who deserve to be seen, and the time is right for CFL expansion back into the U.S. The league is more stable than ever."

Yes, Oronde, the CFL hasn't been this stable in some time. Thank-you for noticing. We're blushing.

In fact, it seems lightyears ago now when the league almost became ruined after AN ATTEMPT TO EXPAND INTO THE FREAKING UNITED STATES!!

Okay, so Mr. Gadsden might have some blind spots concerning CFL history. That's fine. And it's true that expansion money from the U.S. teams may have kept the CFL on life-support until the NFL bailed their northern cousin out with a $4-million loan.

But sorry to interrupt.

"You're going to get the best of both worlds," Gadsden continued. "You'll see players from Canada and American players who deserve their chance, too. With the World League of American Football (NFL Europe) gone too, you have two leagues not operating, and there are a lot of players chasing the dream. I know, because I came up through the AFL and ended up in the NFL."

"We're trying to put together a group of people from various backgrounds," he concluded. "We can learn from the pitfalls of others who have tried to do it, and make it a success. We'll play in 2009 if we can make it happen."

Again, we applaud Gadsden for effort. But perhaps someone should have told his group that, um, the CFL released it's 2009 schedule on Tuesday and I can't see anything on it that says when the Bombers will host the Rochester Americans. So let's assume that 2009 is out.

This might come as a surprise to some wannabe sports moguls in America, but starting a franchise, even in the teenie old CFL, takes a bit more than a few unemployed friends and a slightly larger football field.

Meanwhile, CFL spokesman Jamie Dykstra notified the Free Press on Wednesday that, "The CFL has not discussed the opportunity of U.S. expansion with this group. We have no interest in adding an expansion franchise in the United States. Our focus is on building our league in Canada."

Maybe I'm wrong, but methinks that's the polite Canadian way of saying, who the hell is Oronde Gadsden?

For the record, Gadsden is also a part owner of National Indoor Football League's Miami Morays. According to the RotoExperts.com story, Gadsden is confident he can make his vision of CFL expansion into the U.S. a reality by "drawing upon the past CFL expansion attempts and his own experiences."

Undoubtedly, the CFL will approach the subject of U.S. expansion the same way: By drawing on their past experiences. So good luck with that, Oronde.

But what resonates from Gadsden's "vision" is that, overshadowed by global recession, the professional football industry has lost a ton of jobs lately. They are the automobile manufacturers of professional sports.

That means from 2009 moving forward, the pool from which the CFL dips into for import players has suddenly become much deeper. Not just for this year, either, because the NFL's European experiment seems to have run it's course. And if the AFL was suspended due to the flagging U.S. economy, then one wonders just when they'll be playing football in hockey arenas again.

Maybe the demise of other professional leagues will have a negligable impact in Canada. But you've got to reason that, due to lack of options alone, the CFL will become the ultimate home of future stars now unknown. Heck, maybe the next Charles Roberts or Milt Stegall will find themselves in a Bombers uniform this summer with the death of the Rhein Fire and the suspension of operations of the Philadelphia Soul.

As for Oronde Gadsden, we sincerely wish him and his partners all the best in their valiant attempts to gain a CFL franchise in the U.S.

At least, over the Shreveport Pirates' dead bodies.

[Only The Lonely..]

Canada has divided loyalties over football. Poll suggests younger fans prefer Super Bowl

By: Dan Ralph | The Canadian Press

TORONTO -- Older Canadians in Western Canada prefer watching the Grey Cup while younger fans living in the East would rather take in the Super Bowl, a new poll suggests.
A Canadian Press-Harris-Decima survey says 53 per cent of people polled in Saskatchewan and Manitoba listed the Grey Cup as their game of choice compared to just four per cent for the Super Bowl. In Alberta, it was 41 per cent to five per cent in favour of the CFL game and in B.C., 23 per cent to six per cent.

But in Atlantic Canada, 26 per cent of those surveyed preferred the Super Bowl compared to 17 per cent for the Grey Cup. Opinion was split in Ontario and Quebec, where 17 per cent would rather watch the Grey Cup compared to 18 per cent for the Super Bowl in Quebec and 16 per cent in Ontario.

Nationwide, Canadians over 50 definitely had a preference for the Grey Cup, as 27 per cent listed it as their game of choice while just eight per cent chose the Super Bowl. But 26 per cent of those under the age of 35 would rather watch the NFL final compared to 17 per cent for the Grey Cup.

"The first thing I see when I see those numbers is there are a lot of football fans in Canada," said Jeff Walker, senior vice-president of Harris-Decima. "The other thing I see is while there is clearly a core of people who absolutely love the Grey Cup, the demographic of that group is very heavily weighted toward the Prairies and Western Canada in general and a sort of 50-plus demographic.

"Whereas when you look at the groups of people who have slightly more affinity for the Super Bowl, it's a younger demographic overall and we see in Ontario, Quebec and Eastern Canada slightly more saying they'd rather watch the Super Bowl than the Grey Cup."

Overall, 23 per cent preferred the Grey Cup, compared to 14 per cent for the Super Bowl. Fifteen per cent said they liked both equally while 48 per cent said they didn't watch either.

The survey was part of a national telephone survey of more than 1,000 people between Jan. 30 and Feb. 2.


-- The Canadian Press

[MrOilers]

The CFL has some good momentum in Canada at the moment, and I would hate to see it screw around with American cities again. TV ratings, sponsorship, and attendance are all really good right now and are continuing to get better. It would be nice to see the CFL expand to 2 extra teams in Canada (Quebec City? Halifax? Ottawa again?) and continue to make it a stronger league all around.


As for the second article.. maybe those 'Superbowl vs. Grey Cup' results are skewed to the younger crowd because the last few Superbowls have actually been good games? Remember, there was a stretch not too long ago where the Superbowl games were all blowouts and not even worth watching after the second quarter was finished. Younger fans won't remember those "Superbore" games.

Personally, I like both the NFL and CFL because I like football in general. I watch whatever game is on, but I prefer the CFL because I actually have a home team to cheer for and rivals to cheer against. I don't care who wins or loses in the NFL.

[Only The Lonely..]

Personally, I like both the NFL and CFL because I like football in general. I watch whatever game is on, but I prefer the CFL because I actually have a home team to cheer for and rivals to cheer against. I don't care who wins or loses in the NFL.

I feel the same way.

I love the Bombers, and wouldn't mind seeing the Vikings.

But, it's a different experience watching a league where your city has no stake in the outcome.

As a fan the passion just isn't there.

I can't relate to a game like the Texans vs the Steelers. Sometimes i'll watch it, but if a movie or something better comes on I'll usually flip the channel.


I also feel this way about the NHL since the Jets left.

[harls]

It would be nice to see the CFL expand to 2 extra teams in Canada (Quebec City? Halifax? Ottawa again?) and continue to make it a stronger league all around.

The CFL will be coming back to Ottawa, if the city and the would-be ownership get its act together in time (I think March is the deadline for an answer, and they want it to be extended to April).

[circle33]

It's about time Ontario got a team.




;)

[highdensitysprawl]

"The other thing I see is while there is clearly a core of people who absolutely love the Grey Cup, the demographic of that group is very heavily weighted toward the Prairies and Western Canada in general and a sort of 50-plus demographic.

"Overall, 23 per cent preferred the Grey Cup, compared to 14 per cent for the Super Bowl. Fifteen per cent said they liked both equally while 48 per cent said they didn't watch either.



I'm biassed on this, but I have no interest in the CFL or NFL....Ottawa has tried a number of times to keep a franchise going with limited success...isn't is time for the worlds most popular game to get a franchise.

When was the last time you saw kids playing football (the padded shoulders, helmets and nose tackles version) at your local park.

[Rico Rommheim]

isn't is time for the worlds most popular game to get a franchise.



Soccer should get a franchise?

[MolsonExport]

I don't give half a shit about the NFL (or the NBA for that matter). I gotta root for some team based in some city that I actually feel connected to. And for me, that usually means Montreal-based teams: The Habs, The Als, and (before they were gone), the Expos.

[Distill3d]

CFL is part of the Canadian identity. i would rather see the NFL annex the CFL then see the CFL expand into the States again.

[Jay in Cowtown]

I can't relate to a game like the Texans vs the Steelers.

:haha: I've gone to at least one Texans home game each season since 2005, not to mention Seattle, Phoenix & Denver as well.

Football is by far my favorite sport, and I watch both the NFL & CFL. I think the CFL would do its self a favor by moving their season back about a month and a half and not schedule games on Sunday after the NFL season starts...

I know this will start a war on here, but I'd rather see the CFL rules go to 4 down football. I doubt they'd lose many fans in Canada and they'd have a hell of alot easier time expanding into non NFL/NCAA markets in the states. I prefer 4 down football, always have, I know most people here will probably disagree, but that's my opinion.

[bomberguy]

I don't give half a shit about the NFL (or the NBA for that matter). I gotta root for some team based in some city that I actually feel connected to. And for me, that usually means Montreal-based teams: The Habs, The Als, and (before they were gone), the Expos.

So if the Habs and Als are gone... You wouldn't have anything to watch.

Poor guy.

[Distill3d]

I know this will start a war on here, but I'd rather see the CFL rules go to 4 down football. I doubt they'd lose many fans in Canada and they'd have a hell of alot easier time expanding into non NFL/NCAA markets in the states. I prefer 4 down football, always have, I know most people here will probably disagree, but that's my opinion.

i think there are a lot of NFL style rules i would bring into the CFL. 4 downs is just the tip of the iceberg with that though. next would be field width.

[MrOilers]

The CFL will be coming back to Ottawa, if the city and the would-be ownership get its act together in time (I think March is the deadline for an answer, and they want it to be extended to April).

Really? That would be nice.

What would be even nicer would be an owner who actually cared about the sport, and to see a stable resurrected Ottawa franchise (they better be called the 'Rough Riders' this time) that is competitive and develops a following.



THEN the league can work on trying to get a team in Halifax or Quebec City.

[Bedford_DJ]

I'd love to see the CFL expand into Quebec and Moncton or Halifax.

Unfortunately Halifax's mayor has issues with big stadium projects and refuses to even think of the idea of building a 25000 seat or so stadium.

Trying not to be biased here I say make a franchise in Ottawa and Quebec and then in four years time (when Kelly's kicked out) look into a Maritime expanison.

This is little known but Halifax actually had a team in the plans years ago but but the idea was ditched for some reason. We even had a scoreboard (i think) made up for the team, Atlantic Schooners.

Now where are those Monctonians and their magic numbers? ;)

[Nicko999]

So if the Habs and Als are gone... You wouldn't have anything to watch.

Poor guy.

Montreal Impact(best soccer team in Canada playing the quarter finals of the CONCACAF Champions League):tup:

But neither of those two teams will be gone.:)

[Beltliner]

Near as I can tell, Quebec, K-Dub, and the Maritimes are prime candidates as matters presently stand for East Division expansion. That said, I would not turn down a CFL side in Portland, or Rochester, or any place within reasonable distance of the forty-ninth that was fronted by people who understand the CFL's economics and business model.

Kstati which, Buffalo and Detroit can come on down! once the NFL decides come 2011 that a Premier League/"Continental" League promotion-and-relegation system is the only way outfits like Jacksonville and Kansas City can afford to be part of their show. ;)

[Rico Rommheim]

So if the Habs and Als are gone... You wouldn't have anything to watch.

Poor guy.

Why would the Habs and Als go?

[Only The Lonely..]

I know this will start a war on here, but I'd rather see the CFL rules go to 4 down football. I doubt they'd lose many fans in Canada and they'd have a hell of alot easier time expanding into non NFL/NCAA markets in the states. I prefer 4 down football, always have, I know most people here will probably disagree, but that's my opinion.

I like the three down game but here are a couple of things I would change with the CFL..

1.) No getting a point for missing a field goal.

2.) We would use the Americans more aerodynamic ball, instead of trying to throw around that sack of flour we call a CFL football.

3.) Push the uprights to the back of the endzone like they do on an NFL field. I know they're padded, but i've always thought that its a little dangerous to have the line of scrimmage on a goal line play happen next to this big medal post.

4.) Incorporate the old XFL cointoss where the players basically have to wrestle for the coin.

5.) The rest of the game is fine, and I much prefer the larger CFL field.

[Distill3d]

I like the three down game but here are a couple of things I would change with the CFL..

1.) No getting a point for missing a field goal.

2.) We would use the Americans more aerodynamic ball, instead of trying to throw around that sack of flour we call a CFL football.

3.) Push the uprights to the back of the endzone like they do on an NFL field. I know they're padded, but i've always thought that its a little dangerous to have the line of scrimmage on a goal line play happen next to this big medal post.

4.) Incorporate the old XFL cointoss where the players basically have to wrestle for the coin.

5.) The rest of the game is fine, and I much prefer the larger CFL field.

agreed! i've never understood why we have the goal post where it is, and why our balls had to be bigger. mind you, i've never understood why the NFL only has 100 yard fields instead of 110 yard fields...

[Only The Lonely..]

agreed! i've never understood why we have the goal post where it is, and why our balls had to be bigger. mind you, i've never understood why the NFL only has 100 yard fields instead of 110 yard fields...

If I could choose just one thing to change though it would be our ball..

I asked a family friend why he prefers NFL over CFL and he said plainly to me, "well because its nice to see a completed pass."

It had never dawned on me before, but he was right.

A lot more second guessing goes into trying to throw and catch a CFL ball..

You need that much more momentum to get it going and then the receiver needs to assume some level of drag in order to make the catch.

[bomberguy]

Why would the Habs and Als go?

They probably won't. But "anything is possible".

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/2590779946_1abddbde40.jpg

I'm just fucking saying if his home teams are all gone for whatever reason, he wouldn't have jack shit to watch. Seeing how he couldn't care less about any league that doesn't have a Montreal based team.

[mmmatt]

As far as expansion goes Moncton has a 18,000 seat stadium U/C as we speak that will be hosting CFL exhibition games next season.

Hopefully we will see a team in Atlantic Canada in the next 10 years, Hali or Moncton doesnt really matter, while Hali has more of a large direct market (those within 30mins-1hr drive) Moncton has more people within a 2 hour drive than Hali and is more central so its kinda up in the air. Honestly though I think we still have a long way to go before either city has a chance at a CFL team.

[Only The Lonely..]

As far as expansion goes Moncton has a 18,000 seat stadium U/C as we speak that will be hosting CFL exhibition games next season.


Really, do you know who's playing?


It would be cool if it were televised, but it being an exhibition it probably won't.

[mmmatt]

Really, do you know who's playing?


It would be cool if it were televised, but it being an exhibition it probably won't.

Not sure whos playing, and pardon me it actaully said "Regular season games" my mistake...here is an article:

Cohon has Moncton on his mind

Annual CFL Game

Sean Fitz-Gerald
National Post
Published: Saturday, November 22, 2008

MONTREAL - Canadian Football League commissioner Mark Cohon has expressed hope of staging a regular-season game in Moncton as early as the 2010 season, suggesting such a move could become an annual tradition, and a way of exploring "the future potential" of placing an expansion team in Atlantic Canada.

During his second annual state-of-the-league address yesterday in Montreal, Cohon said preliminary talks have been held with officials in Moncton, where construction has begun on a stadium for the 2010 IAAF world junior track and field championships. It will have about 10,000 permanent seats, but temporary bleachers might be able to double capacity for a CFL game.

"We are looking at an opportunity, in 2010, of, 'Can we do neutral-site, regular-season games out east and create an annual tradition?'" Cohon said. "With a stadium of that size, we think there's a real potential for us to do that, and to expand our reach across the country."

It will not be enough to house a CFL team personally. Cohon said teams require stadiums with at least 25,000 permanent seats, stressing that the league remains a gate-driven business.

"Expansion takes time," Cohon said. "This is all about stadium builds. If we had stadiums in those markets, we'd be much more aggressive in our time line. But you have to build stadiums. And in this economic time period, I think that's a sell that will take a lot longer."

Quebec City has also been mentioned as a potential expansion site, but it too needs a stadium

The only city with a chance of joining the league within the next five years, Cohon said, is Ottawa, which has been without a team since the Renegades folded after the 2005 season. A group led by Ottawa 67's owner Jeff Hunt is leading the charge to bring the CFL back.

Cohon touted the CFL's overall health, saying the league drew more than two million fans for the seventh straight year. The average attendance (28,914) was among the highest in history.

With that relative prosperity in mind, he said the league would focus on implementing the much-discussed drug-testing plan within the next two years. The CFL's collective bargaining agreement with its players expires in 2010.

Cohon's media conference was cut short when a television cameraman from The Score collapsed during a question-and-answer period. He was alert when paramedics removed him from the hotel conference room, and a league official said his prognosis was good.

Cohon finished his remarks in another room down the hall.

During his remarks, he said the league was "well positioned" as the world's economy continued to crumble.

"You look at economic cycles, those companies that tend to be aggressive during down times tend to come out much better," Cohon said. "I think we will weather this storm. We are conscious of it, but we are also guardedly optimistic that the league will come out stronger when we all come out from under the cloud which is facing Canada, and the world."

sfitzgerald@nationalpost.com


This article (http://www.nationalpost.com/related/topics/story.html?id=983322)
Same story from CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2008/11/21/nb-cfl-moncton.html)

[MrOilers]

I like the three down game but here are a couple of things I would change with the CFL..

1.) No getting a point for missing a field goal.

2.) We would use the Americans more aerodynamic ball, instead of trying to throw around that sack of flour we call a CFL football.

3.) Push the uprights to the back of the endzone like they do on an NFL field. I know they're padded, but i've always thought that its a little dangerous to have the line of scrimmage on a goal line play happen next to this big medal post.

4.) Incorporate the old XFL cointoss where the players basically have to wrestle for the coin.

5.) The rest of the game is fine, and I much prefer the larger CFL field.

1) The point isn't for missing a field goal, the point is for downing a kicked ball in the opposition's end zone. They can always run or kick the ball back out if they don't want to give up the point. Personally, I love the single point - it makes the special teams (especially cover and return teams) more important.

3) The NFL only put their goalposts back of the end zones in the 1970s because the USFL tried it and teams kicked fewer field goals and tried harder to score touchdowns (because it's too easy and a lot safer to just take the points by kicking a field goal for the highly-conservative 4-down football coaches). CFL end zones are 20 yards deep. If you put the goalposts back there, the convert after a touchdown becomes a 32-yard field goal. :haha:

[Only The Lonely..]

CFL end zones are 20 yards deep. If you put the goalposts back there, the convert after a touchdown becomes a 32-yard field goal. :haha:

It wouldn't have to be at the very back. But I don't think it belongs at the goal line either..

[Rico Rommheim]

They probably won't. But "anything is possible".

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/2590779946_1abddbde40.jpg

I'm just fucking saying if his home teams are all gone for whatever reason, he wouldn't have jack shit to watch. Seeing how he couldn't care less about any league that doesn't have a Montreal based team.

Nor do I or most people, what's your point?

[MolsonExport]

So if the Habs and Als are gone... You wouldn't have anything to watch.

Poor guy.


well, that was a wonderful reply. Gimme a break.

[MolsonExport]

They probably won't. But "anything is possible".

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/2590779946_1abddbde40.jpg

I'm just fucking saying if his home teams are all gone for whatever reason, he wouldn't have jack shit to watch. Seeing how he couldn't care less about any league that doesn't have a Montreal based team.

Yeah, so what? And you like the Bombers because....

Winnipeg - The greatest city in the world.

oh, because you live in Winnipeg?

[MonctonRad]

CFL sees future in N.B.
Published Saturday February 7th, 2009

League games to form centrepiece of annual events
By Jesse Robichaud
Times & Transcript Staff

The Canadian Football League is rumbling slowly but surely toward Moncton en route to its goal of becoming a truly coast-to-coast circuit.

http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=244722&size=500x0
Ian Fowler, left, of Moncton's Recreation, Parks, Tourism and Culture department; Mark Cohon, CFL commissioner; Chris Collins, Moncton East MLA; and Rob Assimakopolous, the CFL's senior vice-president of marketing and commercial assets, visit the new stadium under construction at l'Universite de Moncton.

CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon was in Moncton yesterday meeting with Mayor George LeBlanc and staff after meeting with Premier Shawn Graham at his office in Fredericton.

They discussed the creation a new annual weekend celebration of football in Moncton that could kick off as soon as fall 2010.

The annual weekend would revolve around a regular season CFL game between two rivals, a high-profile university football match that would draw students from across the Maritimes, and likely quite a bit of tailgate revelling.

"We see it as an opportunity to expand our base and use it as a platform to really celebrate football, trying to make the league coat to coast," said Cohon.

"We are looking at a multi-year commitment to try to bring a regular season game out here, and really create a fun weekend around it "¦ create a mini Grey Cup," said Cohon.

In addition to the new stadium that is currently under construction on the Université de Moncton campus, Cohon said the CFL is drawn to Moncton by the popularity of football east of Quebec, and Moncton's ability to draw fans from across the region.

"In talking to the premier and the mayor it is a great city for pulling for events because you can pull from PEI, you can pull from Halifax and across New Brunswick."

Premier Shawn Graham and Moncton-East Liberal MLA Chris Collins travelled to Montreal last fall to meet with Cohon and CFL team owners during last fall's Grey Cup to discuss bringing CFL football to Moncton.

Graham said yesterday that the Atlantic Bowl fits into his government's vision of Moncton as the entertainment hub of Atlantic Canada.

"The fact that the commissioner has taken time out of his schedule to be here speaks volumes for his commitment of trying to develop and Atlantic Bowl that is going to be positioned in Moncton."

Graham said each level of government has a role to play in making the event happen. He said there is still plenty of preparatory work to do, but he said the payoff is worth the investment.

"The tourism revenue that would be generated, plus the promotional material having TSN here for a weekend event promoting the region, you can't buy that kind of coverage," said Graham.

"The fact that CFL is looking at establishing a toe hold in Atlantic Canada and is choosing Moncton I think is a pretty exciting time."

The City of Moncton's major event czar, Ian Fowler, said there was much progress made in yesterday's discussions.

He said it is just a matter of time before the Atlantic Bowl becomes a reality.

"As Mayor LeBlanc has indicated to the commissioner he is most interested in moving this forward," said Fowler.

"With the support of our local MLAs this is going to become a reality."

Fowler said there are still many details and numbers to work out, but he said the political will is firmly in place.

"The important thing step is there is a commitment form the CFL, there is a commitment form the Province of New Brunswick, and there is a commitment from the City of Moncton," said Fowler.

"The will is there and everybody wants to make this happen so we as staff have some work to do."

As for fans who dream of a CFL team that Moncton can call its own, Cohon said it is best to take the growing partnership one step at a time.

"Let's walk before we run," said Cohon with a quick smile.

"I think this is great way for us to build a base. Obviously there are issues and opportunities we would have to address. Most of our stadiums have 30,000 seats."

The stadium that is currently being built on the U de M campus will have 10,000 permanent seats with capability to add 10,000 more temporary seats.

Cohon has made it clear that said the league is in a position to look at expanding as stadium attendance and television ratings have climbed in recent years.

[lubicon]

1) The point isn't for missing a field goal, the point is for downing a kicked ball in the opposition's end zone. They can always run or kick the ball back out if they don't want to give up the point. Personally, I love the single point - it makes the special teams (especially cover and return teams) more important.

3) The NFL only put their goalposts back of the end zones in the 1970s because the USFL tried it and teams kicked fewer field goals and tried harder to score touchdowns (because it's too easy and a lot safer to just take the points by kicking a field goal for the highly-conservative 4-down football coaches). CFL end zones are 20 yards deep. If you put the goalposts back there, the convert after a touchdown becomes a 32-yard field goal. :haha:

Not quite. You also get a single for kicking the ball through the endzone and this is where I have the biggest problem with the rule. I can live with a single point as long as it is conceded (by taking a knee or getting tackled in the endzone). Change the rule to allow a single point only if it is conceded and i am OK with it. You should not be rewarded for failure - kick the ball through the endzone by missing a 20 yard field goal should not result in a point.

[Nicko999]

The futur of the CFL... Jamel Richardson
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0abL89ldJN4kQ/340x.jpg

Richardson spurns Vikings to stay in Montreal

"Minnesota's offer wasn't opportunity-only, but it wasn't enough to roll the dice. Jamel has a great situation in Montreal."


Ok seriously, the CFL should expand to at least 12 teams... 1 in the Maritimes(Moncton?), 1 in Quebec City, 1 in Ottawa, 1 in Saskatoon or Victoria!

This way the league will be more competitive.

[Nathan]

The futur of the CFL... Jamel Richardson
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0abL89ldJN4kQ/340x.jpg






Ok seriously, the CFL should expand to at least 12 teams... 1 in the Maritimes(Moncton?), 1 in Quebec City, 1 in Ottawa, 1 in Saskatoon or Victoria!

This way the league will be more competitive.

Won't work until Regina and Saskatoon grow a lot more. At the current stage they are just too small to each support teams.

[isaidso]

Won't work until Regina and Saskatoon grow a lot more. At the current stage they are just too small to each support teams.

At first glance, I agree. When analyzing it further, they're not too far off from being able to each support a team. The Roughriders get 31,000/game drawing from across the province. They'd probably be able to draw 35,000 if Taylor Field was bigger and modernized.

I'm assuming that interest is strong throughout Saskatchewan. If that's true, there's at least another 15,000 in Saskatoon who would go to games, but don't make the trip to Regina. Saskatoon's actually the larger city. That's potentially about 50,000 fans/game all together. If you put a team in Saskatoon, Rider attendance might plummet to 25,000, but you'd get a similar crowd in Saskatoon.

That's only 4,000 below the CFL average attendance. Does anyone know roughly how many people at Rider games are from Saskatoon and areas close to Saskatoon? I'm sure the Riders have done studies on their fan base.

The CFL's goal by 2020 should be a minimum of 12-14 teams. 2006 census figures for the metropolitan areas are in brackets. I've put the best candidates for expansion in bold:

EAST:
Toronto
Hamilton
Montreal
Ottawa (1,130,761)
Quebec City (715,515)
Halifax (372,858)
Windsor (323,342)

WEST:
Winnipeg
Saskatchewan
Edmonton
Calgary
BC
Victoria (330,088)
Kelowna (162,276)

The case for Ottawa: History of football goes right back to the beginning. Size of population.
The case for Quebec City: The surging interest in football. Montreal-Quebec City rivalry. Size of population.
The case for Halifax: To create a truly national league. College football is a big deal here. It's fertile ground for the CFL.
The case for Windsor: A very strong sporting culture due to proximity to Michigan. 5 million people across the Detroit River.
The case for Victoria: Vancouver Island has a population of 800,000. No competition from other pro sports.
The case for Kelowna: The Okanagan Valley is only home to 350,000 but is affluent and growing rapidly. No competition from other pro sports.

Other potential cities are Saskatoon, Abbotsford, London, KW, Mississauga, Laval, and Moncton.

[craner]

:previous: good post - I agree with most of it although I would replace Windsor with London as a more likely expansion site. Kelowna is kind of a dark horse I'd love to see happen.
By 2020 I sure hope we have Ottawa, QC, and Halifax at a minimum. Plus new or upgraded stadia in most of the existing cities.:tup:

[Nicko999]

A little bit off-topic but since it's a CFL thread...
Calvillo back with Alouettes for 2009 season

Quarterback Anthony Calvillo is ready to defend his CFL most outstanding player title in 2009.

The 11-year Alouettes veteran told reporters at a media luncheon in Montreal on Tuesday that he has signed a one-year contract with an option for the 2010 season.

Calvillo, 36, said his wife Alexia is officially in remission from her B-cell lymphoma diagnosed in October 2007.

The 15-year CFLer has repeatedly said he wants to continue playing with Montreal, but only if his wife is in good health.

Late in the 2007 season, Calvillo left the Alouettes to be with his wife and only returned last year after she reacted positively to radiation treatments.

"I think with this disease the closure is not going to be there for a while," Calvillo said. "Talking to her doctors it was very clear the cancer is not there but there is still a slim chance there's a potential of it coming back."

Calvillo's wife said they've spent the past few months doing some soul-searching and thinking about life while awaiting the results of a PET scan.

"We were just hoping and praying that the scan came back clear and it did so we're really, really excited," she said.

Calvillo topped the CFL a year ago in passing yards (5,624), touchdown passes (43), pass attempts (682), completions (472) and passer rating (107.2), leading Montreal (11-7) to first place in the East.

He completed 29 of 38 passes for 352 yards and two interceptions in a 22-14 loss to Calgary in the 96th Grey Cup game at Montreal's Olympic Stadium.

"I wish I could tell you I'm going to be here for the next two years and finish up my contract and hopefully sometime after that, but I'm always going to sit down and evaluate," Calvillo said.

"Playing for this long, physically or mentally it definitely takes its toll."

The Los Angeles native began his CFL career with the now-defunct Las Vegas Posse in 1994, then went to Hamilton the following year in a league dispersal draft.

The six-foot-one, 190-pound Calvillo signed with Montreal as a free agent in 1998 and has been with the Alouettes since, leading them to six Grey Cup appearances since 2000, but just one win, in 2002.

[Distill3d]

The case for Ottawa: History of football goes right back to the beginning. Size of population.
The case for Quebec City: The surging interest in football. Montreal-Quebec City rivalry. Size of population.
The case for Halifax: To create a truly national league. College football is a big deal here. It's fertile ground for the CFL.
The case for Windsor: A very strong sporting culture due to proximity to Michigan. 5 million people across the Detroit River.
The case for Victoria: Vancouver Island has a population of 800,000. No competition from other pro sports.
The case for Kelowna: The Okanagan Valley is only home to 350,000 but is affluent and growing rapidly. No competition from other pro sports.

Other potential cities are Saskatoon, Abbotsford, London, KW, Mississauga, Laval, and Moncton.

i absolutely agree. Kelowna should be on the CFL radar.

[Acajack]

:previous: good post - I agree with most of it although I would replace Windsor with London as a more likely expansion site. Kelowna is kind of a dark horse I'd love to see happen.
By 2020 I sure hope we have Ottawa, QC, and Halifax at a minimum. Plus new or upgraded stadia in most of the existing cities.:tup:

Ottawa has already been granted a conditional franchise, though they have some stadium issues to resolve and must do so pretty quickly. Anyway, whatever happens in this round of the saga, Ottawa’s still a no-brainer for the CFL and the league will be back there sooner than later.

Next, you gotta go with Quebec City and somewhere in Atlantic Canada. Halifax looks better from a metro population perspective but there are some other factors that in Moncton’s favour (new, expandable stadium, more central location in the Maritimes, etc.). I don’t really care where it is, but the CFL definitely needs at team in the Maritimes.

Southern Ontario as a CFL market is still too shaky to justify putting another team down there. I think people in other areas of Canada might be surprised at how much indifference to and lack of knowledge of the CFL there is in much of the region, especially in the southwestern area from London to Windsor. Putting a CFL team down there would be close to a “pioneering” operation, believe me.

Not sure about Southern Interior BC in the Kelowna-Kamloops area. As far as I can see the population of the broader region is something like 700,000. Is it easy to get around or does the geography hinder intraregional travel? This would be a big factor in how much of the market a CFL club could draw upon.

[Ayreonaut]

Vernon (~55,000) is only about 25-30 minutes from Kelowna, Penticton isn't too far to the South of Kelowna, and I could easily see people from Kamloops going to games as well. People might even come from as far as Salmon Arm to go to CFL games in Kelowna. I'm almost certain a team would work in the Okanagan.

[Acajack]

Vernon (~55,000) is only about 25-30 minutes from Kelowna, Penticton isn't too far to the South of Kelowna, and I could easily see people from Kamloops going to games as well. People might even come from as far as Salmon Arm to go to CFL games in Kelowna. I'm almost certain a team would work in the Okanagan.

Thanks for the insight. Sounds like good potential there, though I still think they’ll be looking east first. Not an anti-west thing, but just because the east is where the league needs some shoring up of its image and presence.

The CFL already has a good, stable club base in the west and is well-established in people’s hearts and minds there. Not so much in the east, even in certain areas that do have teams already.

[LeftCoaster]

The other problem with a Kelowna team is a lack of corporate presence. kelowna is quite a bit like Phoenix in that way... it is just full of retirees and would struggle to find corporate support.

[Distill3d]

^thats the only problem with the region.

[LeftCoaster]

well that and cold winters and a distinct lack of ocean.

[Distill3d]

yeah, but we're talking about getting a CFL team LOL

[kirjtc2]

The case for Windsor: A very strong sporting culture due to proximity to Michigan. 5 million people across the Detroit River.


And it would be the best football team in the area.

[Only The Lonely..]

I recognize that both examples (The Minnesota Vikings / Wpg Blue Bombers) are extremes. But I wonder how likely or easy it would it be to construct an adequate CFL stadium in each of the above markets?

Source: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?p=4081173#post4081173

30,000 expandable to 45,000 seems right. I hope they have the 45,000 seat configuration for the first Bomber game. New stadiums tend to draw big crowds for the first year as people want to satisfy their curiosity.

If the Bombers market the whole thing well, you could even see the Bombers lead the attendance figures for the whole league in that inaugural year. There's nothing like a big, loud, noisy crowd to add to the allure of the whole experience. Looks like Winnipeg's a go. Now let's get Ottawa, Quebec City, and Halifax on board with new facilities as well.

Just read an article today about the Vikings potential new stadium. The cost has increased quite a bit, they are now looking at $1 billion. It's just mind boggling. Certainly puts our little project in perspective. And they are just finishing up a brand new stadium for the University of Minnesota football team that far exceeds the Bomber's plan.

[isaidso]

I recognize that both examples (The Minnesota Vikings / Wpg Blue Bombers) are extremes. But I wonder how likely or easy it would it be to construct an adequate CFL stadium in each of the above markets?


There's no question that money for football stadia is far easier to raise in the US.

[wild wild west]

/\Even if we did have the same fund-raising mechanisms as US cities do (county sales taxes, bonds, etc.) I don't think there is the same appetite for public-sector involvement in sporting infrastructure here as there is there. It doesn't help that whenever public funds are diverted to stadia here, financial disaster often ensues (Big Owe, SkyDome, etc.), but I would like to see at least a bit more public sector involvement in this area.

[lubicon]

For those who may be interested, if you go to www.cfl.ca/rules you can enter in any rule changes you would like to see implemented in the CFL. It closes Feb. 27.

[wild wild west]

Interesting. I just hope we keep 3 downs!

[MrOilers]

For those who may be interested, if you go to www.cfl.ca/rules you can enter in any rule changes you would like to see implemented in the CFL.

I propose that the kicker on each team needs to wear a cape.

[mmmbeer12]

February 28, 2009
Another CFL team in Saskatchewan?
By ERIC FRANCIS

Eight years ago, Brett Wilson prepared to die.

Diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer, the man who always had a plan suddenly didn't.

So he made one.

"It's certainly a humbling experience to sit down and write out what you expect your funeral to look like," said the 51-year-old Calgary entrepreneur, Dragon's Den panelist and budding sports mogul.

"Who the key people I wanted to be involved and what I wanted my kids to hear and say ... I wrote out part of my epitaph, too."

He then stood up, closed the book on death and focused on living. And while his never-ending list of business ventures continues to grow, so does his unquenchable thirst for sports and entertainment properties.

Making a splash last week by telling the Sun he has a handshake agreement to buy a piece of the Nashville Predators, the longtime investment banker is sure to turn more heads this week with his thoughts on adding a second CFL team in Saskatchewan.

"(CFL commissioner) Mark Cohon and I have had coffee a couple times and I love what he's trying to do in terms of building that brand, but Ottawa is too far away and Halifax doesn't make sense to me," said the native of North Battleford, Sask., when asked of interest in the CFL.

"But if they ever thought about letting Saskatoon have a team, I'd sure like to partner with the group that buys that. I know that would burn a few bridges in the north and south. The reality is the fan base in southern Saskatchewan is strong enough to support the 'Riders. Could it be divided and could a second team survive there? Oh, there'd be some kicking and squawking and screaming, but you know, once upon a time a group of scientists were certain the world was flat and they were proven wrong. I think it could be done."

That said, the University of Saskatchewan grad insists he isn't spending any time on the concept, which is completely believable given how little time the well-healed businessman, father, philanthropist and sports fan must have for anything.

Buying the biggest chunk of Derby County Football Club in England last year to go with his minor league baseball outfit in Jackson, Tenn., Wilson's ever-expanding empire also includes a partnership with Canadian country singer Beverley Mahood.

Wilson, who inquired about buying into both the Oilers and the Flames, has had a blast attending several Derby matches.

"Derby County has been a hilarious, fascinating, interesting run," said Wilson, who seeks only to be a part of the sports action, as opposed to running the teams. "If you want fun factor and excitement, I got it with that team."

Although gaining a reputation as one of the nation's most active entrepreneurs, he wants to be known for several other things, which he will outline when he shares his story at the Power Within seminar Tuesday at the Convention Centre, where he'll sub in for Michael Phelps alongside others like Martin Sheen and Mahood.

"I've had to re-prioritize my life. At one time, it would have been pretty obvious my top-ten priorities would have been business, money, business, wealth, money, business, business, business ... And the reason I was doing that was to provide for my family. How screwed up is that?," said Wilson, whose work ethic damaged his now-defunct marriage and his early relationship with his three kids.

"Kids don't care how many businesses you own. Now, my priorities are my health first, family second, friends third. Until you take care of the first three, what's the point of living?"

With a clean bill of health, the zestful investor now works tirelessly on that balance while accruing sports properties he calls "the fun stuff" and giving back to the community.

The economic downturn has done little to slow him down.

"The world is on sale right now," declared Wilson. "I don't have enough cash to do all the things I'd like to do right now, but I'm very bullish on what the next five years hold."

Suddenly, so might be the folks in Saskatoon.

© Copyright (c) The Calgary Sun

[sdimedru]

So would we then be left with Regina Roughriders and Saskatoon xxxxxxxx?

[Distill3d]

So would we then be left with Regina Roughriders and Saskatoon xxxxxxxx?

i was thinking the Regina Rough and the Saskatoon Riders

[Ruckus]

i was thinking the Regina Rough and the Saskatoon Riders

Regina Roughriders (as they were in the early years) is the best fit for Regina.

Saskatoon Stalwarts, or Saskatoon Stallions. I would prefer a name beginning with the letter 'S', simply sounds and feels stronger.

I'd be quite surprised if anything came of all this Saskatoon CFL talk.

[isaidso]

Not an anti-west thing, but just because the east is where the league needs some shoring up of its image and presence.


I agree, but the CFL also needs to build the league to the point where it can prosper and become a dominant part of the culture without support in Toronto. One only need to look to Australia to see that it is possible to achieve even without much interest in the largest city.

The Australian Football League is a 16 team league where an astonishing 10 teams are from the State of Victoria; 9 of them in Melbourne. As recently as 1982, the league consisted of only 12 teams, all of them from the State of Victoria. It was only in 1982 that Sydney got its very first team. It remains the only team, not only in Sydney, but the entire state of New South Wales. Aussie football is growing in popularity in Sydney, but the importance of this sport and the AFL has never relied on Sydney to attain the lofty position it holds in Australian sporting culture.

If the AFL can boom and dominate Australia without Sydney, the CFL can do the same in Canada. Not only is this doable, but it may be necessary. Not only has Toronto abandoned Canada's domestic football league, but there are very small early signs of them doing the same to hockey as well.

[isaidso]

My fantasy CFL circa 2030:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division
Halifax (pop. 500,000 by 2030, finally gets a stadium built and franchise prospers from day 1, rivalry with Moncton)
Quebec City (pop. 1,000,000 by 2030; football booms in Quebec, 40,000 seat stadium built at UL)
Moncton (pop. 200,000 by 2030; turns into another Regina, Saskatchewan)
Montreal (pop. 4,800,000 by 2030; Molson Stadium is expanded to 45,000 and always sells out)
Laval (pop. 500,000 by 2030; north Montreal city capitalizes on huge football interest in Montreal)
Ottawa (pop. 1,600,000 by 2030; Lansdowne Park redevelopment is a success, stadium expanded to 45,000)

Great Lakes Divsion
Toronto (pop. 9,000,000 by 2030; franchise becomes stronger, but CFL no longer needs Toronto to prosper)
Mississauga (pop. 1,000,000 by 2030; capitalize on fierce rivalry with Toronto, Hazel still alive at does ceremonial kickoff)
Hamilton (pop. 1,100,000 by 2030; starts growing rapidly due to proximity to Toronto, new 50,000 seat stadium)
Waterloo (pop. 800,000 by 2030; rich fast growing tech region, stadium built at U of W)
Windsor (pop. 400,000 by 2030; capitalize on strong sporting culture and proximity to Detroit)
Buffalo (conditional on the Bills leaving for another US city, posts the league's highest average attendance at 73,967)

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Great Plains Division
Winnipeg (pop. 1,000,000 by 2030; new Bombers stadium is permanently kept at 45,000 due to sell outs)
Calgary (pop. 1,800,000 by 2030; new 65,000 seat stadium)
Edmonton (pop. 1,600,000 by 2030; Commonwealth Stadium sells out on a regular basis)
Regina (pop. 250,000 by 2030; new 45,000 seat stadium always sold out)
Saskatoon (pop. 350,000 by 2030; fierce rivalry with Regina, 45,000 seat stadium built at U of S)
Ft. McMurray (pop. 350,000 by 2030; oil boom town; capitalize on entertainment starved, heavily male demographic)

Pacific Division
BC (pop. 3,600,000 by 2030, renovated BC Place a hit with fans, always sold out)
Victoria (pop. 600,000 by 2030, play at historic Royal Athletic Park)
Kelowna (pop. 400,000 by 2030; rich Okanagan city with a mushrooming population)
Abbotsford (pop. 500,000 by 2030; fast growing Lower Mainland city; rivalry with BC Lions)
Anchorage (pop. 700,000 by 2030; one of the fastest growing metros in the US; gets over looked, but fertile ground for CFL)

[theman23]

My fantasy CFL circa 2030:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division
Halifax
Quebec City
Moncton
Montreal
Laval
Ottawa

Great Lakes Divsion
Toronto
Mississauga
Hamilton
Waterloo
Windsor
Buffalo

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Great Plains Division
Winnipeg
Calgary
Edmonton
Regina
Saskatoon
Ft. McMurray

Pacific Division
BC
Victoria
Kelowna
Abbotsford
Anchorage

Funny! With a league this big, I might even get to play in the CFL some day. We'd be well on our way to creating the world's most ambitous beer league.

[Urban_Genius]

You see, that`s one thing that I love about the CFL. I can watch every single game, know the teams inside an out, etc. Personally I think it`s great! I`d love to see Ottawa get back in the fold as well as Quebec City or the Maritimes. Having said that I think 10 teams is perfect. To me alot of teams doesn`t equate to a better product. In fact if I could wave my magic wand, the NHL wouldn`t be a 30 team circuit.

[isaidso]

You see, that`s one thing that I love about the CFL. I can watch every single game, know the teams inside an out, etc. Personally I think it`s great! I`d love to see Ottawa get back in the fold as well as Quebec City or the Maritimes. Having said that I think 10 teams is perfect. To me alot of teams doesn`t equate to a better product. In fact if I could wave my magic wand, the NHL wouldn`t be a 30 team circuit.

10 isn't enough. 16 teams is about as small as a league should go otherwise you keep playing the same teams over and over and over. Having only 8 teams is one of the biggest negatives with the CFL. Only going to 10 teams would mean that certain regions would still go without: the Maritimes? the Okanagan? Vancouver Island? How about a compromise? You could still know every team in your division or conference inside and out in a 23 team league.

I do agree that once a league gets up to 30, it's too much. The NHL? Well that's really a US league with 6 Canadian teams. You've basically got a situation where two-thirds of the country is watching from the sidelines. People overseas get absolutely floored when I tell them that there are only 6 Canadian teams in the NHL. They expected that hockey mad Canada would surely not settle for less than 16-20.

Funny! With a league this big, I might even get to play in the CFL some day. We'd be well on our way to creating the world's most ambitous beer league.

For a nation that will have more than 40 million people by 2030, I'd hardly call a league with 23 teams ambitious. If you look at leagues around the world, most have about 20 teams. England, population 48 million, has 20 just in the Premiership. Then they have tons of teams in division 1, division 2, etc. Australia has 16 teams in the Australian Football League, and they only have 21 million people.

If you really want to play, you'd have to try out just like everyone else. You realize you'd be up against players from 27 college teams in Canada, 300+ NCAA schools, and the odd talent from outside the US and Canada? Better start practicing.

Btw, I like that jersey in your icon. Who are the 'Maple Leafs'? Baseball? I've seen the Maple Leafs play at Christie Pits, but don't recognize that logo.

[lubicon]

TORONTO - The Canadian Football League will consider three rule changes proposed by fans when the league's rules committee holds its annual winter meeting this week.

The league received more than 1,000 letters and e-mails when commissioner Mark Cohon issued a call for fan input into the process. The league will consider three fan suggestions for discussion: changes to converts, safeties and the controversial single point.

Fans complained convert kicks after touchdowns are automatic and statistics back them up: kickers have a 99.5 per cent success rate.

"We don't want our fans going to get popcorn or a hot dog because it's just an automatic play," CFL officiating director Tom Higgins said.

Higgins said the committee could consider moving the ball back five yards on point after attempts.

Higgins said many fans felt there's not enough of a downside to conceding a safety, and that the league might look at having the conceding team kick from its own 20-yard line instead of its 35.

As for the single, many fans feel rewarding a point when the receiving team fails to run a kick or missed field goal out of the end zone isn't fair and should be scrapped.

Higgins sees the point of all three proposed changes but isn't predicting any bold predictions will be made to the league's board of governors.

"I don't expect anything big because we're traditionalists," he said. "But anything's possible."

(Toronto Star)

[MrOilers]

Higgins said many fans felt there's not enough of a downside to conceding a safety, and that the league might look at having the conceding team kick from its own 20-yard line instead of its 35.


I like this one a lot. Too many teams simply give up the safety instead of punting the ball from their own goal line, and the defense doesn't really get rewarded for pinning the opposition deep.

But if teams are forced to kick from their own 20 after giving up the safety, that might force them to punt more often.

[theman23]

If you really want to play, you'd have to try out just like everyone else. You realize you'd be up against players from 27 college teams in Canada, 300+ NCAA schools, and the odd talent from outside the US and Canada? Better start practicing.

The point is that eventually over-expansion will result in a dilution of talent, something the CFL isn't exactly teeming with at the moment. I don't really care either way, but your fantasy would probably be a disaster for the league.

Btw, I like that jersey in your icon. Who are the 'Maple Leafs'? Baseball? I've seen the Maple Leafs play at Christie Pits, but don't recognize that logo.
Uh-huh.

[mr.x]

http://bcplacestadium.com/images/roofinterior.jpg

2011 Grey Cup coming to Vancouver

By Mike Beamish, Vancouver Sun
February 26, 2009 6:01 PM

A Grey Cup festival culminating with the CFL championship game in 2011 will be the next feature event at a refurbished B.C. Place Stadium following the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Premier Gordon Campbell and B.C. Lions owner David Braley will make the announcement at a joint press conference Friday morning in downtown Vancouver.

The Lions last played host to Grey Cup festival in 2005, when the Vancouver economy received a $40-million jolt from visitor spending, according to Tourism Vancouver.

Vancouver's successful 2011 application represents the third straight year the Grey Cup game has been awarded to a city in Western Canada.

Edmonton was just named host of the 2010 Grey Cup, and Calgary is the site of this year’s game.

mbeamish@vancouversun.com
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

http://www.vancouversun.com/Travel/2011+Grey+coming+Vancouver/1333144/story.html


http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/8936/84899419hy9.jpg

http://img359.imageshack.us/img359/1705/1865432ty8.jpg

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/245/1654213uv6.jpg

[Bedford_DJ]

^I thought the Grey Cup was supposed to alternate between the East and West every year. :shrug:

Not that it matters anyways. The "East" region of the CFL isn't even in the true east.

[Rico Rommheim]

^I thought the Grey Cup was supposed to alternate between the East and West every year. :shrug:

Not that it matters anyways. The "East" region of the CFL isn't even in the true east.

And that's been true for to long now. Quebec City is a football MAD town. I'd say that its canada's most passionate football market after Saskatchewan.


The rivalry between The Als and a Quebec team alone could make the CFL onr of the most successful pro leagues in history!!!!

[rrskylar]

Near as I can tell, Quebec, K-Dub, and the Maritimes are prime candidates as matters presently stand for East Division expansion. That said, I would not turn down a CFL side in Portland, or Rochester, or any place within reasonable distance of the forty-ninth that was fronted by people who understand the CFL's economics and business model.

Kstati which, Buffalo and Detroit can come on down! once the NFL decides come 2011 that a Premier League/"Continental" League promotion-and-relegation system is the only way outfits like Jacksonville and Kansas City can afford to be part of their show. ;)


Did you not hear that the NFL has an equalization policy where television revenue is evenly distributed among all teams, it never occurred to you that a city the size of Green Bay can have an equally competitive team as one in New York or Chicago!

[isaidso]

The point is that eventually over-expansion will result in a dilution of talent, something the CFL isn't exactly teeming with at the moment. I don't really care either way, but your fantasy would probably be a disaster for the league.

Uh-huh.

If it was implemented now, you're definitely right that it would be a disaster. My fantasy CFL situation was circa 2030 if everything went right for Canada and the league over the next 21 years. It was all under the assumption that there would be population growth in all the right areas, an expertly and professionally run league that made no mistakes, and the nurturing of football from the grass roots up that led to a boom in the sport nationally.

Of course, the CFL would be lucky if half the teams I propose came to fruition, but it was a fantasy scenario where everything that could go right, went right.

And that's been true for to long now. Quebec City is a football MAD town. I'd say that its canada's most passionate football market after Saskatchewan.


The rivalry between The Als and a Quebec team alone could make the CFL onr of the most successful pro leagues in history!!!!

I agree that the CFL really needs to work diligently so that Quebec City is brought into the fold. Most passionate after Saskatchewan? I'd say they're tied with Halifax for that honour. Let's remember that Quebec City is twice the size of Halifax. Laval has been getting 10,000+ fans for a number of years now. Saint Mary's has been drawing large football crowds for 3 decades and is arguably the #1 sports franchise in all of Atlantic Canada.

SMU crowds are listed at about 3,000+, but I don't think they count everyone in that number. I went to SMU homecoming last season and the stadium was, as usual every Friday night, quite full. Huskies Stadium holds 9,000! SMU football is easily as big a deal in Halifax as Laval football is in Quebec City.

GO SMU! Block that punt! College football is part of the culture there. SMU football is front page news in Halifax.
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000615.jpg?t=1224813242

Lots of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean students at this game.
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000616.jpg?t=1224814121

SMU is a national football powerhouse. Haligonians love their Huskies
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000599-1.jpg?t=1224811920

This is one of the few places in Canada where hockey is NOT #1. Hockey isn't even #2.
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000601.jpg?t=1224812068

Looks like another packed house. This stadium holds more people than actually go to this school.
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000613.jpg?t=1224813553

[Bedford_DJ]

^He's right. The SMU sports teams draw in massive crowds. You can hear the shouting for blocks around the sites on Friday nights.

I beg to differ about the placement of hockey though. Football is the most popular there but it is followed by hockey unless there's another sport I don't know about.

[isaidso]

^He's right. The SMU sports teams draw in massive crowds. You can hear the shouting for blocks around the sites on Friday nights.

I beg to differ about the placement of hockey though. Football is the most popular there but it is followed by hockey unless there's another sport I don't know about.

I'm surprised that someone from Bedford has over looked the strong cultural interest and support that basketball has historically enjoyed in Nova Scotia. In tiny Nova Scotia, there are no fewer than 5 college basketball squads who play in the Atlantic conference.

Everyone of those schools has a fiercely loyal and significant fan base. This is a province that got 11,000 out to a SMU-Acadia basketball game all the way back in 1978. 3 of them, Acadia, St. FX, and Saint Mary's field perennially strong teams. The 24 year run of the national championships in Halifax only served to cement the place that basketball holds in the province.

People in Nova Scotia care more about whether the province's basketball teams do well than whether any of the hockey teams from the province are successful. If you asked whether a championship by that Halifax hockey team (Mooseheads?) was more important or a Nova Scotia school win at the Final 8 college basketball championships, and I'll think you'd notice a preference for success on the basketball court.

I grew up in Halifax and it wasn't till I was 16 that I stepped foot inside a hockey rink. In my neighbourhood, every 3rd drive way had a basketball hoop above the car port/garage. Every boy dreamt of playing football for SMU. The other option was to make one of the province's college basketball teams. Hockey? This is Canada, so it gets good support, but it's #3.

Go to any Halifax area high school or university, and its football and basketball that they care about. I don't even know if my high school even had a hockey team. That's how invisible that sport was. Cape Breton is the same. It's basketball country.

High school basketball is hotly contested, there are 2 Halifax college teams, and a pro basketball team all in a city barely larger than Oshawa, Ontario. I guarantee you, if a Halifax squad wins a national college basketball championship in Ottawa on March 15th, Halifax will go berserk. Here's Dalhousie vs. Acadia at the Metro Centre:
OSqn6Z6qfSw

Dalhousie, Acadia, St. FX, SMU, Cape Breton, and high school basketball that's big throughout the province. Coal Bowl? Where else in Canada do you get big crowds like this for high school hoops?
xDKHwQDn0Gw&feature=related

[Acajack]

10 isn't enough. 16 teams is about as small as a league should go otherwise you keep playing the same teams over and over and over. Having only 8 teams is one of the biggest negatives with the CFL. Only going to 10 teams would mean that certain regions would still go without: the Maritimes? the Okanagan? Vancouver Island? How about a compromise? You could still know every team in your division or conference inside and out in a 23 team league.

I do agree that once a league gets up to 30, it's too much. The NHL? Well that's really a US league with 6 Canadian teams. You've basically got a situation where two-thirds of the country is watching from the sidelines. People overseas get absolutely floored when I tell them that there are only 6 Canadian teams in the NHL. They expected that hockey mad Canada would surely not settle for less than 16-20.

For a nation that will have more than 40 million people by 2030, I'd hardly call a league with 23 teams ambitious. If you look at leagues around the world, most have about 20 teams. England, population 48 million, has 20 just in the Premiership. Then they have tons of teams in division 1, division 2, etc. Australia has 16 teams in the Australian Football League, and they only have 21 million people.



Glad to see people starting to realize the dearth of top-level pro sports teams in Canada. As you accurately pointed out, 6 pro hockey teams (OK, maybe we can add two more with the minor league Manitoba Moose and Hamilton Bulldogs if we’re being generous) plus 8 pro football teams is a joke. Surely there should be more pro-hockey teams than that (inside the current NHL or in some other form of competition) and the CFL should have a dozen teams at the very least.

Nothing against Toronto, but for many pro sports it feels like the entire country is one gigantic suburb of T.O. and easily contained in the 905 area code. Note that the NFL in Toronto, if it were to entail the death of the CFL (not a certainty, but definitely a possibility), would only exacerbate this situation.

[sdimedru]

SMU is a national football powerhouse. Haligonians love their Huskies
http://i453.photobucket.com/albums/qq260/isaidso_photos/P1000599-1.jpg?t=1224811920



my kinda skyscraper :tup:

[isaidso]

my kinda skyscraper :tup:

Unfortunately, a pyramid was about the upper limit of their skill level. They're better than they used to be, but they're no where near the level of the University of Western Ontario, Bangkok University, or a typical NCAA squad. They definitely need to recruit better athletes and probably some men. 110 lb girls just can't throw someone 25 feet in the air. You need guys for the big tricks.

Back to football. Halifax may surprise people in the rest of Canada, but it's a football town more than it is a town of any other sport. Put a team there and it will quickly become one of the most stable well supported franchises in the league. If only Halifax had someone like Asper willing to cough up $100-150 million for a stadium. You people in Winnipeg don't know how lucky you are.

[rrskylar]

^ The way Canwest is falling Asper may be lucky to have $10-$15 dollars for a new stadium.

[isaidso]

^ The way Canwest is falling Asper may be lucky to have $10-$15 dollars for a new stadium.

Asper said that financing for the stadium was independent of Canwest. He wouldn't say that if it weren't true. It's the financial backer we need to be looking at. I believe the partner was Crestwin or some name similar to that.

Regarding Halifax, the only large firms I can see backing this are Irving, Sobey's, or possibly McCain.

[craner]

EAST
Halifax
Quebec City
Montreal
Ottawa
Hamilton
Toronto
London
Windsor

WEST
Winnipeg
Regina
Saskatoon
Edmonton
Calgary
Kelowna
Vancouver
Victoria

Not totally unrealistic but still unlikely. I thought about splitting it into 4 divisions of 4 teams each which would allow for one game against each team (15) and a Home and Home within your division (3 more for a total of 18). Depending how you break it down though it would mess with the Cal-Edm or Regina-Winnipeg-Saskatoon rivalry and we can't have that. And another thing: Lets start the season at the end of May and hold the Grey Cup in October.
At a bare minimum I want to see Halifax, QC, & Ottawa in the league. The biggest factor IMO is lack of stadiums unfortuneately.:hell:

BTW: The refurbished BC Place looks great - looking forward to seeing it.:tup:

[rrskylar]

CFL attendance in a nutshell:

20000 for a game in western Canada is called a poor turnout, in Montreal it's called a sellout, in Toronto it's called average attendance and in Hamilton a great crowd.

[isaidso]

CFL attendance in a nutshell:

20000 for a game in western Canada is called a poor turnout, in Montreal it's called a sellout, in Toronto it's called average attendance and in Hamilton a great crowd.

I'd say that 20,000 for a game in western Canada is unheard of. In Montreal, they'll probably sellout when the expansion of Molson Stadium to 25,000 is complete. They really needed something in the 30,000 to 35,000 range in Montreal.

In Toronto, average attendance is 30,000 not 20,000. It's really only Hamilton that has an attendance problem. Toronto gets away with it because they have 6,000,000 people to draw from. Hamilton only has 700,000 people to draw from, but southern Ontario is the worst football market north of Mexico. The CFL is in good shape outside this one region of Canada.

The CFL needs to get to a situation where the league can prosper whether southern Ontario is interested in football or not. The CFL still draws the 6th largest crowds to games of any league on the planet. Let's keep this in perspective. Let's build this up to 5th, and then 4th in the world.



Not totally unrealistic but still unlikely. I thought about splitting it into 4 divisions of 4 teams each which would allow for one game against each team (15) and a Home and Home within your division (3 more for a total of 18). Depending how you break it down though it would mess with the Cal-Edm or Regina-Winnipeg-Saskatoon rivalry and we can't have that. And another thing: Lets start the season at the end of May and hold the Grey Cup in October.
At a bare minimum I want to see Halifax, QC, & Ottawa in the league. The biggest factor IMO is lack of stadiums unfortuneately.:hell:

BTW: The refurbished BC Place looks great - looking forward to seeing it.:tup:

My 16 team CFL looks identical to yours. I also thought about 4 divisions, but had similar issues regarding separating Edmonton and Calgary. It would only work once we got to a 18 or 20 team league with 9 or 10 teams in each conference. It's doable if places like Anchorage and Abbotsford are eventually brought into the fold in the west. There simply aren't any other population centres left in Western Canada that could support pro football.

Let's just get Ottawa and Quebec City in for the 100th anniversary of our Grey Cup! Then we can work on Halifax and another western team. I'd rather go to Kelowna or Victoria first, then Saskatoon after those two.

Saskatoon has Griffiths Stadium at the University of Saskatchewan which could one day be expanded to 30,000. I believe this is the University of Saskatchewan going down to Universite de Laval in 2006. Griffiths would be awesome if it were built as a complete bowl, but only if they got rid of that bloody athletics track. Can't they put that in the field outside the stadium? In Canada, athletics don't need permanent seating beyond a few thousand. Can you imagine a Regina - Sakatoon game in here? It would be awesome!

Griffiths Stadium
http://facilities.usask.ca/images/news/Griffiths%20Stadium/griffiths.gif
http://facilities.usask.ca/images/news/Griffiths%20Stadium/griffiths.gif

[Distill3d]

EAST
Halifax
Quebec City
Montreal
Ottawa
Hamilton
Toronto
London
Windsor

WEST
Winnipeg
Regina
Saskatoon
Edmonton
Calgary
Kelowna
Vancouver
Victoria


i agree with you, except i'd make three changes. instead of Victoria, i would make it Surrey or Abbotsford. and instead of London, i would make it Buffalo or Rochester, NY. and instead of Ottawa, i would include Kitchener-Waterloo.

[Only The Lonely..]

Ottawa's deadline on team extended

By: Ed Tait | Winnipeg Free Press - March 4, 2009

HAMILTON -- Ottawa is no closer today than it was yesterday to welcoming back the Canadian Football League.
But the grand ol' loop isn't going to penalize its ownership group there while civic officials mull over two different proposals -- one from the locals keen on having the CFL return and the other from Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk, who wants to build a new soccer-only stadium that would be the home to a Major League Soccer expansion team.

And so the CFL's board of governors voted Tuesday to extend from March 18 to Sept. 18 the date it had given Ottawa 67s owner Jeff Hunt and three local businessmen to secure a stadium deal with the city.

"There's a window of opportunity now where we have a committed group of owners there who want to get this deal done," CFL commissioner Mark Cohon told reporters attending the CFL Congress. "You're in an economic environment now where there's potential stimulus money from the government to make it happen. It's incumbent upon the City of Ottawa now to make some decisions."

It was a year ago that Cohon granted an expansion franchise to the Ottawa group, providing it could find a place to play. That group wants to renovate Frank Clair Stadium -- and make it workable for an MLS franchise to play there -- as part of a complete overhaul of the Lansdowne Park area. Melnyk, who has been critical of the CFL's failures in the national capital, is pitching a 20,000-seat stadium in Kanata that would only serve a soccer team.

The city council continues to debate which proposal to approve and, while they continue their research, the CFL wants to crank up the pressure to come to a decision soon.

"I'm not going to speculate whether we would have to extend it another six months," Cohon said. "But clearly this is an indication that the time is right now to act on the opportunity. We owe it to our fans in Ottawa not to drag them along."

WEBSITE AMALGAMATION: Cohon and Hamilton Tiger-Cats owner Bob Young announced after the governors' meeting that it will amalgamate the CFL's website with its member clubs' sites to provide one big network to make it easier for fans to navigate from one site to another. That will also make the package more attractive to potential advertisers.

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca

[Acajack]

i agree with you, except i'd make three changes. instead of Victoria, i would make it Surrey or Abbotsford. and instead of London, i would make it Buffalo or Rochester, NY. and instead of Ottawa, i would include Kitchener-Waterloo.

There's no way the CFL should forgo a team in Ottawa, the fourth largest metro in the country. Not to disparage it but the Greater Golden Horseshoe already has some difficulty supporting two CFL clubs at the moment, without cannibalizing the Argos and Ticats markets with a new team in K-W.

[Acajack]

Regarding Halifax, the only large firms I can see backing this are Irving, Sobey's, or possibly McCain.

All of these companies, even individually, easily have deep enough pockets to bankroll a CFL club in the Maritimes (I say the Maritimes because not all of them are based in Halifax - actually, I think only Sobeys is, the other two are in NB). The CFL is not that expensive a pro sport to dabble into.

[isaidso]

All of these companies, even individually, easily have deep enough pockets to bankroll a CFL club in the Maritimes (I say the Maritimes because not all of them are based in Halifax - actually, I think only Sobeys is, the other two are in NB). The CFL is not that expensive a pro sport to dabble into.

Yes, only Sobey's is a Nova Scotia based firm, but the other two, Irving in particular, are very firmly entrenched in the province. Nova Scotia is one of their most important markets. Irving would have, by far, the deepest pockets.

i agree with you, except i'd make three changes. instead of Victoria, i would make it Surrey or Abbotsford. and instead of London, i would make it Buffalo or Rochester, NY. and instead of Ottawa, i would include Kitchener-Waterloo.

People in Surrey who are interested in going to see CFL already do so. They go to Lions games. There were 34,083/game at Lions games in 2008. Surrey represents roughly 20% of the population of metro Vancouver. I realize this is a crude methodology, but at most, there are 10,000 Surrey people at Lions games. Putting a team in Surrey might result in attendance of 15,000 with Lions attendance plummeting to about 25,000.

Vancouver should be able to support 2 teams, but we need to see 50,000+ at BC Place before a second team in metro Vancouver is contemplated. Abbotsford is simply too small at 159,000. If there were another 400,000 people within an hour of Abbotsford without cannibalizing Lions attendance, then it is worth looking at, but the numbers are simply not there.

What is the aversion to Victoria? It's the largest metro in western Canada without a CFL team by quite a large margin. The CMA of Victoria had 330,088 in 2006 and there are about 800,000 people on Vancouver Island. Surely, this should be the next market in western Canada?

As far as Ottawa goes, there's nothing wrong with football demand in that city, only with inept incompetent management groups in that city the last 2 times around. This is a city of 1.2 million people. That's as big as Buffalo! Ottawa has finally got a good ownership group in place. Football in Ottawa will prosper under their watch.

[rrskylar]

Why would Ottawa want a team in the CANADIAN Football league when they can have a ``fad`` soccer team in a fifth rate soccer league.

[LeftCoaster]

^ cause they could have both?

Distilled I do not understand your reasoning. Why in the world would anyone in Buffalo support a CFL team when they already have their own NFL team?? Also, skipping Ottawa for K-W?? Really?

Also if you ever go to a BC lions game you will realize they pretty much already are the Surrey lions...

[Acajack]

Distilled I do not understand your reasoning. Why in the world would anyone in Buffalo support a CFL team when they already have their own NFL team??


Plus Rochester really is big-time Buffalo Bills country as well.

[Acajack]

What is the aversion to Victoria? It's the largest metro in western Canada without a CFL team by quite a large margin. The CMA of Victoria had 330,088 in 2006 and there are about 800,000 people on Vancouver Island. Surely, this should be the next market in western Canada?



You make a good case for Victoria (I would be curious to know if the BC Lions are on the public radar screen at all there?), and perhaps that’s where the CFL should look if it should decide to add another team in the west.

I still think Ottawa and either (ideally, both) Quebec City and/or the Maritimes are where the league should look first however.

[Distill3d]

^ cause they could have both?

Distilled I do not understand your reasoning. Why in the world would anyone in Buffalo support a CFL team when they already have their own NFL team?? Also, skipping Ottawa for K-W?? Really?

Also if you ever go to a BC lions game you will realize they pretty much already are the Surrey lions...

i'm a Leo's season ticket holder, i'm aware that about 1/2 the fans in attendance at Lion's games are from Coquitlam, Surrey, and Langley.

as for adding a team to Buffalo, that would be long term plan.

and forgoing Ottawa. lets save that city the embarrassment of losing 3 CFL franchises in 20 years. we all know that is inevitable.

[Distill3d]

You make a good case for Victoria (I would be curious to know if the BC Lions are on the public radar screen at all there?), and perhaps that’s where the CFL should look if it should decide to add another team in the west.

I still think Ottawa and either (ideally, both) Quebec City and/or the Maritimes are where the league should look first however.

i don't think anyone is disputing that. Quebec City and Halifax or Moncton should be on the CFL's short term expansion list long before a second team in BC or Saskatchewan.

[krudmonk]

Why would Ottawa want a team in the CANADIAN Football league when they can have a ``fad`` soccer team in a fifth rate soccer league.
U-S-A! U-S-A!

Er, CA-NA-DA! CA-NA-DA!

[isaidso]

i don't think anyone is disputing that. Quebec City and Halifax or Moncton should be on the CFL's short term expansion list long before a second team in BC or Saskatchewan.

If the City of Ottawa comes though with funding for the new CFL expansion team, we'll be up to 4 teams in the east, so Winnipeg will get bounced yet again back to the western conference.

Ideally, Quebec City is the next logical choice due to huge football interest there, but Moncton's the one building a stadium. If Moncton gets it done and builds a solid ownership group, put it there first.

10 teams in time for the 100th Grey Cup in 2011 would be amazing. Quebec City and Victoria can come next.

[Acajack]

Ideally, Quebec City is the next logical choice due to huge football interest there, but Moncton's the one building a stadium. If Moncton gets it done and builds a solid ownership group, put it there first.



Yeah, to use a football term, it looks like Moncton might be doing an "end run" around Halifax (and perhaps Quebec City also) with its new (expandable) stadium.

I don't think a hypothetical team in Moncton would fatally impact Quebec City's chances of getting a team eventually, since they are far enough part, totally different markets and the Quebec City metro is quite large (750,000 with 1 million+ in the wider area), but there is a distinct possibility that the CFL might end up with only one club in the Maritimes. If it ends up in Moncton, then Halifax can forget about it.

I know that other threads have discussed having two clubs in the Maritimes (Moncton and Halifax). This is a good idea but it's still a huge longshot, especially when you consider the stadium issues.

Although Halifax is more than twice the size of Moncton, in addition to its new stadium the NB city also has the advantage of an excellent location at the true crossroads of the Maritimes and is quite easily accessible from PEI, Saint John, Fredericton and even Halifax.

[Bedford_DJ]

Yes, only Sobey's is a Nova Scotia based firm, but the other two, Irving in particular, are very firmly entrenched in the province. Nova Scotia is one of their most important markets. Irving would have, by far, the deepest pockets.

Stellarton, Nova Scotia to be exact.

Just off the top of my head people with very deep pockets around here include of course the Irvings, McCains and Sobeys (Empire Co. Ltd), but also include Ron Joyce, Jodreys, John Risley, and Braggs.

Any of those could possibly support a team on their own.

I'd support a team in either Hfx or Moncton but since I live in the town I do think a team here in Hali would be better. All we need is the stadium and well we got tons of prime land for one.

[SteelTown]

CFL looks at simply wild rule change

March 05, 2009
By Drew Edwards
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/BreakingNews/article/524804

Get ready for Wildcat north.

The Canadian Football League’s rules committee is recommending changes be made that would allow the quarterback to line up anywhere on the field, instead of just behind the centre.

That would open up the possibility of the so-called Wildcat offence, which was run by the National Football League’s Miami Dolphins last year with great success.

“We now have the opportunity to see our talented quarterbacks in a different position and somebody else, possibly a receiver or running back, could now take the snap,” said the league’s director of officiating Tom Higgins.

At the moment, the CFL rule book states the quarterback must be in a position to take the snap at the start of a play.

The Wildcat was only one of several recommendations the rules committee made after meeting for much of the day Thursday at a downtown Hamilton hotel.

The committee consists of a representative from all eight teams, a member of the CFL Players’ Association, an on-field official and Higgins.

The recommendations will be brought to the board of governors during their meeting in May, with implementation possible by the start of the 2009 season.

Ticat head coach Marcel Bellefeuille said while he didn’t think the rule changes would be revolutionary — he noted teams have been directly snapping the ball to running backs for some time — he nonetheless found the Wildcat option intriguing.

“It will create opportunities for teams to do some things differently offensively.”

Bellefeuille said the Ticats will be looking at how to incorporate the Wildcat into their offensive sets.

“Any new rule that gives our football team an opportunity to win games is something we’re interested in.”

The Ticat coach said the proposal that would see a kick-off after every field goal — right now receiving teams have the option to take the ball at the 35-yard line — would have a “significant impact.”

“It changes the whole strategy of playing with or against the wind,” he said.

Higgins said the league received more than 2,000 responses from fans on possible rule changes, a staggering number given the work involved.

“What made this truly unique and meaningful to have 2,000 (submissions) is that you didn’t just press A, B, C or D — you had to sit down and put some thought into it,” he said.

While many of the fans’ suggestions were discussed, Higgins said the committee is always cognizant of respecting the CFL’s time-honoured traditions.

“This is a great game. This is an exciting game and we don’t ever want to take anything away from it. The integrity of the game is always thought about it.”

Nonetheless, Higgins thinks fan participation in the rules committee process will continue.

“To me, it was an opportunity for (fans) to get involved in this meeting. They didn’t have anybody here, but their presence was here.”

[SteelTown]

Here's a quick run down of the proposed rule changes.

- wildcat offences now permissible.
- teams must kick off after a field goal, no taking it at the 35-yard-line.
- after a safety, kick will be from the 25 yard line instead of 35.
- teams who have two successful challenges, get a third challenge.

Significant non-moves:
- no changes to convert.
- no changes to the single point rules

[isaidso]

Yeah, to use a football term, it looks like Moncton might be doing an "end run" around Halifax (and perhaps Quebec City also) with its new (expandable) stadium.

If it ends up in Moncton, then Halifax can forget about it.



I just want a team out east. You're right about Halifax putting itself out of the running (probably for decades) if Moncton gets a team. It will end up being the same argument that circulates regarding a Saskatoon team hurting attendance in Regina.

I grew up in Halifax and have a keen interest in a CFL team in the Maritimes being a success. If Moncton gets a team, I'll be flying down from Toronto for games. At least Halifax will still have the Huskies!

Stellarton, Nova Scotia to be exact.

Just off the top of my head people with very deep pockets around here include of course the Irvings, McCains and Sobeys (Empire Co. Ltd), but also include Ron Joyce, Jodreys, John Risley, and Braggs.

Any of those could possibly support a team on their own.

I'd support a team in either Hfx or Moncton but since I live in the town I do think a team here in Hali would be better. All we need is the stadium and well we got tons of prime land for one.

That second grouping of 'rich' Nova Scotians are rich, but not rich enough to cough up $100 million for a stadium like Asper is doing in Winnipeg. Regarding location, I've always liked the Halifax Mainland Common as a site for a 30,000 seat football stadium. There's already a baseball diamond, soccer fields with artificial turf, and a football field with artificial turf for the Halifax West Warriors high school football team. They're planning to build an athletics complex with an indoor swimming pool as well.

Between the baseball diamond and the soccer fields would be an awesome place to build a bowl seating 30,000 for football. The area has a lot of space, is a few minutes from the highway, and is already designated for sports and recreation. The area is perched over looking metro Halifax which would make for amazing views of the city from seats higher up. It's a far nicer area than any of the other site locations in Halifax like that Commonwealth Games site next to the MacKay Bridge. If a stadium gets built, don't build it in Dartmouth!

Another location is that field on Robie Street between Saint Mary's University and Dalhousie University. Couldn't they build a 30,000 seat bowl into the side of that hill, demolish Huskies Stadium to make room for the expansion of cramped Saint Mary's University, and then resurrect the Dalhousie University football team? A stadium here could be used by football teams from Dalhousie, SMU, and the CFL. That's potentially 2 to 3 times as many big football games as would be the case with just a CFL team using it.

[SteelTown]

CFL rules committee tosses a few new changes for board of governors to mull

March 06, 2009
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/Sports/article/524870

Here are some of the changes proposed by the CFL rules committee yesterday. They will now be brought to the board of governors meeting this spring for approval.

* Teams must now kick off after a made field goal. Previously, teams had the choice of receiving a kick or taking the ball at the 35-yard-line.

* After a safety is conceded, the ensuing kick will be from the 25-yard line instead of the current 35-yard-line. This is to deter teams from conceding a safety to gain field position.

* Teams who conduct two successful replay challenges, get a third challenge.

* The replay reviews will now be conducted from a central location in Toronto instead of by an on-field official. This is designed to speed up play and improve the visual quality of replay, as many stadiums were not equipped with high definition equipment and monitors to serve the referee.

A number of items were discussed, but ultimately rejected by the committee, including:

* There will no changes to the touchdown convert. Higgins said on-field officials raised concerns about having two different spots for one- and two-point conversions.

* There will be no changes to the single point rules on missed kicks, also known as a rouge.

"A lot of discussion, but we didn't have a consensus to move that forward," Higgins said.

[lubicon]

Here's a quick run down of the proposed rule changes.

- wildcat offences now permissible.
- teams must kick off after a field goal, no taking it at the 35-yard-line.
- after a safety, kick will be from the 25 yard line instead of 35.
- teams who have two successful challenges, get a third challenge.

Significant non-moves:
- no changes to convert.
- no changes to the single point rules

Those were my 3 proposed changes. Good to see 2 of them going ahead, or at least being considered. I'm disappointed they did not change the single point rule though.