major announcement - big changes to cfl playoff and season start

[Waffler]

Older posters would remember Bud Ulrich, long time CFL official and a good one. Following is his letter to the editor in the Free Press.

A former ref's perspective

I'll preface my remarks by stating my involvement in the Canadian Football League as a head referee from 1974 to 1986, assigned to three Grey Cups (Montreal – 1979, Toronto – 1982, and Edmonton – 1984). I have played the game at the high school level and officiated in the amateur ranks for 13 years prior to being invited to the CFL.

I am a strong supporter of the CFL, attending games on a regular basis. The new rules the league is implementing bother me greatly. I can understand the new commissioner wants to improve the game, but I believe in the saying, "If it's not broken, don't fix it!"

Aligning the changes, i.e. smaller field, goal posts placed on the dead-ball line, no points for a missed field goal (play is whistled dead) takes away from some of the most exciting plays we witnessed for many years. I'm sure the commissioner is aware of this. Placing the goal post on the dead-ball line will reduce the number of field goals as the distance is increased with the new rule. Incidentally, the CFL scored more points per game last year than the NFL.

I checked with another official/supervisor of the CFL and in his 47 years in the league, the only time the goal posts created a problem was during a game between Oakland and Green Bay Packers who played an exhibition game in Winnipeg. During my short time of 12 years in the CFL, never once did the goal post cause a problem.

These changes can only be viewed as aligning our game with the National Football League. In today's climate of Canada needing to be self-reliant and not dependant on the United States for the development of our game, I am both surprised and disappointed with the rule changes.

I live in Winnipeg and I'm very proud of our team and the support of our fans. Saskatchewan boasts this position as well. Edmonton has a real problem with their fan base, and Toronto leads the way with the largest population, and the least fans. Surely this is the No. 1 problem! I fail to see how any rule changes will bring about more fans to the cities that need them the most.

The new playoff structure is flawed. Having over 90 per cent of the teams involved in playoffs, and the possibility of an all-east or all-west Grey Cup will decrease fan attendance both at the game and viewership on TV. The notion that more games will draw more fans is highly suspect. The east-versus-west is and always will be a competitive event. This rivalry will be eliminated. To do otherwise will provide disastrous results.

Bud Ulrich

Winnipeg

[theaardvark]

If they change and give the fans the 55 back, I'd be happy. 

I don't WANT it removed, but I understand the concept, and agree that it has value.

But the league will not appreciably change with or without the 55yd line, and if that's something they held in their pocket to give back and dull the ire of the diehards, kudos to them for the plan.

As to being a "parrot for the CFL talking points", sorry if I have an ability to allow reason into my thought process.  The BOG hired someone, and asked him to make changes to improve the marketability of the league.  He did as asked. 

Could they have been implemented more incrementally to soften the response?  Sure.  But this "rip the bandaid off" approach makes more sense to me.  We were going to get here eventually.  And I do think that the changes will make more sense applied together.

I like the 35 second clock for all but the final 3 min of each half, I like the GP move.  I like having the teams on opposite sides, with the size of each cadre, it makes sense.  They can get away with it in hockey having smaller groups.  But having a long change / short change quarter in half the stadia is silly.  Alternately, they could have made all fields have both teams on one side.  Make it the same.

I like the changes to the rouge, it takes it from a common event that can be the game winning point to being a quirky anomaly.

I'm OK with the 15yd EZ and losing the 55, if for no other reason than making MTL and TOR have standardized fields (its not baseball).  I think 15yd EZ would solve the problem, that they could maintain the 55 and still achieve uniform field sizes.  So that could be a give back.

The heart and soul of the game, 3 downs, 12 men, 65yd wide field, proper kickoffs/punts/overtime, and the waggle all remain.  No one can be flipping past a CFL game and confuse it with any other sport.

The league does need to start promoting the "new look", start bragging about the product's superiority to other offerings, both historically and with the revisions. 

Maybe a 30 second Tik Tok on the new rouge (not even mentioning the old rouge).

And if they are going to give back the 55, that would be a great media blast as well.  I'm sure it wont assuage the fury of the ultra die hards, but as a meaningful concession to the fans who love the uniqueness, I think it would be a great PR move.

Also, short vids on why our game is better would be awesome. 

Tiktok type videos about the waggle, about the OT, about why we have 12 men, and a 65yards wide field.  About why we don't need the "tush push" even with 3 downs, our SY specialists can get involved multiple times a drive, not just the rare occasion the NFL uses them.

About how we only have 3 downs, but the game is so wide open we can still have a running game.  But that the extra DB and WR make the passing game so much more exciting.

There is so much to market in the CFL, and we've done a crap job at it since "Our balls are bigger".  With the new "elbows up" environment, we need to promote OUR game. 

[theaardvark]

Goal post move takes away the "doink", but doesn't change the FG much, and with the rouge mods, makes it even less of an issue.  We need more TD's and less FG's.  The GP move does this, the unobstructed 15yd EZ becomes a clearer, "Doink" free target. 

Going for it at midfield becomes a different choice, which it should be.  The modified rouge brings in precision punters, who knows, we might see 3 specialists now, or K that P short yards, and P that only P when a booming leg is needed.

Until the changes are implemented, and we see how they effect the game, opinions are only opinion.  I can't see the GP change ever being reversed, and if the 55 is given back, it will be before new turf is installed, so investment in the new fields/turfs are safe.

Tweaks on the clock I expect to happen and on the rouge, possibly. 

"If it ain't broke" keeps getting rolled out.  But it is broke, like the majority of the teams.  Having half the league with different sidelines than the other half, and 20% of the fields having a different shape and/or dangerous transitions is broke.

The game is evolving, to be better, more exciting, higher scoring and faster.  That's is a positive change in my honest opinion.

[blue_gold_84]

As to being a "parrot for the CFL talking points", sorry if I have an ability to allow reason into my thought process. 

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

Goal post move takes away the "doink", but doesn't change the FG much, and with the rouge mods, makes it even less of an issue.  We need more TD's and less FG's.  The GP move does this, the unobstructed 15yd EZ becomes a clearer, "Doink" free target. 

Going for it at midfield becomes a different choice, which it should be.  The modified rouge brings in precision punters, who knows, we might see 3 specialists now, or K that P short yards, and P that only P when a booming leg is needed.

Until the changes are implemented, and we see how they effect the game, opinions are only opinion.  I can't see the GP change ever being reversed, and if the 55 is given back, it will be before new turf is installed, so investment in the new fields/turfs are safe.

Tweaks on the clock I expect to happen and on the rouge, possibly. 

"If it ain't broke" keeps getting rolled out.  But it is broke, like the majority of the teams.  Having half the league with different sidelines than the other half, and 20% of the fields having a different shape and/or dangerous transitions is broke.

The game is evolving, to be better, more exciting, higher scoring and faster.  That's is a positive change in my honest opinion.

If teams can't kick a FG from the 40 they're not going to magically transform those stalled drives into more TD's, they're going to punt the ball away because they failed to make a first down.  Watch the stats, punt numbers are going to go up significantly, final scores will be lower. 

Many times Medlock kicked 5-6 FG's to keep the Bombers competitive in games, I don't recall ever being bored with that strategy, I was happy they still had a chance to win.