The CFL wouldn’t be the CFL if a season went by without hiccups or problems.
This year is no exception — the Chad Kelly and Shawn Lemon suspensions, the Command Centre confusion, and the refusal of the league or team to give a direct answer on if the Edmonton Elks will revert to an old name under new owner Larry Thompson come to mind as things that could have been handled better.
But — and it’s a big but — the CFL does have one very important aspect of its business back on track. Heading into the always anticipated Labour Day weekend, the play on the field looks better than it has in years.
The rare clunkers — take last week’s Toronto Argonauts-Saskatchewan Roughriders game decided by a rouge on a missed field goal — have been very much overshadowed by regular thrillers.
“We were just looking at some data and 67 per cent of the games have been decided in the last three minutes. Seventy per cent of the games so far this year have been come-from-behind victories,” commissioner Randy Ambrosie said in a telephone interview from Victoria, site of Saturday’s Touchdown Pacific game between the host B.C. Lions and Ottawa Redblacks.
“With quarterback play, it wasn’t that long ago there was a little bit of question about the quality of our quarterbacking. I would say, man, just look across the country at the names and new stars that have emerged in the quarterback ranks. I think the play has been exceptional. It is certainly living up to our fun, fast and entertaining mantra. It’s just been a great season so far and frankly, we’re just getting started. The Labour Day weekend really kicks off the drive to the playoffs.”
Labour Day weekend — featuring three traditional rivalries (Winnipeg at Saskatchewan on Sunday, Toronto at Hamilton and Edmonton at Calgary on Monday) and a neutral-site contest this year — is a great time to take a look at the state of the league. Ambrosie took some time to chat about a number of storylines this week.