September and everyone has gone fire, trade crazy in the CFL.

Rich Stubler, Toronto Argonauts is fired? Do the Argos really think they are supposed to be untouchable year after year? Yeah I know they are in the CFL least but come on. Rich gets props for keeping his defense in tact even though skill positions have aged and are no longer the ballers they should be. The whole Argo situation was time bomb with no Jack Bauer to save the day. Enter Kerry Joseph, playing the role of Bauer. Just when Kerry got comfortable with a system he has had to get comfortable with another, this is going to be a serious cliff hanger,

Thank god that Pinball Clemons didn’t pull a Baggar Vance, or John Coffee and wind up back down on the sideline for the rest of the year. I can’t believe Adam Rita passed on taking over the head coaching reins, are you kidding me.

Enter “The Don” aka Don Matthews. At this point Greg Mohns must be practicing his, “thank you sir may I have another,” line. I knew, “The Don” was healthy when I saw him in BC with a younger very beautiful sistah. Go ahead Don! He was pulling a Robert Deniro, a reverse Hugh Hefner, the medicine must be working. In the immortal words of ICE CUBE, “you can do it, put your back into it.”

Charlie Taaffe is fired? Are you kidding me? Charlie was a good coach, at one time a great coach, but this go around with the Tiger Cats wasn’t a good move for him at all. I hope that it’s not a career killer. Charlie’s downfall started with the staffing of CFL novices as coaches. It was honorable that he hired friends that had good US resumes, but were green to the CFL game. The only coaches on the staff at the time with CFL experience were coaches Gregg Butler and Dave Easley. 

The problems started right off with some coaches that didn’t sweat the details. One year it was linemen stepping with the wrong foot, or being told, “you are pros to figure it out.” There were the offensive games plans that didn’t have the horses to execute them. The players that were on hand weren’t put in the best positions to make plays, giving this team of constant FNG’s a fighting chance to win.

This year I thought things would change. Bringing in Bob O’Billovich was a good move. Recruiting will take time. It didn’t help in not being able to find game-winning players instantly, that would suit the CFL game. I guess even with the player glut there are no ballers just falling off trees. 

Blame the front office. Bob Young is a great owner, but the rest needs to be overhauled, like 65 El Camino.

So many players have come thru the doors to find a weak front office, bad plans, or no plans; coaches that haven’t taken into account what the players do well. This team looked like the Raiders without the gifted players. If anyone should go the next axe to fall should be on President Scott Mitchell.

The Hamilton Tiger Cats ruined more brothers than Hurricane Katrina. 

The sad thing about Hamilton is it can’t be blown up again. But then again, can it? Maybe this time since Reebok is now fully in the house, it can come up with new uniforms, a witch doctor, a paranormal team, men in HAZMAT suits, Jimmy Johnson, Steve Marriucci, or maybe Al Pacino. As a team that's been as bad as the last few Nicholas Cage movies, maybe the league can call in the CDC to find the monkey with the virus, which has been killing this team. This team is the bridge scene in Apocalypse Now. Speaking of which, you almost wonder who is going to make it to the boat and answer the call from Almighty to call in the air strike? My money is on Lumsden.

Just to be on the safe side, bringing in two offensive linemen wouldn’t hurt.

Is beating Hamilton anything to woof about? Its not like this is the 90’s when Hamilton was a good team. Beating the Cats should come with an asterisk next to the win.

Why would the Bombers trade Charles Roberts? Can someone tell the brain trust that running backs have off years. It would have been like the Cowboys trading Emitt Smith after a slow year. It would be like blaming a Qb for receivers dropping passes that hit them in the hands. Trading Joe Smith makes sense for the obvious reasons. There isn’t a single team in the CFL that has an offensive line that likes to outright pound the ball. No offense Rider fans. But the days of playing the Riders and being followed by having the black and blue bruise week that would follow are well over. There are no beast type lines. All the lines in the CFL are finesse blockers. So late in the year when these guys are dinged up, its nice to have a line that understands at least the fundamentals of putting the helmet on the right side, getting leverage, and allowing the running back firm of Logan and Roberts to do what they do best, hit creases and make things happen. With Joe Smith you have to drive someone off the ball, and hope you open enough of a hole to let him build up some steam to take care of the first tackler. Teams have gotten smart, and have started getting Joe to run east west where its easier to make a tackle on him for the DB’s.. I mean linebackers.

Injury, I never did like that dude much or any of his friends; tweaks, breaks, compound fracture, mild sprain, and the runt of the group little sore. The problem with little sore he can swell up into a big, bad customer if he’s not looked after real quick, properly, and pronto. So Ivan you had better stay on point. The football landscape is teeming with out of work NFL Europa trainers.

You have to figure with NFL teams having 80, or (2560) guys for 32 teams in camp this year. 53 (1696) will make the active roster, 45(1440) on game day, 8(256) will be on the developmental squad. So using my California math 27(864) guys are going to be packing at some time or another in the next few weeks. Of those 27(864) guys 7 (224) guys are legit ballers, that can start in the NFL at some time or another but they are in the wrong place at the wrong time. 10(320) of those 20(640) that are left are good to great CFL players, or NFL role players. The other 5(160) are hit or miss just average football players. The remaining 5(160) are just garbage, camp bodies. So you have to shine right now.

Even more interesting is Michael Irvin having a job in broadcasting with a major player that being the NFL Network. This is great because sure he has had his problems, but this shows a league, a network which is unafraid of players with baggage that are working hard to get through the ruff period of life. This is also huge because it shows that there is an executive with “cohones”, that is unafraid to put players with personality on the tube. I like that. One story in particular that I found most incredible is that of Michael Irvin having a conversation with commissioner Roger Goodell about bringing the younger players to Canton to see and feel the tradition they are now apart of. Listening to the interviews of younger players begging to see film of the great past players to learn, to study, to try to get an understanding of why, and what made these players so great is enough to give this incoming generation a standing ovation. The flicker of hope that these young men represent for the NFL is enough to become a fan of the league. If only enough powerful people gave a damn about our CFL.

Look at the facts the CFL is the ultimate not for long league, which I feel hurts the league in more ways than one. In the NFL you can bounce around if you have the talent and the right credentials, but in the CFL you have only 8 chances to win Homer.

 With the lack of dollars in the CFL it’s hard to hire the bright young extra coaches needed in order to coach up players that need coaching. When you can’t bring in bright young position coaches to learn the game, and do the position coaching, then where do your next head coaches come from? See the void? This is another one of those things that continues to separate us from the NFL, which bludgeons us in the perception game.

You wind up having a lot of players from the CFL which either move into the AFL1or 2 or not playing at all because their game hasn’t improved from the college ranks no matter which conference they come from.

I don’t like the release of Michael Bishop because I don’t think a Kent Austin type coach has had Bishop lined up right in his crosshairs one on one like Austin had a Kerry Joseph in Ottawa and then again in Saskatchewan. Guys like Bishop need strong coaches to get them to become better pros improving on what has got them to this level. The CFL isn’t some college division where you are playing against some first year starting 18 year old that only because of his size, and weight was all state in a weak football environment.

The veterans: offensive, defensive, and defensive coordinator Dave Richie in Ottawa in 1992. Taught me the 3-4.

Don Lindsay in BC in 1999, he was so college he would just rep you to death, but if you liked practice then it was the place to be.

When you look at the CFL game and look at the best players you should know that most of these guys are running on athletic ability, smarts, and left over coaching from college, or some NFL camps. The longer you stick around in the CFL if you get lucky you find coaches who played the game that can teach you the finer points. These guys are worth there weight in gold. You combine these guys with seasoned vets that have the franchises, and coach’s approval and now you are getting coaching that is second to none.

Its like in Ottawa I had Les Browne, and Anthony Drawhorn, and Charles Gordon all in the same defensive backfield. Look at the information being passed down from Hall of Famer, to great player, to the next generation great player.