Canada is Canadian Football by Caretaker Bob !!

This is simply Awesome :thup: :thup: Thx Bob !!

Canada is Canadian Football.

I grew up in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. But I’ve now spent the majority of my life in countries other than Canada. Instead of becoming less Canadian this has made me more appreciative of things Canadian than any of the resident Canadians I know. The best single example of what I know about Canada that many Canadians don’t seem to understand is Canadian Football.

· The 101 year old Grey Cup Championship is the most watched sporting event in Canada year in, year out.

· The oldest continuously operating North American “Football? (of any sort) club is the Canadian Hamilton Tiger-Cats, founded in 1869. According to Wikipedia it is the 55th oldest football club anywhere, including Europe.

· The typical CFL football game is watched by three to four times as many Canadians as watch any US football game.

· Canadian high schools, colleges and junior football leagues are all played under Canadian Football’s three down rules.

So why is there even a debate on this topic? Because of probably the second most Canadian cultural identifier - namely Canada’s odd habit of undervaluing our own culture. So Canadian Football cannot be any good simply because it has been developed, is played, and is enjoyed by Canadians. This sad instinct has major Canadian corporate leaders somehow thinking that because Canada’s Championship was played in Regina Saskatchewan it could not be world class.

But it is precisely that fully a quarter of the population of the capital of one of Canada’s 10 provinces came out for a Canadian Football game in sub-zero weather, and a third of the country tuned in on TV, that makes it world class.

So why does this effort to bring the American sport of four down NFL football to Canada persist? It is a direct result of this lack of appreciation of Canadian culture by Canadians that is to blame. How else do you explain great Canadian leaders like Mr Paul Godfrey bragging about his failed thirty year crusade to bring the NFL to Toronto?

Or why would a great Canadian corporation like Rogers Communications Inc. spend millions promoting a US competitor over a more popular Canadian institution? Particularly given that Rogers’ prospers thanks to Canadian Government rules (CRTC regulations) that give it, as a Canadian supplier, great competitive advantages over foreign competitors. The oddest bit is that Rogers’s own marketing folks know, but don’t tell their bosses that, outside of downtown Toronto no one likes Rogers’ using its clout to damage a Canadian institution we all love.

These folks are not less patriotic than you and me. They care every bit as much about the success of Canada and Canadians. They are simply making the same mistake that millions of Canadians have made before them. They simply see things as being more valuable, more worthwhile, or maybe just “cooler? if societies other than Canada’s also value these things.

No Canadian musician is considered successful in Canada if they have not been successful in the United States. It is the rare Canadian cultural icon who becomes successful in Canada without foreign endorsement.

So how does the Canadian Football League prevent the NFL from wanting to put a NFL team in Canada? The CFL has to do two things, first it must convince Canadian leaders such as Mr Paul Godfrey and Canadian corporations such as Rogers, of the value of our hundred and fifty year old Canadian cultural institution.

And secondly we must partner with the National Football League in an organized and mutually profitable way. It is already true that CFL coaches and general managers, whether Canadian or American have many friends among their counterparts in the NFL teams. The CFL league office has more in common with the NFL league office (and vice versa) than they do with any other institution on the planet. After all, the CFL and NFL are the only two “gridiron? football leagues.

The National Football league is a lot like the Canadian Football League, being a collection of teams who banded together to form an institution dedicated to their collective success. Our leagues are among the most successful cooperatives in the history of business anywhere. We have more incentive to cooperate with each other than any two businesses you could name.

The Canadian Football League is stronger than ever. We are now able to do more to support athletic achievement in Canada, we are doing more to support the charities we all care about, and more to celebrate this great country. I’m personally very proud to be a small cog, along with my free market capitalist colleagues, in the recent progress of our league in our contributions to Canada and Canadian culture.

Canada is Canadian Football. And unlike Canadian Football which is well appreciated coast to coast across our remarkable country, Canadians need to learn to celebrate Canada and things Canadian, whether or not the rest of the world even notices.

[url=http://caretakerbob.tumblr.com/post/69747639066/canada-is-canadian-football]http://caretakerbob.tumblr.com/post/697 ... n-football[/url]
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Very well said Caretaker and thanks tc for posting this. :thup:

Along with that, I'll post this concerning Rogers:

Hockey Fans, Here's How We Can Stop Rogers From Robbing Us Blind

[i]If most Canadians didn't hate Rogers before, they certainly will now after the telecommunications giant signed its 12-year, $5.2 billion dollar broadcast deal with the NHL. The long-term, multi-billion dollar agreement is effectively a giant thumb in the eye of the Canadian hockey fan.

For starters, this deal is going to cost Canadian hockey fans big time. Maybe not in the short term but definitely in the long run. Rogers didn't pay all that money for no reason; the plan, of course, is to monopolize the market and then charge accordingly.

As it has in other areas, Rogers will undoubtedly employ its Chinese water torture marketing technique, slowly and incrementally adding a charge here, an upgrade there and a separate fee everywhere until the average viewer finds he's paying twice what he used to just to watch a few hockey games.

Since this cushy arrangement lasts for more than a decade, there's little chance that Rogers will lose its monopoly come 2025 when it's time to renegotiate. By that time, CBC, TSN, TVA or any other current competitor will be so far behind in all aspects of the hockey broadcasting business that Rogers will win simply by default.

As others have noted, however, the worst thing about this new deal is that the NHL has now put the screws to any further expansion in Canada. Thanks to the new money buttressing the bottom lines of struggling American-based NHL franchises, there's no longer an incentive to move those teams to Canadian cities. So for Hamilton, Saskatoon and Halifax, you can now kiss your NHL hopes goodbye; the league has finally made its true intentions known: they don't care about you at all.

So what's the answer? As Canadian hockey fans, do we simply sit back and do nothing as the NHL and Rogers collectively pick our pockets and ignore our wishes? We could, of course, just as we have tolerated strikes, lockouts, over-expansion and ticket price increases for decades. But maybe it's time for a change.

Let's form a 12-team, two-conference, all-Canadian league with franchises from coast to coast. A Western Conference could feature teams from Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon and Winnipeg. An Eastern Conference would field clubs from Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and Halifax.

This would be a professional league modelled on the best aspects of the National Football League and the Canadian Football League. Like the NFL, there would be equal sharing of all television revenues and centralized control of trade-mark and product licensing. And given the 12-year freeze-out, CBC, TSN and TVA will be happy to pick up TV rights for a fraction of what Rogers is paying.

Like the CFL, the CHL would not stray beyond Canada's borders. (The CFL learned that lesson the hard way.) Also following the CFL model, the CHL would have some community-owned teams. Nothing builds regional loyalty like financial commitment.

The CHL could also adopt some overdue rule changes to create a more entertaining product. How about using the international rink size for a more wide open game? Or why not eliminate the centre red line or go to a four-on-four format? Most importantly, the new league could get serious about eliminating the violence and stick work that is so pervasive in the WWE-style NHL game.

The major rap on the new Canadian Hockey League would be, of course, that the best players would still be in the NHL. Initially, that might be true but over time, as the inherent weaknesses and incessant greed of the NHL lead to its self-destruction, more and more quality players would make their way back to Canada.

The NHL dream of a lucrative, U. S. nationwide TV contract has resulted in decades of league expansion and talent dilution. Quite simply, that dream is not going to happen. In a nation dominated by baseball, football, basketball and temperate climes, hockey will always have a limited following. Hockey's emotional (and ultimately its financial) strength resides in Canada.

But what about the Stanley Cup? Not to worry; like the old American Football League, the CHL will eventually reach parity with the NHL and be in a position to challenge for hockey's top prize.

In any event, the last time I checked, the Cup was to be awarded to Canada's champion ice hockey team, not the winner of the NHL playoffs. So let's get busy creating a truly Canadian league that can be the genuine home of Lord Stanley's trophy.[/i]

[url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-martin/rogers-nhl-deal_b_4366792.html]http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-mart ... 66792.html[/url]

This is great and should be read by the masses.

Like Bob, I've spent much of my life living outside Canada. That makes me no less Canadian and I am extremely proud to be from Canada. I hope my family has the opportunity to return in the not-too-distant-future.

What it does offer me, though, is a slightly different perspective on Canada and Canadian culture. By far my greatest frustration when I return home is the attitude that Canada is somehow a 'small' country. This is ridiculous. Canada has one of the world's biggest economies. Sure it's not as big as the US, but it is a big country. Do you see Australians not following Aussie Rules Football because it isn't embraced by the USA? Do you see the Dutch not following their football teams because the EPL pays their players more? No - of course not. Implying such a thing would get you beaten up in many parts of those countries.

Canadians need to take pride in sports & culture based not on the success of those people or teams in the USA but instead on success within Canada - the world's 11th largest economy (of nearly 200 countries worldwide). Why be embarrassed to love a league like the CFL or a TV show on CBC just because Americans don't watch?

Why do we care if Americans watch?

I think the solution is a complicated one whereby the media needs to stop reporting on successful Canadians with footnotes about their success worldwide (especially in the USA). One thing I notice every time I visit home is the ridiculous number of stories about Canadians who have done something relatively minor in the United States and that this somehow warrants a front page article or personal interest story on the news. I mean good for them and all, but would that same person who did the same thing with the same level of success get that same press coverage? Almost certainly not.

Because of this media bias towards 'success in the US' stories, kids in Canada grow up to think that their teams and heroes are only successful if they've done will in New York or Los Angeles (and occasionally London as well). This is ridiculous.

Anyway - sorry about the rant. Thanks Bob for pointing out something very true! Canadians should embrace the CFL for what it is - the best football being played in Canada - and take pride in how successful its players and teams are.

It's about time. Thank you Caretaker Bob. Just like the Commish did, it's time to confront the elephant in the room and start kicking ass and naming names. It's a battle for cultural survival and I for one don't want any more American culture than we already have.

Start calling out those who want to kill Canadian culture, and Rogers and Godfrey are a damn good start. Not to pick on them, but we're getting things like the Raptors jammed down our throats by the central "Canadian" media and they draw about 1/10th of the TV interest the CFL does. Praise Allah for TSN, the only central Canadian media outlet to tell it like it is and not ignore that Canadians like Canadian football.

CFL Commissioner talks about the Ticats, Argos and Rob Ford
Why are the Ticats and Argos so important to the CFL
CBC News Nov 15, 2013

Marc Cohon Interview Link

Thank you for opening the door on this topic Bob.
I believe it is cool to be Canadian and celebrate what is ours while enjoying what others have to offer.
Canadian football, our national game of lacrosse our music scene, the arts and our advancements in medicine, as well as technology are all things we can be proud of.
We have amazing citizens doing amazing things right here and it’s okay to see it and be proud of it.
We are not one trick ponies in these areas and we are not just good at hockey.
It’s long over due we as Canadians stop looking across the fence and wishing we were like the neighbours.
Yep, they have some good stuff going on over there but so do we. The way I see it, we have more then enough to appreciate what makes us Canadian. The CFL and the Grey Cup is a prime example of Canadians celebrating a Canadianna! That’s a good thing eh!
I’m just sayin’
Jare

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Terrific article by the Caretaker. :thup: :thup: :thup:
A philosophy to cherish by every Canadian football fan.
Great to see an owner stand up and be counted this way.
Thanks Bob!

“Praise Allah for TSN” ??? lol hey it’s Christmas you could have said “praise Jesus for TSN”

As for TV rating and TSN, remember what Bob Young said 90% of the fans will stay at home and watch on TV, we have to get the fans to the stadium.

Thanks to all above posters, especially Bob, and any after me, for the thoughtful insights. I'm very glad to see reasonable, logical statements that indicate passion for the CFL and Canadian hockey, without losing control of emotions. This probably is in large part due to the on-field success, off-field stability, and our new stadium.

This is how much Rogers cares about Canadian football. Football For Beginners: NFL vs CFL If anyone would care to start a Rogers petition/boycott I am fully supportive and have already begun the process cutting them out.

I live on the East Coast and since I opted out of paying for cable/satellite TV, (I use OTA and Internet).

I use Bell for Internet. Unlike Jolly Rogers, Bell doesn't throttle your bandwidth and nail you with additional charges for streaming and downloading over a set limit so I watch TSN CFL games on demand. Speaking of which, hey TSN get the games on demand servers fixed, since you "upgraded" it doesn't work worth a poop, crashes, restarts, won't play etc

Caretaker, if you're reading, have a chat with your media guy to see what's going on with TSN VOD. Guys like me are a growing force (cutting the cable cord).

And good news for Hamilton - a mystery owner wants an NHL team in Hamilton. That's the first time I have ever heard that a millionaire wants a team in Hamilton!!

[url=http://www.thespec.com/sports-story/4266429-mystery-owner-wants-nhl-team-in-hamilton/]http://www.thespec.com/sports-story/426 ... -hamilton/[/url]

Sorry it’s a bit long

Thanks Bob “Caretaker?

For this Canadian, football is a feeling a memory and a family tradition. It’s passed on from generation to generation, my Grandfather to my father to me and today to my son.
Game day is an event, it’s not about tailgating or beer drinking it is about family.

I first stepped foot into our stadium at age 7 or 8 holding my Fathers hand we walked under the stands then through an opening that lead to the seats and the view of the field. The sounds and smells overwhelmed me as a child, and every time I walk towards the stadium as an adult on game day I recall and re-live, 48 years have passed but in my mind those sounds and smells remain today, cigar smoke and peanuts roasting, a vendor shouting “get your programs? and another hollering “containers? of course he may have well been shouting mix for your rye and rum!

My early days as a fan was when I found my hero’s, those larger then life men who played so hard and won so often were only an arms length away, at the age of 12 on those long summer days I would walk from the west mountain of Hamilton to the east end stadium. The stadium doors always seemed closed in those days, but through the cracks between the tall green fence that surrounded our stadium I could see my hero’s, all the while waiting for a gate to open, it always did. I was in! I would sit quietly watching as if I felt compelled to learn the plays and I often remember getting so angry at the coaches as they shouted at my hero’s. The older and dominating presence of weathered football coaches barking orders was without doubt the most intimidating feelings of my youth.

My Grandfather worked for a local publishing and printing company during my early years, his company printed a book that I cherish to this day. That book called “A Gentleman and a Tiger? was the Garney Henley story; of course I got a copy hot off the presses. My Father took me to a Quarter Back Club meeting, I want to believe it was at the old Jockey Club, I don’t recall clearly where but I do recall as if it was yesterday handing Mr. Henley my copy of his book, he smiled and signed it “To little Steve? I took my book home and stored it in a safe place and for years afterwards, damn if I could remember where that safe place was. There’s more to this story we will get back to it.

Well the years pushed on, I was married started my own family learned all about those eight hour work days and responsibility, but always managed to never miss a game. I took my kids to games now and again, I would treat my Mom and Dad, throughout the week I would make a list of anyone that would join me and a day or two before game day I would go to Goldie’s Variety on Mohawk Rd to purchase as many tickets as I could afford, and on game day some even paid me back! I just remember how happy every one was at the games and a win now again was the icing on the cake. This was how I spent the years waiting for my kids to be ready for me to pass the torch to them.

Through TV games and some live games I totally managed to some call it brainwash my son by the age of 8 that football was the game and going to every game was a passion as well as a privilege, having a local team made us better then most and prouder then so many. As my boy got older he avoided peer pressure and naysayers as well as so much negative media coverage, those who I always figured would toss their own children’s sports achievements aside as second tier or minor league, would those hired by Roger’s belittle a Canadian sport if their own child achieved the near impossible and became a Canadian Football league player. Together my son and I would hear these comments and be angered by the careless thoughtless way those with a voice could discount a proud and very Canadian tradition at the orders of their bosses, whose businesses and personal wealth was created and collected on the backs of Canadian consumers all the while being protected by the Government run CRTC. How dare them! Yet even more disturbing to us is the otter foolishness of those who believe the idle crap curtain media expels on a daily basis.

Oh yes, Garney Henley. Well many years later I found a another copy of his book at the Circle M flea market and when our team brought my hero’s back to honor our amazing past, I stood in line book in hand and humbly asked my hero for his autograph. As he did many years ago he smiled and asked my name, he wrote “To big Steve? best wishes Garney Henley # 26. Mr. Henley was much older now and apparently I was bigger. I have since found my original copy, and have both books displayed side by side with great pride not for my team or for my hero’s but for me and the amazing and forever cherished memories that my Sons Great Grandfather started and passed along.

Special thanks to our Caretaker and all the Caretakers of Canadian traditions and values football and beyond. No Statue will ever stand to salute these great Caretakers because no statue is required to display their greatness, it’s all around us.

Lots of good comments here but some real head scratchers too. I’m a proud Canadian, I love the CFL - but like millions of other Canadians happen to like the very similar NFL game. Just because I would love to see an NFL team in Toronto doesn’t mean I appreciate the CFL, Canada or Canada’s culture any less. The NFL and CFL are slightly different games so it is difficult to say one is better than the other - and yes there are some slightly different skill sets because of those differences. Nonetheless even the biggest CFL booster would have to admit that right now most of the best football players’ goal is the NFL - largely because of how much more they can make there. It is only once they can’t make a team there that many turn north to play our great game.

That’s not diminishing our game to admit that. We have some great athletes playing our great game. But unlike some others I don’t fear the presence of the NFL in Canada. We are already largely exposed to it, one team playing 8-10 games in Toronto I don’t see as a threat to the CFL’s survival - unless those stewarding the CFL really screw things up - which I have no reason to believe they would. I think the CFL will be just fine if the NFL plays 10 games a year in Toronto. I have enough confidence in Canada and our football league that I don’t feel threatened by the NFL. Our league can and should survive just fine if stewarded properly with the presence of one NFL team here. I think those who fear the NFL and say it must be kept out must deep down not think very highly of their own league if they don’t think it can survive the presence of one NFL team.

Canadians used to be the mouse beside the elephant and we acted that way largely - but recently we have risen out of the elephant’s shadow. Ten years ago we would have never had the balls to proclaim an ‘Own the Podium’ program like we did heading into the Vancouver Olympics. And even that program was not a goal to win the most Gold medals - i.e. be the best - but instead with typical Canadian humility we figured lots of silvers and bronze medals with the odd gold thrown in - and yet in the end we even won the most Golds even exceeding our ballsy ‘Own the Podium’ goal. That’s because of how confident we are about what we can do these days.

If many Canadians like and want an NFL team are we going to throw up walls because we don’t have enough confidence in our own league. Are we that timid and afraid of one NFL team in this country. Instead shouldn’t we show confidence and say bring it on - we’re ready for you wish you well and hopefully we’ll end up with football being more popular than ever in this country with more kids wanting to play high school football than ever before giving us a bigger and better Canadian talent pool that we the CFL can take advantage of.

There was another comment about the Raptors being ‘shoved down our throats’. Well TSN who are praised for their CFL coverage also happen to be the official TV network for the Raptors with over 50 of their games on either TSN or TSN2. The Raptors and the NBA - a threat to Canadian culture??? The NBA - the best basketball league in the world, a sport invented by a Canadian, a league that played the first game in its history in Canada at Maple Leaf Gardens, a league that saw a Canadian player drafted # 1 last year and very likely will again in its next draft with Higgins, a sport that is very popular at the high school level and probably is the most watched by spectators sports at the high school level around here, with very good crowds watching at the university level too. And somehow covering a Canadian team in the NBA is a threat to Canadian culture? If people think that way I guess I shouldn’t be surprised they find the NFL so threatening.

Great post above and maybe I can add a little of my own, some reasons why I watch CFL football.

Some of you older posters out there might be able to remember where I got my forum name. Al Charuk played receiver for the BC Lions in the 70s, Gene Belliveau played in Montreal, Stew Fraser in Sask. These were hometown boys who made it to the big time, professional sports. Vernon Pahl played at UPEI when they had a football program. These were people we knew, cared about, and avidly followed. I have no association with a guy from Nowhere, Indiana who went to North Southeast Western State University. I need, as PTS's Bob McCown would call a rooting interest.

Caretaker, three things to take to your next BOG meeting.

One. Get rid of the tag non-import. If it is insulting to be called an import, imagine being perceived to be even lower by being called a non import in your own country. I know this is also a peeve of writer Steve Simmons. Call them Canadians or even better nothing and let the Americans be imports alone. I do realize that all non imports aren't necessarily Canadian ie Bartel, but still it sounds friggin' insulting.

Two. Do the owners have any idea how important it is to find the next Russ Jackson. It is the CFL's equivalent of Jackie Robinson and until it happens there will always be the perception of inequality in the league. After seeing some of the second and third stringers I've seen over 40 odd years of watching, there's no way anyone can tell me there isn't at least one Canadian out there who can't accomplish this.

Times may have changed somewhat but the story Earl McRae wrote about Bill Robinson and the Ottawa RR in 1975 still resonates. The story titled "The Odds Against Bill Robinson" was a scathing indictment about the treatment the Canadian quarterback was given by the RR. Here a link to the newspaper column with the RR rebuttal as I can't find the original magazine piece at this time.

Third. Don't ever play with the ratio except to increase the amount of Canadian players. Glad I could get that off my chest.

Excellent summary by Mr. Young.
Just like when Minister Marc Lalonde threatened to bring in legislation to keep out the WFL in the 70's, I am all for the same if necessary to keep out the NFL.
After all, this is protectionism like the CRTC has with Canadian content etc.
The elephant in the room must be eradicated once and for all.
I say the sooner the better a private members bill should be filed.

I don’t think it was ever said the Raptors “were a threat to Canadian culture”. I’m just curious to know why when the Raps and Argos both draw 20k fans why the Raptors get 50x the publicity, when they get a tenth of the TV viewers.

I agree with what you said about Own the Podium and the program that never gets mentioned, the “Top Secret” program. I would like to think that the Canadian “Inferiority Complex” died in Vancouver in 2010 and that the CFL could compete with the NFL in Toronto. I think it could, but that does disservice to what Caretaker Bob was talking about. Money talks! And if that big NFL elephant comes into the marketplace they’re going to get what they want. And how hypocritical is it for Rogers to support that when they’ve been protected by Canadian law.

I have to disagree, it’s time to finally take the gloves off and get at it.

With Rogers getting the hockey contract, that brings us to an Archduke Ferdinand moment in Canadian culture. I don’t think I’m being alarmist or overstating that I think there is going to be a media war. TSN is already serving notice in the tone of their online stories. There is no way Bell and Rogers (TSN and Sportsnet) are going to keep their MLSE marriage together. And MLSE is one of the prime movers and shakers behind the NFL talk.

You can’t remain silent on being bullied by these guys (Rogers). It is peeing me off no end what they’ve done to the Argos and the fact that there seems to be no news coming from the Argos regarding their future. I heard one interview from Braley regarding a new stadium. That’s not good enough. Braley and Rudge have to be out there updating people to keep them interested because as it seems now, the good ship Argonaut is leaking and everyone thinks it’s going to sink. They’ve got to come out fighting and give people some hope. In WWII, the anti-aircraft guns in the Battle of Britain didn’t do a damn thing. They rarely shot anything down but they gave people hope that they were fighting back and they increased resolve. Even if it’s BS Braley and Rudge have to say something and keep saying it.

The Commish (posted above) basically came out and said we’re kicking ass and the perception (perpetuated by the Central Canadian media) that everybody is watching basketball and baseball and not CFL is total BS. The CFL is killing them and the NFL (for the most part)

That’s Wiggins, btw

Let’s call it what it is please,

So many comments about lack of confidence as Canadians and a lesser then feeling or fear of anything American, the big American marketing machine called the NFL is not nor has it ever been the villain here.

Would the NFL’s arrival kill the CFL? Maybe not most likely not. Would it change it? You can bet your last dollar that it would change it and not for the better as income would be split if not lost altogether for the smaller cousin. Rogers would do the in your face CFL thing and never let it go!

The problem does not live inside the NFL offices the problem lives breed and festers within the offices of Rogers and somewhat within MLSE. The problem is not their business wishes of having the NFL in Toronto the problem is their distasteful poor under minding tactics and the stink that is crapped all over the Toronto air waves day after day, sadly believed by so many listeners.

This is Rogers owned and controlled media outlets, scripted BS from their hired guns. Its Rogers way of doing business, it is sad and pathetic. Having a protected business that lacks competition due to the laws of the country purposely try to under mind any other Canadian business be it football or not is plain and simply wrong while unacceptable.

This protection of Canadian Football by those of us that want to see it prosper and grow truly lives without fear of the NFL offices I say bring it on but we are fed up with the way Rogers communicates it’s messages filled with pure crap and disrespect by its less than professional on air personalities.

Never mind the death watch over Ralph Wilson, I hope he lives another 30 years!

PRESENTATION IS EVERYTHING! Rogers really needs to learn this lesson

Rogers knows full well the benefits that lead to success when the government protects them from the competition.

I love the CFL and the Hamilton Tiger Cats. My 4 year old daughter now loves the CFL, especially the Ticats.
We had an outstanding family experience attending the Eastern Final this year in Toronto. (Thank you for the covered stadium which encouraged my wife and daughter to go).

Sorry not many people got to attend the Grey Cup this year but it was the best Grey Cup experience I have had even though we lost. The rest of the country can take a lesson from Saskatchewan and their love of their team and the CFL. Rider Nation is even greater than you can believe when you see it in person.

We have a lot of work to do in Southern Ontario but as other more prominent leagues are becoming more and more like big infomercials for the brands that sponsor them to pay for ridiculous salaries, we have a gem here that is on the up swing that I hope more and more people start to realize it is a lot of fun to support!! The Ticats have done a great job of making this experience more family friendly since Caretaker has been around.

In Hamilton, I hope we can build on this momentum of a Grey Cup appearance and our new Stadium next year....let's hope we can grow this fan base next year!

(Also note, I'm a life long Leaf fan that could pretty much could care less about them, their lack of success and over the top hype, marketing machine and B.S. that goes along with that organization in the recent years - very disheartened.) Wish the Sabres were better so I could cheer for them.

You know, in the 70s when they were a real joke (the pal Hal years), they were less than a joke than the corporate hyped entity they are now