Not sure if anyone caught it on tsn2, but Cohon was a guest for the full 3rd hour on tsn radio's 'drive with Dave Naylor '.
Talks about the upcoming expansion draft, young QBs, Halifax, stadiums, etc.
Ticat's and RedBlacks' presidents call in as well.
Here's the podcast for those who missed it, or just want to hear it again:
recap:
Mark Cohon talks about how new stadiums - BC place, IGF, THF, Lansdowne markII - will help US player recruitment.
mark claims tv ratings in southern ontario are up 50% over the last 2 years.
talks about the possibility of community ownership in Halifax and selling shares - like in saskatchewan - as fans across canada will purchase shares to make this happen.
( mentions Halifax and their mayor numourous times during the interview but barely moncton. seems he is intent on going there over moncton. i guess this is what happens when you can't sell-out 20,000 seats once a year )
focused on talking to the right people to make this happen.
says it could lead to other opportunities for the league ( new business partnerships/revenues? perhaps an 11th team? ).
naylor comments about the merchandise possibilities of the right logo and name.
talks about trestman's chicago bears. trestman's still watching the CFL and the Als. calvillo was invited to bears' camp to help explain schemes.
says he hopes the argos get a new stadium. brailey and rudge are looking for potential sites. varsity stadium is no longer an option. new argos stadium is a necessity.
ticat's president, scott mitchell is a guest:
claims THF is on time and on budget. thrilled with the progress. will have stadium turned over to the tabbies late june 2014.
claims the guelph experience has been terrific, aside from bad weather.
talks about the new stadium going north-south where it was east-west before. lots more room around the stadium for gathering/ social experience. patios in endzone. claims smaller venues is the trend in sports ( claims NFL is looking at 45,000 seat venues instead of 80,000. not sure if this is true ). claims the league was influenced by the montreal blueprint. says he thinks THF will rival IGF from a fan experience.
Jeff Hunt of the RedBlacks is up next:
claims lansdowne is looking like a stadium really starting to resemble the wonderful drawings they had.
talks about the young QBs in the CFL and the december draft. the young QBs are stepping up and looking good. marcel will have tough choices to make. excitement is gaining momentum.
Bo Mitchell is on:
gives credit to his coaches and teammates. says this is a league for guys who love to throw the ball. says possibly his best game since highschool. says friends and family down south watched online espn360. says CFL games come down to the wire, anything can happen, unlike it's american counterpart.
collaros is up:
says had great week of practice leading up to the game. coach Milanovich prepared him well. says jason barnes' catch in double coverage for his first TD gave him confidence. honored with the comparisions to flutie, but it's only 1 game. hopes to build on it. comments on playing behind Ricky Ray; says he is poised, is a leader and the guys respond to him. there are 3 coaches on staff who are ex.QBs in the league, and he's learning a lot from them all. is asked about Ottawa, but says he is an Argo first and foremost.
Cohon is asked about the RedBlacks name. says Hunt asked him for his thoughts on it. cohon told him to go back to the drawing board, but over the next month, he bought in. dave hodge and dave naylor agree the name has grown on them. hodge says over time, people will agree it fits once they have a team and a look, especially if they win. says the board felt they wanted a fresh start and no RR. naylor agrees.
next year, each team will have 2 bye weeks scattered throughout the season. 20 week schedule starting earlier. no teams will play eachother more than 2-3 times in the season ( thank god! ). 1 team will play twice in 1 week. unfortunate, but it happens. says making the schedule is the toughest thing in their office. asked about an All-Star game. claims they don't work in most leagues, so why bother? talks about MLB's works because the winner gets home field advantage, but that can't happen in football, with grey cup locations being pre-determined. naylor talks about brad sinopoli, and now they know why he didn't make 3rd stringer in calgary - Bo Mitchell.
naylor asks about paredes' record. cohon says it's up to the competition committee to look at the rules in the offseason.
says grey cup is sold-out 5 months in advance. hodge thinks the riders are a lock to be in the game, and asks if they will ever lose?
end of show.
[b]drummer_god wrote: talks about the possibility of community ownership in Halifax and selling shares - like in saskatchewan - as fans across canada will purchase shares to make this happen.[/b]this may be the best avenue to achieve the elusive 10th team, and am confident a public offering would be a resounding success. (I'd be game to buy a few shares) The Packers and Riders have done very well with this type of capital investment model.
[b]drummer_god wrote: says it could lead to other opportunities for the league ( new business partnerships/revenues? perhaps an 11th team? ).[/b]specifically what did they say regarding an 11th team DG? Was there any mention of a potential location for this team?
and much appreciation for posting a summary of the show DG. :thup:
Dave hodge had commented, the thinking was once the CFL went back to ottawa, they'd look to Quebec THEN the maritimes.
Cohon just commented that, while actively seeking a 10th team it may lead to other opportunities.
What that means is open to interpretation. Not sure if he meant opportunities for an 11th team, as in seeking a 10th shakes out strong interest in 2 cities and rather than choosing one over the other, both are awarded teams, or if he just meant business opportunities / sponsorship.
Draw your own conclusions.
Wish he had elaborated, because given the context of the conversation, and what hodge had just said, its hard to be clear what he was refering to - the quebec comment, or just business opportunities in the maritimes.
Not trying to mislead anyone, but just played it back for a third time, and it seems hodge didn't mention quebec. More of a hmm pause. Not sure how i got quebec out of that the first time around.
There were a couple of times, where i had to re listen to make out what was said. for instance, naylor comments on the merchandising of a possible atlantic team and says," with the right logo and ???". I assume he said name, but i'm not sure even after playing that part 5 times or more.
Muchly appreciated this dg!
If they put one in the maritimes I would have to think they would call them the Schooners. There is just too much fun fokelore to use another team name.
That's too many boatmen for my liking.
Why rip off one team when you can rip off two:
How about the Lion-Cats? :lol:
Why not call them the Ruffriders? 
Only Ottawa was told they couldn't use the name, and it's spelled different. :lol:
Also the brand of a local beer.
Thanks so much for the recap…really appreciated…sounds like it was an interesting program.
:thup: