CFL is heavily invested in the issue at SFU
You may have noticed the terrible end of a college football program in Canada and the many failed attempts to bring it back by now.
On April 4, university administrators led by President Joy Johnson and Athletic Director Theresa Hanson announced the immediate dissolution of Simon Fraser University's football program after 57 years. "We no longer believe we are giving an outstanding experience for student-athletes," Johnson said, "since the football situation has shifted substantially in recent years."
The Lone Star Conference (LSC), situated in Texas and connected with NCAA Division II, informed the British Columbia institution that it was making way for another local team and that the Red Leafs' two-year tenure in the LSC would be its last before the upcoming season.
Since the LSC schedule had already been issued, the decision was made to cancel the sport immediately rather than play a final season.
As expected, this sparked an outcry from program alums and other interested parties, including the Canadian Football League, the Canadian Football Players' Association, and the British Columbia Lions. Johnson and Hanson may have taken on more than they can handle with this project.
Lawyer and SFU Football Alumni Association member Glen Orris has taken the initiative to file a court order in B.C. Supreme Court on Wednesday to revive the program. Seven current players on the team filed the injunction, spanning in age from freshman to senior, alleging that the institution had broken its contract with the student-athletes.
It's impossible to predict how this will play out in court, but it has the potential to take a long time. No one seems to be lacking in enthusiasm, and that includes Doug Brown, a former Blue Bomber and Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductee who played for SFU in the early to mid-1990s.
Instead of focusing on the future, this week's CFL Rundown will review the previous week in the three-down cycle.
A few more notes on the drama at SFU. You've got to feel bad for the football players suddenly without a team. They had just finished spring training when they were shut out, and now they have to deal with the emotional stress of being locked out while taking final examinations. The school will continue to honor football scholarships for the upcoming year, which is nice but overlooks the fact that many recipients will prefer to play elsewhere. You may sign a petition to bring the program back here.
It is hoped that the alums presently battling for the program's survival would remain involved to help get it back on solid ground if it is successful in its rescue attempt. SFU has been only treading water on the field for years, despite the obvious advantages of college and team sports. The Red Leafs have a winning percentage of.367, as they are 4-61 since 2015 and 186-321-2 overall. That isn't lovely.
I hope the game and the folks fighting for the software receive a second chance. Because I fear that eliminating a popular course from a university's curriculum may encourage students to stop attending. The future of the sport could be better as more people learn about the risks involved and fewer people sign up to play. This is why the CFL and other big players aren't willing to give up so easily.
The fourth time Chad Kelly made headlines was for the reason you'd expect. The Toronto Argonauts quarterback, who was a key part of The Boatman's dramatic comeback victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in last year's Grey Cup, discussed his aspirations to return to the NFL on a podcast earlier this month. Kelly, the last player selected in the 2017 NFL Draft and nephew of football great Jim Kelly, thinks he can force the NFL to take notice if he helps the Argonauts win consecutive championships.
He elaborated on why he isn't there right now, saying things like "teams don't want a scary backup that's going to take the starter's position" and that he's on a "s—t contract" in Toronto. Although 29-year-old Kelly had a stellar collegiate career at Ole Miss, I'll remind you that he threw for only 297 yards and two touchdowns when playing for the Toronto Argonauts in 2017. In what should be an intriguing season for the Argonauts, he will take over as the starting pivot.
Andrew Harris, who will take over the team in 2024, was meeting with potential new players on the West Coast. In February, the Canadian Junior Football League's Vancouver Island Raiders re-signed the Winnipeg native and four-time Grey Cup champion. He will serve as the club's director of football operations this year and as head coach beginning in 2020. This past weekend, he went to his first official event, an evaluation camp for high schools. Harris almost served as a player-coach for the Argos last year after he injured his pectoral muscle and received some coaching experience. Seeing him contribute to the program he has previously praised so enthusiastically is encouraging.
On Wednesday, the Roughriders made a huge announcement: they had extended the contract of Canadian receiver Kian Schaffer-Baker by two years. After a great year in which he caught 68 passes for 960 yards and five scores for Riderville, Schaffer-Baker has signed a new contract that will keep him there through the 2025 season. This is fantastic news for the Roughriders, not only because they get to keep a guy they drafted (2020 fourth-round, 30th overall) and nurtured, but also because it was widely assumed that Schaffer-Baker would leave for the NFL this offseason after receiving significant interest from the league. It's crucial to keep promising young players in the CFL, and it's even better if the child happens to be a Canadian.
Additionally, fans of the Roughriders can now enjoy online betting on sports with increased confidence in the team's success, given the continued presence of a talented player like Schaffer-Baker.
