BOOOOOOOOO.... (deep breath)... BOOOOOOOOOOOO... (deep breath)...

We open on a typical CFL crowd - let's say, oh, in Hamilton - booing loudly after a crucial call has gone against them.




One knowledgeable patron courteously informs those sitting around him that the call on the field made by the referees was, in fact, correct and they have no reason to be upset.




Word spreads quickly around the stadium that the decision on the field was the correct one and the fans return to their seats and give the officials a smattering of polite applause for their correct interpretation of the rules at a critical point in the game.

Ok, let's snap back to reality for a second if we could, after that little story that had more fantasy than Mariah Carey.

Most of the commentary I've been reading following Saturday's Saskatchewan/Hamilton game has been along the lines of "Oh those ignorant Hamilton fans, they were booing even though the refs got it right !!!11!!1!!!"

Maybe it's just me and my un-Canadian views on football but I guarantee the reaction to the deciding call in Saturday's game would have been the exact same in any CFL city. If not worse.

If that game had been in Taylor Field and James Johnson ran down Jessee Lumsden (hey - it's just a thought experiment, never mind the fact that it could never possibly happen) with the same outcome that we saw on Saturday, are we really to believe the intelligista that comprises the crowd in Regina would have accepted the decision of the officials with quiet resignation?

Right...

That's not to say the crowds in Regina are any more or less intelligent and full-throated than in any other CFL city. But, you better believe that Taylor Field would have been shaken to its core if the situation was reversed.

And how do we even know what the fans in Hamilton were booing about? They could have all been perfectly aware that the correct call was made - and they were booing the stupidity of the rule itself. Because let's be honest, that is the dumbest rule I have ever heard of. Even worse than no-yards, and no-yards is dumber than... than... insert reference to something dumb here (I went to the well and the bucket came up empty).

Moreover, since when did fans (of any sport) need a valid reason to express their displeasure with anything - especially officiating? Fans in Regina berate local radio personalities standing on the sidelines at football games because they "suck" (which they do, by the way). That's what is so great about being a sports fan - it requires very little logic. It can be a very nice escape from everyday life.

For example, I have a seething, white-hot hatred for the New England Patriots - and I really don't have a good reason for this. They have never beaten "my" team in a meaningful game (that would require "my" team playing in a meaningful game - no playoff wins in 15 years baby!) and they've never personally wronged me in any way. Mostly I just hate them because they're too good (Sure they're cheaters and steroid abusers, but I hated them long before that).

Now, hating something because it's too good does not make a whole lot of sense to me. I wouldn't hate a book, a CD or a plate of pasta because it's too good - but that doesn't stop me from doing it when it comes to sports. Rest assured if I ever see Tom Brady on the street I will endeavour to boo him until he cries like a school girl with a skinned knee.

What's my point in all of this?

I have no idea. I started out wanting to write about Hamilton fans being upset at the perception that their team got jobbed - and the reaction to it. But somewhere along the way I wandered off the path a bit. I suppose if I had to sum up, I'd say that booing officiating is perfectly acceptable regardless of the situation - if they didn't want to be booed they shouldn't be wearing the stupid zebra costumes. I just think it's pretty ridiculous for one fan base or the media to criticize another fan base for "ignorant" booing.

Except those American hockey fans, they don't know what the hell they're booing about.

So It's the Old "Fumble the Ball Through the Endzone and Get it Back Again" Play, Eh?

Wow, just wow.

You Look Like I Need A Drink - Redux

Clearly I should have saved this title for the post about Friday night's CFL games, instead of wasting it on Thursday's games.

The Montreal/Winnipeg and B.C/Saskatchewan games displayed in vibrant HD everything I can't stand about the CFL - boring, sloppy football. I don't care what the final scores were in those games, you can't tell me there was anything exciting about either of them.

I'll focus on the B.C./Saskatchewan game, as that's the one I'm more familiar with, and that's not saying much - having listened to it like a shut-in during the 30's listening to War of the Worlds. But in the spirit of full disclosure, I did watch the last couple of minutes in moving pictures. And the Montreal/Winnipeg game was a blowout not worth mentioning anyway.

First for B.C. - Jarious Jackson should be playing high school football somewhere, not CFL football. You just know that somewhere Spurgeon Wynn was watching game at home thinking, "I could have done that!" I will admit that Jackson throws a great ball - the only problem being that it's usually not to anybody, at least not to anybody on his team. Terrible.

And for Saskatchewan, the big story will be injuries. Two broken legs, a pulled hamstring and more than a few cases of Pilsner-stomach, I'm sure.

Although the story should be that I was only 4 points off in predicting the final score, which was 26 - 16. My prediction was 23-17. Oh well, whattayougonnado?

But I think my favorite part of the game was the post-game reaction in which people were commending Damien Durant for his "good" game. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't he 4-11 or 4-12 passing? In no way, shape or form does a 25% completion percentage constitute a good game. The only thing Durant did successfully was hand the ball off to Wes Cates (as Trebor stated in the comments on the previous post). The plane might actually be crashing into the mountain after all.

I hate to be a naysayer about the CFL all the time (ahh, who am I kidding - no I don't) but I don't think anybody can say they enjoyed the games on Friday night.

And what can I say, sometimes old habits are just hard to break. Isn't that right, doctor?




Only 3 weeks until NFL training camps, only 3 weeks until NFL training camps.

You Look Like I Need A Drink

As I sat down to watch some 3-down football last night, I thought this title would be appropriate for a post about me struggling to watch CFL football - but what can I say, sometimes I'm wrong.

Last night's games were highly entertaining.

First was the Toronto/Hamilton game, which I watched the first 7/8ths of. One of the two things I got from this game is that Jesse Lumsden is the most talented athlete in the league - hands down. It's criminal for him to touch the ball less than 20-25 times a game. If he stays healthy this year Hamilton has a good chance to not be horrible.

The second thing I got from the game is that Toronto coach Rich Stubler is not going to last the season. There's just no way. The team is almost is open revolt already. The quarterbacks are squabbling and the idiot kicker doesn't even have goal posts to practice on. His quarterback-swapping by "feel" is one of the most ludicrous things I've ever heard of. Shouldn't the quarterback, of all people, be the one guy you want to be confident in himself? As far as I can tell, a coach with the propensity to pull quarterbacks like he's starting a lawnmower is not going to instill confidence in QB's who are always looking over their shoulders.

The Stubler death-watch starts now. If he sees September, I'll be surprised.

The other game last night was Edmonton/Calgary, which I managed to catch the last 7/8ths of. And if you only watched an 1/8th of that game, the last 1/8th was one to see.

I turned it on with Edmonton up 3 (I think) with about 2 minutes to play - and the proceeded to demonstrate exactly how not to run out the clock. They went pass, sack, punt - to give the ball immediately back to Calgary, who promptly marched down the field and scored a touchdown to go up 4 with a minute and a half left.

When Calgary scored I bet that French kid who coaches Edmonton felt about like this:

However, improbable as it may seem, Edmonton was able to march right back down the field themselves and score the winning touchdown. It was quite a score as well - click here to watch the clip - with Jason Tucker making about 4 different adjustments while the ball was in the air. It was also a thing of beauty because Rod Black almost had an on-air stroke when Tucker caught the ball.

Also, does anyone else think Ricky Ray might have the mumps? I think someone should tell him to get checked out. Or at least get him to take the cotton balls out of his cheeks.

And of course tonight Saskatchewan plays in B.C. If I was forced to venture a guess I'd say Saskatchewan wins 23-17, or something like that.

No, I did not see last week's season opener between the Roughriders and Eskimos, as it was Sports As Life contributor Trebor's wedding. And here for your viewing pleasure is an advance copy of the wedding photo from the happy day*...

*May not be a true statement - but congratulations to them all the same.

Are you troubled by strange noises in the middle of the night?

Do you experience feelings of dread in your basement or attic?

I know I do, which can only mean one thing - the CFL season is right around the corner.

All 6 of you who have read Sports As Life in the past know my feelings on the CFL... the only place in the world an aging, former safety can be the league MVP. And the rouge - oh how I love the rouge.

However, I have made an executive decision to overhaul Sports As Life into strictly a football blog - which, let's be honest, it pretty much was anyway - so the start of the CFL season means the start of Sports As Life season again.

Trying to write something "clever" about all the major sports was a pretty unwieldy task, so I've decided to streamline. While I enjoy watching basketball and baseball, I just don't follow them closely enough to consistently write about. And hockey... don't even get me started. Hockey is for stupids and you'll never convince me otherwise. All this week I had planned on writing something called The One Year No-Hockey Diet - but I just never quite got around to it.

So if you're like me, football season just can't come fast enough. I'll even settle for watching OTA's on the NFL Network for the love of Pete!

And as always, I think rouge's are going to tell the story.