2005 CFL PREVIEWFive
stories to watch for this season
The 2004 CFL season was a success on many levels. Thanks to ownership stability in Hamilton and Toronto, there was an attendance boost at CFL games in both cities. The B.C. Lions nearly sold out games on several occasions, further confirming the league's growing popularity.
Competition increased as the gap between the West and East Division narrowed. New stars emerged and veterans continued to shine.
So what's in store for the 2005 season? CBC Sports Online picked a few stories to keep an eye on.
Dave Dickenson is expected to start the season as the Lions' top quarterback.
Controversy? What controversy?
According to Casey Printers, there's no question as to who is the
No. 1 quarterback in British Columbia.
The CFL's most outstanding player caught many people, including coach Wally Buono, off guard when he conceded the starting job to Dickenson during Spring Training.
Although the announcement was a big surprise, the controversy is bound to pop up again. Printers underwent toe surgery in the off-season and didn’t play in any exhibition games, which probably prompted the comment.
Having two of the top quarterbacks in the league is a nice luxury for Buono, but spells disaster for team chemistry. Printers is too good to spend his time holding a clipboard and he has the resume to prove it.
With Dickenson injured last season, Printers led the Lions to the best regular-season record in the West Division, racking up 35 touchdown passes.
Despite Printers's accolades and success, Buono went with a returning Dickenson in the Grey Cup. Printers didn't get on the field as the Lions lost to the Toronto Argonauts.
If Dickenson starts to falter and Printers shines again in limited action, look for the controversy to pop up again.
Commissioner Tom Wright isn't seeing eye-to-eye with the league's board of governors.
Tom Wright’s job is safe
for now. But it’s going to be interesting to see how the relationship
between the CFL commissioner and board of governors develops this
year.
Wright is still unhappy with the way things were handled when it came time for team owners to renew his contract in May.
Although the league has never looked healthier and more popular, some owners made it clear they didn’t like the way Wright handled league business affairs and thought they could find someone better for the job.
The small insurgency failed, but Wright didn’t really get a vote of confidence – a one-year extension on his current deal, which expires at the end of this year.
Wright hasn’t accepted the offer yet, meaning the league might be looking for yet another commissioner during or after the 2005 Grey Cup.
Usually soft-spoken and politically correct, Wright has started to speak his mind of late and it’s starting aggravate a few owners.
It all began when he suggested teams actually abide by the $2.6 million salary cap and said it would be fiercely enforced in 2006.
Many among the board of governors didn’t like that idea and started the campaign to oust the CFL commissioner.
Wright didn’t back down after his extension offer either, publicly announcing he wanted the authority to run the league with no interference from owners.
If he doesn’t, it’s expected he’ll reject the CFL’s offer and find another job.
”When the governors went public with their complaints – that was completely unnecessary,” Wright told the Montreal Gazette. “No commissioner should have to go through that situation. I have no problem with a good healthy dialogue ‚ but I’ve never provided the basis for breaches of confidence.”
The Stamps made a big splash in the free agent pool, signing Henry Buris.
If there’s any team poised
for aremarkable turnaround this season, it’s the Calgary Stampeders.
It’s been an off-season of big changes for the league’s worst team
in 2004, with a new ownership taking over, new coach and a slew of
free-agent signings.
So far, all of the moves have been met with tremendous fan approval.
This diehard football community had every right to pull their season
tickets after last year’s horrific 4-14 season, but they responded
to the acquisition of quarterback Henry Burris and receiver Jermaine
Copeland by opening their wallets again.
The Stamps had sold nearly 19,000 season tickets before the start
of the 2005 season.
Burris and Copeland are a potentially lethal duo and they are already
selling themselves as a force that will make fans forget about a team
that finished last in offence this year.
For the first time in five years, it seems that the Stamps have a
legitimate star receiver in Copeland.
The veteran receiver has already set some lofty standards for himself
this season, suggesting he could threaten some league records held
by former Stampeder great Allen Pitts.
Giving Burris another option is last year’s rookie of the year, Nik
Lewis.
And with a defence that looks pretty solid, the Stamps have a chance
to stir up some trouble in the West Division.
Lonie Glieberman back in the early 1990s, kicking off the CFL season.
Bernie and Lonie Glieberman said they didn’t like the way they left Ottawa over a decade ago and are determined to make things right again.
They are back in the CFL scene, this time in charge of the Renegades, and it will be interesting to see if they can win over fans, many of who still blame the father and son duo for ruining the Rough Riders franchise.
Lonie Glieberman was quite a colourful character when he was in charge of the Rough Riders in the early 1990s. Although he’s matured a lot since his days of dating Ottawa cheerleaders at a brash 27 year old, he’s still determined to do things his way.
As soon as the takeover was approved by league board of governors, he hired Forrest Gregg – a man who hasn’t been involved in football in 10 years – as vice-president of football operations.
Controversial personnel decisions are normal for the Gliebermans – they brought in washed-up NFLer Dexter Manley during their first stint in Ottawa and demanded the coaching staff play him.
Ottawa football fans will have to endure some of the Gliebermans’ eccentricities if they want to see the CFL to stay in the area.
One of the main reasons why the board of governors approved the sale was Bernie and Lonie were the only serious bidders for the troubled franchise.
The Gliebermans were willing to step in and take over a disgruntled ownership and a team that’s worth has steadily declined since it entered the league in 2001.
Argos' quarterback Damon Allen does a good job avoiding defenders, but will father time finally sack him this season?
When these two finally
retire, scientists will need to run a myriad of tests to find out
their secret to defying the aging process.
Many people questioned whether these two veteran quarterbacks still
had the talent to compete in the CFL last season, but they silenced
those critics in 2004.
Now, the biggest question is whether they can do it again?
Age is the main and most obvious factor working against Toronto's
Allen and Hamilton's McManus.
At 42 (Allen) and 40 (McManus), nobody needs to tell these two that
Father Time is working against them.
Many thought Allen was going to end his career on a high note after
he led his Argonauts to the Grey Cup, but that wasn't enough for the
20-year veteran.
He's back with the Argos with the distinction of being known as not
only a champion, but the oldest quarterback in the league. While he
still possesses the mobility that keeps defences off balance, he's
missed several games due to the injury over the last two seasons.
Like Allen, McManus doesn't need to worry about someone else taking
his spot as starting quarterback. He's firmly entrenched there after
a strong 2004 campaign.
And if he can repeat that effort this year he'll make Ticats coach
Greg Marshall's job a little easier.
McManus doesn't move around much, so the Ticats defence will have
to protect him if he's going to stay away from injury.
