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You are here: Home / Archives for NFL

CFL/NFL Flag Football Tourney Returns in 2018: Maritimes Stop Added

June 21, 2018 By Brian Wawryshyn

New regional tournament added in Atlantic Canada; CFL NFL Flag Championship to take place during Grey Cup week in Edmonton; winner to compete in the NFL FLAG Championships during Pro Bowl Week

TORONTO, ON/NEW YORK, NY (June 20, 2018) – Following the success of the inaugural CFL NFL Flag football tournaments in 2017, the Canadian Football League (CFL) and National Football League (NFL) announced that the joint flag football initiative will continue in 2018 and expand to 10 stops across the country including Atlantic Canada.

The 10 regional tournaments will be held across Canada and will bring together young athletes, CFL stars and alumni, football professionals, parents and communities. A championship will be held in Edmonton, Alberta the week of the 106th Grey Cup presented by Shaw as part of the festivities. The winner of this tournament will travel to the NFL’s Pro Bowl Week to participate in the NFL FLAG Championships.

The program, which is open to 10- and 11-year olds (those born on or after January 1st, 2007), is a way to highlight and showcase flag football as a method of instructing players on football fundamentals, sportsmanship and teamwork while promoting physical activity.

Last year’s inaugural tournament saw the Junior Riders of Saskatchewan put together an overall record of 11-0-1 between regionals and the championship. They outscored opponents 266-47, including a 20-7 win over the Surrey Tigers of BC during Grey Cup week. The win earned them a trip to Pro Bowl Week in Orlando, where they went 2-2, beating two teams from China and falling to Mexico and the United States.

“Last year’s tournament saw hundreds of young football players across the country turning out to learn, play and lead,” said Vanessa Morbi, Vice President, Marketing and Digital, Canadian Football League. “We’re proud to continue our commitment to promoting a healthy lifestyle and growing the game alongside our partners at the NFL.”

“The NFL is proud to partner again this year with the CFL, to continue to grow the game of football in Canada,” said David Thomson, Managing Director, NFL Canada.  “Flag football is a fun, exciting and easy way for youth to get into the game, and can develop important life skills including teamwork, commitment and the value of leading a healthy, active lifestyle.”

Each regional tournament will feature twelve teams with a maximum 10 players each. Participants will interact with current CFL players, meet mascots, and enjoy football-themed games and activities alongside their matches. The top team from each regional tournament will win a trip to Edmonton to play in the CFL/NFL Flag Football Championship during Grey Cup Week.

UPCOMING REGIONAL TOURNAMENTS:

  • BC: June 24th at the BC Lions Training Facility in Surrey, BC
  • Winnipeg: July 8th at Investors Group Field
  • Saskatchewan: September 16th at Mosaic Stadium
  • Calgary: September 22nd at McMahon Stadium
  • Toronto: September 22nd at Birchmount Stadium in Toronto, ON
  • Montreal: October 7th at Percival Molson Stadium
  • Hamilton: October 14th at Tim Hortons Field
  • Ottawa: October 14th at TD Place
  • Edmonton: October 20th at the Brick Field at Commonwealth Stadium
  • Atlantic Canada: October 28th at Mount Allison’s Alumni Field in Sackville, NB

Championship TOURNAMENT:

  • Edmonton, Alta..: The week of the 106th Grey Cup Presented by Shaw.

Those interested in registering for the program can find more information at cflnflflag.ca Both the CFL and the NFL will continue to invest in youth football programming and promote physical activity.

Filed Under: BC Lions Den, Blog Posts, Events, Featured Tagged With: CFL, Flag Football, NFL

The BCLionsDen.ca Pawdcast: Episode 104

September 27, 2017 By Brian Wawryshyn

A look back at the Lions disappointing loss to the Ticats and we chat with Jeannine Ritchot about this year’s Grey Cup Festival in Ottawa.

Kevin McDonald, CFL VP of Football Operations and Player Safety joins us to chat about this weekend’s CFL/NFL regional flag football tournament in Abbotsford.


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This show was recorded on September 20th, 2017

Filed Under: 2017, BCLionsDen.ca Pawdcast, Events, Featured, Interviews, Podcasts Tagged With: BC Lions, BCLionsDen.ca, Brian Wawryshyn, CFL, Flag Football, Grey Cup, Grey Cup Festival, Jeannine Ritchot, Kevin McDonald, Mojo Kemp, NFL

The BC Lions Den Pawdcast: Episode 91

January 18, 2017 By Brian Wawryshyn

Adam Bighill: Photo: BCLions.com

After an extended break we’re back in the midst of the long CFL off-season with former BC Lion an now New Orleans Saints linebacker Adam Bighill. Adam chats about growing up wanting to play professional football, about the people that have helped him along the way and the process he went through to sign with the Saints.

We’ll also bring you up to date on all the Lions roster moves so far this off-season.

[podcast src=”https://html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/5199456/height/90/width/740/theme/custom/autonext/no/thumbnail/yes/autoplay/no/preload/no/no_addthis/no/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/e55004/” height=”90″ width=”740″ placement=”top”]

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Adam Bighill
Twitter: @Bighill44

This show was recorded on January 17th, 2017.

Filed Under: 2017, BCLionsDen.ca Pawdcast, Featured, Interviews, Podcasts Tagged With: Adam Bighill, BC Lions, BCLionsDen.ca, Brian Wawryshyn, CFL, Mojo Kemp, New Orleans Saints, NFL, Podcast

A New Appreciation for CFL Officiating

May 11, 2016 By Brian Wawryshyn

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If you’re like most sports fans, myself included, you can get pretty passionate watching your team. I have been guilty in the past of screaming bloody murder watching a flag against the Lions wipe out a big play. When you’re so wrapped up and invested in the game, sometimes your emotions simply get the best of you.

Wednesday morning, I had the opportunity to sit in on a session with CFL Senior Vice-President of Football, Glen Johnson, who spoke for nearly an hour and a half on the CFL’s past successes and the new measures being put into place to continue to try to cut penalties, increase player safety and speed up the game.

All of these are common complaints of those that watch he CFL, even the league’s most die-hard fans. But the fact is for the last couple of seasons, the CFL has been a pioneer in innovating new tweaks to the game that has the NFL taking notice and even implementing those tweaks into their game in similar fashions.

Johnson explained that the league itself is the biggest critic of the way its games are officiated. 41 officials started last season, 33 remained at the end of it (for various reasons, including termination) and just 21 one of those 33 worked a playoff game.

The CFL’s new partnership with the NFL will be beneficial for both leagues, because as Johnson explained, the only way for officials to get better is to get more live snaps, just like a player. He also isn’t concerned about the NFL hiring away our top officials, saying that can only increase the number of quality people wanting to do the job.

There is a perception by many that the CFL is nothing but penalty filled football. When in reality there are often just as many flags thrown in an NFL game. The difference is that in Canada it is talked about, in the NFL, fans don’t dwell on it as much. Wally Buono likened it to a comparison to hockey in Canada. The NFL is so popular that its warts aren’t going to keep people from attending games. In the CFL, that’s not the case, especially in larger markets, and that’s an issue for a league trying to be a viable option for your sporting dollar.

The bottom line is that the game is officiated by humans, and mistakes are going to be made in a game that is one of the most difficult to call. The CFL is investing huge dollars in new technology that will help these mistakes less frequent and hopefully improve the flow of the game.

When you sit and watch game, keep this in mind; I know that many times I leave the game frustrated by a call that was made, only to get home and see on replay that it was the right call. These guys get it right a lot more than they get it wrong, and as Buono pointed out, the onus lies on the players and the coaches to help the officials get better. In a league that has a ratio, you sometimes have players going up against a superior athlete and that’s when many of the fouls are committed.

After listening to Glen Johnson explain just how hard the league is working, both on and off the field to make the game better, I left the session with a better appreciation of that, and it’s going to make my experience as a fan that much more enjoyable.

So take a breath next time you’re at a game and feel like blowing your stack, your heart and the hard-working people involved at the CFL will thank you.

You’ve probably seen these already, but here is a recap of the new rules and adjustments for 2016:

  • The CFL will deploy an eye in the sky video official who will correct calls made on the field, or help the officials come to a quick decision if there are different opinions in the huddle following a flag. This video official will be the first of its kind in North American professional sports. One example would be when both the offence and defence jump into the neutral zone before the snap and the replay official could look at the play and communicate to the referee which team jumped first. Flags could also be picked up based on what the video official sees on a camera that will show all 24 players on the field.
  • After allowing CFL coaches to challenge defensive pass interference, the league has deemed offensive pass interference, illegal contact and illegal interference on pass plays as reviewable offences. Johnson maintains that this will not slow down the game, because coaches still have the same number of challenges. If anything it makes the coaching staff’s job more difficult as they will really have to be selective in regards to what they choose to challenge. Buono pointed out that it’s critical for the players as well, as burning a timeout carelessly can really cost you later in the game.
  • Penalties reviewable by a coach’s challenge will also include no yards, called illegal blocks on kick plays, roughing the passer or kicker and illegal interference at the point of reception on kickoff attempts.
  • Unsuccessful two-point converts will be automatically reviewed by the replay official.
  • Made pushing blockers (a push block) through gaps in the offensive line on one-point converts and field-goal tries illegal, resulting in a 15-yard penalty
  • The CFL also expanded the definition of a “peel-back” block making it so that no offensive player anywhere on the field can block an opponent below the waist when he is facing his own goal line.
  • Players on the offensive line will now be allowed to point while in a 3-point stance, or move slightly to get better set for plays in a way which does not draw the defence offside. Players must become stationary and remain motionless for one second prior to the snap of the ball.
  • When a player gives an opponent’s ball to fan following a turnover, it will no longer result in Objectionable Conduct.
  • In the last 3 minutes of a game, teams that give up a field goal will no longer be able to scrimmage with the ball, but must receive a kickoff.
  • A new injury spotter will watch for players that may need assistance, who may not have been noticed by the trainers or their team mates.
  • Off-setting penalties would be created for scenarios, such as when the defence is offside and the offence commits holding on the offside player. That will result in no yardage difference being applied and replay of the down.

Notes:

  • Prior to the session starting Dennis Skulsky presented former BC Lions/CFL beat writer with The Province newspaper, Lowell Ullrich, with a custom-made football and some BC Lions wine for his years of service covering the team. It was a nice gesture for a man whose coverage is sorely missed in a sports section that rarely gives the Lions the time of day. Luckily for Lions and CFL fans, Lowell has resurfaced on 3DownNation.com.

Filed Under: BC Lions Den, CFL/League, Den Talk, Featured Tagged With: BC Lions, CFL, Glen Johnson, NFL, Rule Changes

Fans Love Football: It’s Time To Take Pride In Our Local Teams

January 30, 2015 By Brian Wawryshyn

Call it coincidental timing or a shrewdly calculated media release, but the BC Lions posted the results of a survey that suggest the football club is the team of choice for sports fans in the province of British Columbia.

With Seahawks fever gripping the lower mainland ahead of this weekend’s Super Bowl, the survey says that football is growing in popularity in BC and that the Lions come out on top. 30% of BC residents surveyed said they are hard-core or regular fans of the Lions, while 21% indicated the Seahawks were their team of choice.

5633623Clearly football has a solid following in the province and it continues to grow. 51% of the fans surveyed claimed to be hard-core or regular fans of football, a higher number than the 40% the Canucks garnered, or the Vancouver Whitecaps at 15%. Of course that number includes both CFL and NFL fans, but the fact that football came out on top has to be encouraging for the Lions.

The release of the survey results were well timed. The cities of Vancouver and Victoria raised 12th man flags earlier in the day, an honour that to my knowledge as never been bestowed on the Lions or Whitecaps. The city of Surrey also raised a flag in tribute to our NFL neighbours, but at least did so in tandem with a BC Lions flag. Fitting since Surrey is the city the Lions call home for their practice facility.

It’s disappointing that these cities would make such a show of support for a team that doesn’t play in our country, our province, or our city. The BC Lions have won six Grey Cup championships for this region, yet they can’t even garner a parade when they bring home the hardware. The last big parade this city saw for a sports team was in 1979, when the Whitecaps won the NASL’s Soccer Bowl.

The Lions have hosted two recent Grey Cups, both times bringing massive revenues to the city and its local hotels and businesses, yet they don’t seem to warrant the same support of a team in another country that doesn’t even play here.

It’s time to change that. It’s time for our governments to get behind local teams and encourage the support they deserve. The Lions are constantly in the community, and that doesn’t stop in the offseason. There are very few days that players who are in town are not at a function for sick kids, talking on the subject of violence against women, bullying or various other initiatives. The Lions give back to this community in many ways.

And this doesn’t apply to just the Lions. The Whitecaps, Vancouver Canadians, Vancouver Giants, Vancouver Stealth all deserve the same treatment. It shouldn’t be reserved for the flavour of the day or a method to get votes, tourism dollars and publicity from rabid Seahawks fans.

Of course the Lions have to do their part in terms of marketing to capitalize on this popularity of the sport. Their work in amateur football in this province has been outstanding. The Orange Helmet Awards, the creation of the late Bob Ackles, have raised over $750,000 for amateur football over the 12 year history of the event.

But it’s time to take pride in the teams in our own backyard. For what they provide for our communities and our province, it’s the least we can do.

Filed Under: CFL/League, Den Talk, Featured Tagged With: BC Football, BC Lions, CFL, City of Surrey, City of Vancouver, City of Victoria, NFL, Seattle Seahawks

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