Quick Slants: Thursday Nights and There Is Always Next Year Winnipeg
Published: Thursday, Jun 7th 2018, 4:06am
by: Greg McCulloch (@GregOnSports)
Quick Slants looks at some of the weekly stories in the CFL and beyond.
Long Live The Night Indeed
As discussed previously TSN is revamping their Thursday Night Football presentation. Kate Beirness will indeed be the host, while Rod Smith will still apparently man the panel with the usual rotation of former players. Also announced for the new format is the CFL’s Brodie Lawson with off-field segments that will bring fans closer to the game and stars of the league.
The CFL also announced a concert series with the Thursday Night Schedule that will happen during halftime of the games:
June 14 The Reklaws in Winnipeg
June 21, Elijah Woods x Jamie in Ottawa
June 28, James Barker Band in Calgary
July 5, Tim Hicks in Regina
July 19, The Beaches in Hamilton
July 26, LOUD in Montreal
August 2, Kardinal Offishall in Toronto
August 2, Jazz Cartier in Edmonton
August 9, Chad Brownlee in Vancouver
The Reklaws also did a CFL version of their song “Long Live The Night” as the official theme of Thursday Night Football, and to the surprise of no one, it opens with a shot of Mosaic Stadium.
I think everything the CFL is trying could be a great way to lure casual and younger fans to the game. Good to see the CFL isn’t happy with staying with the status quo and wants to try new things.
I can’t wait.
Hey Winnipeg, There Is Always Next Year – Part 28
As much as I love to rag on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers… and heaven knows I do…. A LOT…
I almost feel sorry for the Bombers today, and I honestly mean it.
After a strong 2017, the Bombs made some solid moves to try to push themselves into contention for their first Grey Cup since 1990. Think about that for a minute, there is basically an entire generation of Bomber fans that have no idea what a championship looks like.
Here is a small list of things that have happened since 1990:
– The CFL was in and out of the USA
– Anthony Calvillo’s Entire GOAT CFL Career
– The CFL has had 10 commissioners
– The CBC still had Football on
– Ottawa has had 3 different CFL Franchises and one won a Grey Cup
However, the Bombers hopes of ending the drought took a massive non-contact injury today when starting QB Matt Nichols went down in practice Wednesday. From all reports, Nicholls made a pass then went down in obvious pain despite no one near him.
The description of the events reminded me of the 2015 Riders home opener when Darian Durant threw a pass, jumped to get a better look at downfield, then went down in a crumpled heap with a torn ACL. And while there are no confirmed reports what Nicholls’ prognosis is, it seems to be similar to the Durant situation where he will be out for a significant period.
Which with the sudden retirement of Durant, the Bombers do not have an actual veteran presence as a backup and could be scrambling to retool their offence. Fortunately, for the Bombers, they still have time to evaluate the QBs they have in camp.
But I wouldn’t be surprised if Walters made a few phone calls to see if anyone would part with a slightly used veteran QB.
There will always be 2019 Bomber fans… and 2020… and 2021…
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