Other gridon leagues (CFL, USFL, XFL, IFL, ELF et al)

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Dedicated thread for the various other gridiron leagues outside of the NFL. The NCAA has it's own active thread while the old CFL thread can be found here for archival purposes.



CFL (Canadian Football League)

Founded formally in 1958 by a merger of the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (1907) & Western Interprovincial Football Union (1936) the CFL is North America's 5th longest running professional sports league only bested by the 'Big Four'. The Championship trophy Grey Cup pre-dates the league first being played for in 1909 & east vs west competition first happening in 1921. The Grey Cup is the second oldest trophy in North American sports only bested by the Stanley Cup. The Toronto Argonauts are the most successful team with 17 Grey Cups to their name & are the oldest continuous professional sports team in North America dating back to 1873.

The league which runs from June-November currently consists of nine teams in Eastern & Western divisions (continuations of the IRFU & WIFU) playing an 18 game regular season with six moving onto the playoffs. The top two of each division are guaranteed while the last two spots don't necessarily go to both division's 3rd place team as a 4th place team can qualify if they have a better record than the 3rd place in the other division under what is known as the 'crossover rule'. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are the defending champions & are aiming to make it three in a row.

Canadian football is very similar to it's American cousin but with enough distinctions to be it's own code. The most noticeable difference is the Canadian code using three downs instead of four. Wikipedia has a good article outlining the differences between the two codes.

Games in the UK are carried by BT Sport.












 
USFL (United States Football League)

Anyone older among you may remember the USFL name from the 80's when the original USFL attemped a switch from playing during the NFL off-season to competing directly with the NFL & failing miserably. Blame Trump for that one.

USFL 2.0 is backed by Fox Sports & for it's inaugural season will be played by 8 teams in two conferences all of whom carry names of franchises that took part in the original USFL. The inaugural season running April-July will see a 10 game regular season with the top two teams of each conference going into the playoffs. For the inaugural season all regular season games are being played in Birmingham, Alabama at Legion Field & Protective Stadium while the playoffs are taking place at Tom Benson Hall Of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.

First game is tonight at 12.30am with the New Jersey Generals taking on the Birmingham Stallions the very same fixture that opened the 1984 & 1985 seasons of the original USFL. Game is a simulcast by FOX & NBC. League is not being carried by any UK network from what I can gather but I'm sure you all know how to internet.










IFL (Indoor Football League)

Formed in 2009 by a merger of the Intense Football League & United Indoor Football the IFL is the biggest of the indoor leagues since the demise of the long lived (by American sports standards) Arena Football League.

The 2022 season running February-July consists of 14 teams across two conferences playing a 16 game regular season with the top four from each conference progressing to the playoffs.

Games are broadcast live on the league's youtube channel.









XFL

As we already know the XFL picked the worst possible year to launch only getting five games in before null & voiding. The league is set to return next year & in the interim the league has been kept itself busy. The XFL & CFL were talking about possible collaboration last year but both parties walked away. Back in February the league reached an agreement with the NFL to be a 'petri dish' of sorts for various footballing experiments & development of prospective officials & coaches.

The rumour mill currently suggests that New York, Tampa Bay & LA are bowing out of the league with San Antonio, Orlando & Las Vegas lined up as replacements. It's unknown if the three new cities will have franchises from scratch or be re-locations.

The league has underwent a re-brand with a new logo plus the usual associated corporate drivel that accompanies such things. The re-brand is off to a rocky start as the league have been issued a legal notice by media & commerce company TOGETHXR on the grounds of branding similarity. TOGETHXR is a company founded by soccer player Alex Morgan, basketball player Sue Bird, snowboarder Chloe Kim & swimmer Simone Manuel that aims to change the way society views traditional roles for women.







ELF (European League Of Football

Having it's maiden season last year the ELF can be seen as a successor to NFL Europe that some of you probably have fond memories of.

For the 2022 season being played June-September 12 teams across three conferences will play a 12 game regular season with the winner of each conference plus best runner up moving onto the playoffs.

The league currently has teams in Austria, Germany, Spain, Poland & Turkey with teams being a mix of NFL Europe phoenix clubs, new creations & teams moving up from domestic leagues. If future expansion includes the UK the London Monarchs would imo be the most likely candidate.

 

Edited April 17, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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USFL WEEK 1







IFL Week 6

Edited April 20, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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USFL Week 2











IFL Week 7

Edited April 28, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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CFL bringing in nine new rules for 2022

Hash Marks on CFL fields will be moved closer to centre field. Each one will be 28 yards from the nearest sideline, instead of 24 yards. As a result, they will be nine yards apart instead of 17 yards apart.

Offences will get more of a head start. After a made field goal or single point, drives will start from the 40-yard line, instead of the 35-yard line. Teams kicking off for any reason will do so from their 30-yard line instead of the 35-yard line. The only exception is kickoffs following a safety: they will now occur from the 20-yard line instead of the 25-yard line.

Strategies to limit opportunities for kick returns will be discouraged more severely. All no yards penalties – which are assigned when the cover team invades a five-yard halo around the returner as he fields a punt – will be 15 yards. Previously, a no yards penalty was 15 yards only if the ball had been fielded in the air – and only five yards if the punt had bounced. Also, any punt that sails out of bounds before it reaches an opponent’s 15-yard line will be assigned a penalty – instead of only punts that sail out of bounds before they reach the 20-yard line.

Two quarterbacks will be allowed on the field at the same time, provided all other ratio rules are satisfied, which will allow for some additional imaginative play calling.

A “communications co-ordinator” from the officiating department, connected to the on-field officials via headset communication, will be imbedded on each team’s bench. This will allow information to be shared with coaches without requiring the referee to approach the sidelines, improving game flow. This will also make it easier for coaches to alert the officiating crew that they are initiating a timeout or a challenge.

To also keep a game moving, a penalty that occurs at the end of the first or third quarter will be assigned at the start of the next quarter, rather than triggering an extension of the quarter. The non-offending team could still insist the penalty be imposed within the quarter if there is a clear advantage, such as wanting to keep the wind behind it for a crucial kick.

The circumstances under which the Command Centre is allowed to help on-field officials – without a coach’s challenge or an officials’ huddle – will be expanded to include possession rulings, boundary rulings and administrative rules such as a formation without an end or ineligible receivers downfield. This is designed to allow the Command Centre to get in front of a coach’s challenge where an obvious outcome is known, improving the flow of the game. It is to occur via headset communication and without stopping the game.

Introduction of a new objectionable conduct penalty for quarterbacks who “fake” giving themselves up by pretending to initiate a slide while carrying the football. The ball would also be spotted where the fake occurred. The safety of all quarterbacks is jeopardized when measures to protect them are instead used to gain an advantage.

Automatic ejection of any player guilty of two unnecessary roughness penalties or two objectionable conduct penalties (or a combination of two UR and OC penalties) for infractions that occur following a play. This will discourage the type of conduct that can threaten player safety and disrupt game flow.

 

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USFL Week 3

IFL Week 8

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USFL Week 4











IFL 9

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USFL Week 5










IFL Week 10

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USFL Week 6














IFL Week 11

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USFL Week 7/8















IFL Week 12/13

Edited June 8, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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USFL Week 9












IFL Week 14















ELF Week 1/2

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USFL Week 10









IFL Week 15
















ELF Week 3

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CFL Week 1/2















After a wild ride of an off season that saw a stand off between the CFLPA & the league over the CBA most noteably proposed changes to the Canadian player ratio & a switch to four downs being discussed the first full 18 game season since 2019 has gotten underway.

Shout out to the Ti-Cats throwing a 24-3 half time against the Stamps with the Ti-Cats blowing two short yardage 3rd downs including a strip by DB Titus Wall off of QB Dane Evans that Wall took into for a TD.

The Alouette's will be without star RB William Stanback as he came off in their week 1 game loss against the Stamps with a fractured ankle which he had surgery on yesterday.

The 2022 HOF class is as follows:

DE Chip Cox (2006-2016)
Builder Keith Evans (Over 50 years service in the CJFL with the Calgary Colts)
K/P Paul McCallum (1993-2016)
QB Ricky Ray (2002-2018)
Builder Dave Ritchie (CFL coach 1993-2007)
Builder Roy Shivers (CFL front office roles 1983-2015)
DB/WR Dick Thornton (1961-1972)
RB Tim Tindale (CIS 1990-1994)
Media Glen Suitor (broadcaster)
Media Ed Willes (sports writer)
 

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USFL Divison Finals





IFL Week 16















ELF Week 4

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CFL Week 3
 

BC Lions Candian QB Nathan Rourke is off to a flyer not only leading  his team to two resounding wins but also setting multiple records for a Canadian QB namely 436yds passing in a single game, a passing % of 87.0 & is the 2nd to throw 4 TD's for 0 INTS & five TD's in a single game joining the company Russ Jackson who is by far the best Canadian QB in league history. Jackson finished 8th & the highest ranked Canadian in TSN's 2006 top 50 players of the modern era. Rourke is already seemingly on the radar of NFL personnel departments

To illustrate how top level Canadian QB's are rarer than hen's teeth this table illustrates the point well:

Edited June 29, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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USFL Championship Game














IFL Week 17














ELF Week 5

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CFL Week 4

Edited July 7, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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IFL Week 18
















ELF Week 6

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CFL Week 5

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CFL News Roundup

The Montreal Alouettes have fired Khari Jones as HC & OC after a 1-3 start & has been replaced by Alouttes GM Danny Maciocia until the end of the season. The OC role will be filled by current Al's QB coach & CFL goat Anthony Calvillo. DC Barron Miles has also been fired & replaced by Noel Thorpe.

Saskatchewan Roughridgers DL Garret Marino has been suspended for four games for a dangerous hit on Ottawa Redlbacks QB Jeremiah Masoli resulting in ejection from the game, his celebration after the fact, racist language used towards Masoli & a dangerous hit on an Ottawa O-liner on a previous play. This is to date the heaviest punishment dished out for a single game offense. Marino is a bonehead as only twelve games into his CFL career in addition to the most recent charges was ejected from a game last season & badgered the Redblacks at a restaurant the night before the game.

The injury suffered by Jeremiah Masoli is thought to be a bone based injury in his leg which will see him out of action for 10-12 weeks . The initial fear was an ACL injury that would've required reconstructive ACL surgery.

In response to Masoli being out the Redblacks have acquired Nick Arbuckle from the Elks in exchange for 2023 4th round draft pick. Arbuckle started the season for the Elks but lost his spot in week 4 to Canadian QB Tre Ford. Elks HC Chris Jones never wanted Arbuckle in Edmonton which is demonstrated by the fact that despite Tre Ford injuring his collarbone week 5 the Elks have opted to trade Arbuckle. Taylor Cornelius who started out as the team's 3rd string QB will be their starter in the interim.

Edited July 12, 2022 by GNU_Linux

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IFL Week 19















ELF Week 7