New CFL Commissioner Jeffrey Orridge is taking on "an entirely new era" as the league gets set to start the '15 season tonight, and one of the things that "makes it different is Orridge himself," according to Rachel Brady of the GLOBE & MAIL. Orridge is the "first black commissioner of a major North American sports league, not to mention the first CFL commish who didn’t grow up in Canada." He inherits a league that "made strides" under his predecessor, Mark Cohon, but there is "still plenty to do." The CFL "badly needs to attract younger fans; draft rules aimed at making the game more exciting; make all nine franchises profitable; and fix the Toronto Argonauts’ dwindling popularity in the league’s most vexing market." The Harvard Law-educated Orridge "draws on a diverse list of professional experiences, including stints working for brands" such as Reebok, Mattel and Warner Bros. He was "on the marketing team" behind the '92 U.S. Dream Team in Barcelona, and also "negotiated sports broadcast deals for the CBC." Orridge said of the CFL, "We’re no longer in turn-around mode. Not every team is profitable yet, so that’s the idea. And I want the fan experience inside and outside the stadiums to be the best in North America." CFLPA President Scott Flory said, "We have guys who should be household names and on cereal boxes in this country, but they’re not. ... I think promotion of our players can be done a lot more." Alouettes BOD member Andrew Wetenhall said of Orridge, "He brings a lot [more] different perspectives than we had at the table before he joined us. We already have lots of people who remember Grey Cups from 30 years ago, but that’s not all that helpful in securing fans in 2015 and beyond" (GLOBE & MAIL, 6/25).
DRUG POLICY: In Winnipeg, Paul Friesen reports the CFL and CFLPA have "finally bowed to public pressure, agreeing to hold 'formal talks' to strengthen the league's drug policy." Orridge and Flory "made the joint announcement" yesterday after "weeks of criticism from national and international leaders in the fight against doping." Orridge said that the league will "address three key areas of the policy: how to deal with university players entering the league who've been caught doping, the penalties for first-time offenders and the frequency of testing." He "couldn't say if the CFL will at least match what the NFL does: publicly identifying first-time offenders and suspending them for four games." Orridge: "We're open to change" (WINNIPEG SUN, 6/25).
