TUESDAY COMMENTARY – THE WHEEL KEEPS TURNING

(Listen daily for the Rod Pedersen Commentary on Cat Country 98 FM & Rock 98.5 FM)

THE SMOKE HAS CLEARED AND THE BLUE & GOLD CONFETTI’S BEEN CLEANED UP AT TIM HORTON’S FIELD FOLLOWING THE 108^TH GREY CUP.

NOW … THE CFL OFF-SEASON.

IT’S USUALLY WILDER AND MORE ENTERTAINING THAN THE GAMES THEMSELVES AND WHILE NO TWO SEASONS ARE THE SAME, THIS UPCOMING CANADIAN WINTER SIGNALS ONE DISTINCT THING TO ME FOR THE CFL:

CHANGE.

I’D MENTIONED DURING THE PANDEMIC – WHEN THE CFL MISSED THE 2020 SEASON – THAT THE LEAGUE WOULD LOOK A LOT DIFFERENT WHEN IT CAME BACK.

BUT IT REALLY DIDN’T. A LOT OF THE LEAGUE MAINSTAYS WERE GONE LIKE 49-YEAR ESKIMOS EQUIPMENT MAN DWAYNE MANDRUSIAK, 30-YEAR REFEREE KIM MURPHY OR LONG-TIME BROADCASTER CHRIS CUTHBERT BUT PEOPLE SEEMED TO HARDLY NOTICE OR CARE.

THE WHEEL KEEPS TURNING. OR AS SOME SAY, THE TRAIN KEEPS ROLLING. PEOPLE GET ON AND PEOPLE GET OFF, BUT THE TRAIN KEEPS GOING.

WHEN THE CFL RETURNS IN 2022 THERE WILL BE NO ROD BLACK, BRIAN WILLIAMS NOR BOB IRVING. THEY WERE A LOT OF THE IDENTITY OF THE CFL FOR DECADES BUT, AGAIN, I’M STARTING TO WONDER IF PEOPLE EVEN CARE ABOUT THAT STUFF ANYMORE.

AND I SUPPOSE WE CAN’T FEAR THAT CHANGE. WE ALL GO THROUGH IT AT SOME POINT IN LIFE. FOR SOME OF US, MULTIPLE TIMES. WE ALWAYS EMERGE STRONGER.

THIS WINTER’S TALK OF COACHING AND GM CAROUSELS (CHRIS JONES INTERVIEWS WITH EDMONTON THIS WEEK), SILLY POTENTIAL RULE CHANGES, AND THE NEVER-ENDING EXPANSION-TO-HALIFAX TALK WILL CONTINUE AND WHO KNOWS IF IT’LL EVER REACH A CONCLUSION? PRETTY SURE THE XFL WILL COME UP AGAIN TOO.

THE ONLY THING I’M CERTAIN OF IS I’VE GOT A NICE SELECTION OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL BOWL GAMES TO ATTEND AND THE FLORIDA PANTHERS KICKOFF ANOTHER HOMESTAND TONIGHT.

THE WHEEL KEEPS TURNING. THE QUESTION IS, ARE YOU GOING TO BE ON IT OR UNDER IT?

THAT’S TODAY’S ROD PEDERSEN COMMENTARY

(The Rod Pedersen Show airs daily at 12 pm ET on Game+ TV across Canada and the USA. Call your cable provider for details. You can also watch on YouTube Live and listen 24/7 at RodPedersen.com/ListenLive)