THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. GOVERNMENT HANDOUTS FOR CFL: I’m all for it. But $150 million? Seriously? How about more like $5 million per franchise ($45 million total) and then let the rich teams like the Riders, Edmonton and Bell media cover the rest? If the CFL gets its full bailout, then I better not hear any whining about Federal government dollars being used to bring back the Montreal Expos in a few years. Or money for the SJHL, the WHL or the Western Canadian Baseball League. If you do it for one, you have to do it for them all.   

2. ROUGHRIDERS HURT MOST BY THIS: In many ways they would be the CFL’s version of the ’94 Montreal Expos who had the greatest season in franchise history wiped out by the baseball strike. We may never get to find out if Cody Fajardo’s 2019 was a fluke or the real deal. This team might not be together for long and if they don’t get the chance to win a Grey Cup at home this year or next, that window could disappear forever. There are plenty of other teams and their fans who will miss out for their squad to strike while the iron is hot. But you’ll never convince me there’s another team that will be hurt by this more than the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

3. JERRY FLEGEL: My evaluation of this city councilor has been swaying up and down more than the stock market lately. I just love his vision of a downtown ballpark. And then last week, I listen to him argue about how it should be legal to NOT wear helmets on your bike out on the road. He says some pretty ridiculous things sometimes but it could be a lot worse. At least he shows up for meetings and doesn’t have the horrendous attendance record that councilor Chris Szarka got paid for when he held that seat.

4. SASK BASEBALL HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2020: Glad to see Regina’s Elemer Jerkovits voted into the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame in this year’s class (or whenever we have a Hall of Fame dinner to celebrate again). Elemer has been an umpire for decades including much work in the Western Canadian Baseball League where he is highly regarded around the league as one of the best. Elemer’s achievements extend far beyond his perch behind home plate as he helped organize the Toronto Blue Jays last visit to Taylor Field in 1993 during that season. Could you imagine the defending world champs coming to Regina during the season now?

5. WHEN WE GET BACK TO ‘NORMAL’: We’re going to have to accept 2020 as a write-off for big events. By 2021, we’ll find new ways of doing things so that we can get on with our lives. What that looks like is still to be determined. But it will happen and mass gatherings will be a thing again a year from now, no matter what. Mark my words.

6. ATLANTIC SCHOONERS: I’m hearing a lot of doubters about this ever happening because of their spokesman, Anthony LeBlanc, leaving for the Ottawa Senators. Hold your horses. It means absolutely nothing and will continue to mean nothing until the pandemic is over. For now, and for the next while due to obvious reasons, this story will be on pause. The current situation will make it harder for the CFL to get its stadium in Halifax, no doubt. But at the same time, building stadiums is a surefire way to rebuild economies and more importantly, morale, after disasters like this one.

7. SHOPPING LOCAL IN CFL DRAFT: Glad to see teams like the Riders and Montreal drafting homegrown players early and often in last week’s CFL draft. Teams always get better mileage when they do that. Longtime Brandon Wheat Kings GM Kelly McCrimmon did that for years when he would obsess over Manitoba players. Worked okay for him all that time and it’s always worked okay for the Riders. You always get a little extra from the kids who grew up wearing your jersey.

8. BEST SPORTS CHANNEL DURING COVID: Not TSN and not Sportsnet. YouTube. Much better selection and the stuff they’re playing on these networks is pretty well all available on YouTube anyway, though the quality might not be as good. But YouTube gives you the retro commercials or even skips them all together, which is even better.

9. WEARING MASKS: Don’t make fun of anyone doing it. They’re not “overreacting” and remember, they’re doing it to protect you from them. For now, I choose not to wear a mask because I want others who need one more than I do, to have one. That’s not a knock against anyone who is wearing a mask. If you feel safer wearing one, you should do it. Everyone is just doing their best.

10. MORE BINGE-WATCHING FOR SELF-ISOLATION: How bout we all avoid binge-watching this week and spend some time outside. Get passionate about yard work again. If you don’t have a yard, sit out on the deck/balcony and read a book. Help that farmer you know who needs a hand with seeding, while staying 6 feet apart from each other of course, and just be outside. It’s the only way we’re going to make it through this thing with our sanity.

(Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendanhowardmc)