Controversial CFL command centre decisions enraging players, fans alike

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/08/2024 (469 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

VANCOUVER — It’s been a rough year for the CFL’s command centre and trying to get calls right.

It seems like every week a new issue arises, whether it be what exactly constitutes defensive pass interference or, as was the case last week, the command centre taking far too much time to make a call, extending the game between the Ottawa Redblacks and Saskatchewan Roughriders after players and coaches had already vacated the field.

Well, if you thought this week might offer a reprieve from the command centre chaos, think again. Controversy reared its ugly head once more, late in Friday’s game between the Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes.

The play in question came during a game-winning touchdown drive with fewer than a minute remaining in the game and Montreal trailing 24-21.

Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander, facing a second-and-10 on Saskatchewan’s 15-yard line, took off down the right sideline and scored a touchdown.

Despite replay evidence showing Alexander stepping out of bounds, the command centre, which reviews all scoring plays, confirmed the call on the field.

The Riders would get one last chance to tie and force overtime, but kicker Brett Lauther missed his fourth field goal of the game, this one from 48 yards out, to seal the Alouettes’ win.

Needless to say, fans of the CFL were buzzing, with armchair officials across the country arguing both sides. It’s created a mess that not only turns fans against each other, but also effects the players’ trust in the league, all of which want a clearer understanding of the process and protocols of the command centre.

“I’m sure this off-season will have a healthy debate around the command centre usage, around all of this stuff,” said Blue Bombers linebacker Adam Bighill, who is treasurer for the CFL Players’ Association and also represents the union on the league’s rule committee.

“Around actually looking at language of the rule book as opposed to how it’s actually being officiated, and looking at the standards.”

The Bombers had the command centre strongly influence the result of a 16-14 loss to the Toronto Argonauts in Week 8. The Argos intercepted Zach Collaros and returned it for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

On the play, Bombers receiver Nic Demski had his arm held, which should have resulted in an overturned call. But the command centre, after reviewing the play, confirmed the score.

The league would later call the Bombers and admit their mistake.

“The things we’ve seen come up over the last couple weeks bring some of those specific points to the top of the conversation in the off-season,” Bighill said. “It’ll be a conversation, no doubt about it, but it’s all in an effort to make the game as perfect as you can and eliminate as much error as possible and figuring out what you are capable of and not capable of.”

On Wednesday, the CFL issued a memo to all nine teams, including club presidents, general managers and head coaches, that the league is reviewing the process of the command centre.

“No one wants to be wrong, and everyone wants to get it right,” Bighill said. “We’ll take a look at it.”

MOURNING HIS GRANDMOTHER: Kicker Sergio Castillo has returned to the Bombers after missing practice this week to tend to his grandmother, who had been in failing health.

Castillo was back home in Amarillo, Texas, for the bye week when he got the news. He raced through the 12-hour drive to La Joya to be by her side for her final moments.

“She took her last breath at 10:26 p.m. on Sunday night, August 11th,” Castillo said shortly after arriving in Vancouver for Winnipeg’s game against the B.C. Lions Sunday.

“It was such a raw experience of emotions. You’re sad that she’s gone… but to be part of the moment of someone’s last breath, I never thought I’d be a part of something like that.”

Castillo described his grandmother as stubborn, claiming he gets that from her, but loving. She looked after Castillo and his other four cousins while their parents went to work.

She would watch Mexican wrestling with the family and get right into it, as well as soccer, and she also loved plants.

“I was lucky that I was able to be there to see her,” Castillo said. “She went in peace with all her family there.”

NUMBERS GAME: The Bombers released veteran linebacker Aaron Grymes from the practice roster on Saturday.

Grymes, who has 95 CFL regular-season games over seven seasons, was added to the PR in late July after missing the last two seasons with a knee injury.

“Just the number of guys we got coming back healthy soon,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said. “It’s just one of those things. It happens.”

O’Shea was then asked what improvements he hoped to see from his club in the second half of the season after a 3-6 mark in the first.

“I just want to see what they do this week,” he said. “We are where we’re at. I think we know we can be better and we have to show that constant improvement. One of those areas we can improve on is not look past the moment that’s in front of us.”

Jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jeffkhamilton