Football Operations: GM Ed Hervey, HC Wally Buono and the Coaching Staff

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Blitz
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All the above may be true but it still doesn't change the fact that Braley is cheap, a statement that was made often in Toronto, before he sold the Argos (and tried to get above market value for them)

“Home” games were played in Fort McMurray, Alberta (3,700 kilometres away!) and in Hamilton before 3,400 people. Braley slashed the marketing department to almost non-existence and many long time Argo fans finally gave up.

Argo players and coaches bounced between practice facilities for years as Braley tired to recover money he had previously lost on the team. The Argos were constantly strapped for cash and were effectively abandoned by Braley before he managed to sell them.

Braley may have been a so called 'savior' when he first bought the Argos (after secretly lending the team money before he did) but he was no savior for many years after but became an owner who almost ran them into the ground.

The 'salvation' the Argos desperately needed took place when Bell Media bought them in 2016. One more season of Braley's ownership in Toronto might have been one season too long for the Argos to survive. Its still going to be a long road back for the Argos franchise as Braley's ownership did a lot of damage.

Here in B.C. things are not rosy either. So, maybe we don't need 20 scouts or so called scouts and we don't need to run as many try out camps as the Riders but we desperately need a new owner who can get our Lions franchise going in the right direction again.

The changes that have been made for this season so far are positive but Braley's penny pinching ways are not a good thing for our Leos.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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SammyGreene
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I always have wondered if during the glory years from 2005-2011 when the Lions hosted 2 sold out Grey Cups, a number of Western Finals and had solid regular season attendance numbers, that was the time for Braley to invest in building the Lions their own practice facility. He would have left a lasting legacy and just how much would that land be worth today? It also would have increased the value of the franchise significantly.
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Hambone
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SammyGreene wrote:
Sun Dec 31, 2017 9:54 am
I always have wondered if during the glory years from 2005-2011 when the Lions hosted 2 sold out Grey Cups, a number of Western Finals and had solid regular season attendance numbers, that was the time for Braley to invest in building the Lions their own practice facility. He would have left a lasting legacy and just how much would that land be worth today? It also would have increased the value of the franchise significantly.
Interesting question. In the glory days of the Lions in the 80s they purchased the land and built the current facility. They later sold it all back to the City of Surrey and currently lease it. The Lions have invested quite a bit in recent years upgrading the offices and meeting rooms etc.

From a pure land speculation perspective and with purrfect 20/20 hindsight it would be a no-brainer. However neither the Lions nor Braley seem to be in the business of land speculation. At minimum they'd need 3 acres of land just to house one CFL sized field, an office/locker room/meeting room complex and parking lot. Even 7 years ago that would not come cheap and would not be easy to find.

No doubt Sammy had the Lions gone down that road they would be worth much more and I believe easier to sell. However the risk is in today's real estate market many prospective buyers would only be interested in the dirt the practice facility sits on. They'd be buying the Lions not because they want to own a football team but rather to acquire the land. Then they would tear down the buildings and dispose of the football team to whomever will take it off their hands.
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Hambone
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The Fort Mac thing was no fault of Braley's. The Argos and Jays were both punted out of Skydome to make room for the Pan-Am games. Just like 2016 when TFC had to play on the road for 2 months while renos to allow the Argos to play in BMO were completed that put pressure on the calendar to fit in the rest of the season's games. And you know who was going to get the priority on the Skydome calendar in 2015? They Jays certainly weren't going to give the Argos any breaks. As it was the Argos first actual home game didn't happen until August. Then in late September and into the Jays playoff run they kicked the Argos out onto the streets again. Originally the Argos had 1 home game in Fort Mac and 8 scheduled in Skydome. I think they wound up with only 5 actual home games. Had the Jays made the World Series they would've lost at least one more home date.
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WestCoastJoe
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We are not out of the woods yet.

Braley is Problem #1. And this despite all he has done to support and save the Lions franchise.

Instead of selling in 2017, we have seen football operation moves. In pro sports when a team is struggling, they make moves, even if the moves are mostly window dressing.

Same owner.

Same Head Coach.

Same Defensive Coordinator.

Same O Line coach.

Probably the same philosophy on offence and defence.

The most glaring coaching weakness, STs, has seen a change, bringing in Jeff Reinebold. Hopefully that translates to the field.

Too negative a view? Many on here were calling for wholesale change, top to bottom. Many loyal fans were calling for change at DC and O Line. Many were hoping for change at Head Coach.

But we have some hope. We have been through worse times. And 2018 is just around the corner.

Just IMO ...
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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DanoT
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To me, since Braley has already been rumoured to have turned down a $15M offer from the Waterboys Group, it seems unlikely some other buyer will suddenly emerge in 2019 and offer more money. I expect that Braley's over valued view of his team will cause them to be his team for quite a while longer.
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Hambone
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DanoT wrote:
Sun Dec 31, 2017 3:30 pm
To me, since Braley has already been rumoured to have turned down a $15M offer from the Waterboys Group, it seems unlikely some other buyer will suddenly emerge in 2019 and offer more money. I expect that Braley's over valued view of his team will cause them to be his team for quite a while longer.
The key word there Dano is rumoured. At this point nobody other than Braley and prospective groups with an interest know what has been discussed, if anything, or any numbers if any have been floated back and forth.
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Qman
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WestCoastJoe wrote:
Sun Dec 31, 2017 12:54 pm
We are not out of the woods yet.

Braley is Problem #1. And this despite all he has done to support and save the Lions franchise.

Instead of selling in 2017, we have seen football operation moves. In pro sports when a team is struggling, they make moves, even if the moves are mostly window dressing.

Same owner.

Same Head Coach.

Same Defensive Coordinator.

Same O Line coach.

Probably the same philosophy on offence and defence.

The most glaring coaching weakness, STs, has seen a change, bringing in Jeff Reinebold. Hopefully that translates to the field.

Too negative a view? Many on here were calling for wholesale change, top to bottom. Many loyal fans were calling for change at DC and O Line. Many were hoping for change at Head Coach.

But we have some hope. We have been through worse times. And 2018 is just around the corner.

Just IMO ...
exactly, we new an ownership change right now!

You think if David Sidoo owned the team we'd only have 3 US scouts. we'd be investing like crazy in recruiting and facilities, just like the eskimos and riders.

If the waterboys owned the team, we'd be put a ton of money in to marketing. Rebuilding the teams brand, connection with the community and growing the season ticket base.
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B.C.FAN
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Qman wrote:
Sun Dec 31, 2017 7:10 pm
You think if David Sidoo owned the team we'd only have 3 US scouts. we'd be investing like crazy in recruiting and facilities, just like the eskimos and riders.

If the waterboys owned the team, we'd be put a ton of money in to marketing. Rebuilding the teams brand, connection with the community and growing the season ticket base.
The artificial turf is always greener in Edmonton and Regina. I don't think Braley has been cheap as an owner; he's just disconnected from the changing marketplace.

The Lions' practice facility is first class by CFL standards, and has been upgraded in recent years. It would be nice to have a full-sized indoor practice field but that's probably not a realistic expense without a public partner to provide the land and take on some of the costs.

I'm most impressed with what I've seen from the business operations this offseason. The children's season tickets are a great incentive for young families.
The 2018 schedule is the most fan-friendly I've seen in years. The hiring of Rick Lelacheur as team president brings new focus and leadership to that side of the business.

The Lions are currently advertising to fill five positions in business operations:
- Director, Corporate Partnership Sales
- Manager, Suite Sales And Service
- Associate, Corporate Partnerships
- Manager, Game Operations & Events
- Account Executive, Sales

Good things seem to be happening in business operations. There are grounds for optimism for 2018 and beyond.
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Hambone
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Qman wrote:
Sun Dec 31, 2017 7:10 pm

exactly, we new an ownership change right now!

You think if David Sidoo owned the team we'd only have 3 US scouts. we'd be investing like crazy in recruiting and facilities, just like the eskimos and riders.

If the waterboys owned the team, we'd be put a ton of money in to marketing. Rebuilding the teams brand, connection with the community and growing the season ticket base.
The Esks currently list a Director of Canadian Scouting and 3 regional scouts on their website plus Paul Jones as Executive Director Player Personnel. Jones has been there forever but rarely ventures far from his home base in the US south. That's it. It's actually almost identical to what the Lions show except the Lions also have McEvoy in addition to the 5. I'm still waiting for your list of 20 full time Rider scouts. Riders can't be bothered to list any of their scouts on their website.

I think you assume a lot when asserting the Waterboys would just throw more money at this magic pixie dust called marketing. Would they spend more? Maybe. Would they spend the same but spend it differently? Maybe. They will still be constricted by the same budgetary forces that govern their respective businesses; projected revenues and expenses. If they decide to spend an extra million on marketing it may come at theexpense of reducing costs in other areas.

The Eskimos in recent years have spent approximately $1 million annually on Marketing and Community Relations and $1.1 million on Scouting and Football Operations. It's impossible to compare the Riders' costs as they don't break their football ops costs down in their statements. They lump scouting, player and coaches salaries, travel, video, medical etc all into one lump sum for Football Ops. Clearly though the Esks do run on a tight budget when it comes to these things. A million bucks gets chewed up pretty quickly for scouting when it includes salaries and travel costs.
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CONNECTICUT YANKEE
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The posters stating the team is skimping on scouting have a very valid point and the issue
requires some self examination on The Lions part.I understand the front office has a budget
that requires adherence but the team is putting itself at a major disadvantage with it's current
practices.

- Why are the Lions not sending at least one scout to any of the following college All-Star games
Dream Bowl
HBCU SOA Bowl
- Both games are played on the same weekend at the same location with over 200 potential recruits
to be met and introduced in a relaxed atmosphere.
- They run a dedicated combine for CFL scouts.
http://www.dreambowl.net/
http://www.hbcusoabowl.com/game-week-info/
But if your not there your relying on an outsourced option in Optimum scouting (If there paying for that ?)
(also notice the photo of Geroy Simon on the home page - see below)
http://optimumscouting.weebly.com/
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FCS Bowl
National Bowl
- Both games were played on the same weekend at the same location
- Several CFL teams were there doing homework
Pat Jones(Edm) , Danny McManus (Winn), and the gentleman in the black golf shirt Sammy-G(Sask)
Russ Lande(Mtl) was in different photo.(I can't find it right now)
https://twitter.com/FCSBOWL?ref_src=tws ... com%2Fhome
https://twitter.com/sammyg75?lang=en
- Looks like Calgary and Edmonton are busy.

- The game last year produced a canadian player who was taken by Saskatchewan in the supplemental draft.
The league office did not know of his citizenship status but the Riders identified him because they were
at the games.
https://www.riderville.com/players/bran ... tt/163406/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tropical Bowl
Globe Bowl
- Both games were played on the same weekend at the same location
- Run by the same people who run FCS/National Bowl
- Riders found there rookie of the year nominee at last years Globe Bowl
https://www.riderville.com/players/tobi-antigha/163077/
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There is a great deal of talent on all levels of amateur football that is getting overlooked
because The Lions are stuck in a stale pattern of this has always worked.
Hopefully, with the addition of Ed Hervey and Torey Hunter, there will be a change in philosophy
and practice.
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WestCoastJoe
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Excellent post, CONNECTICUT YANKEE.

Very informative. :thup:

We see very good coverage of team details on this site, as on this page, by those more supportive of the ownership and staff and those more critical of their work. People have differing opinions and viewpoints.

It's all good.

And 2018 is here. Free agency coming. Tryout camps. The draft.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
maxlion
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It didn't take long for Khari Jones to land another job. Named OC in Montreal.

http://3downnation.com/2018/01/03/new-a ... xperience/
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B.C.FAN
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maxlion wrote:
Wed Jan 03, 2018 11:13 am
It didn't take long for Khari Jones to land another job. Named OC in Montreal.

http://3downnation.com/2018/01/03/new-a ... xperience/
Good for Khari. He faces a tough task. Who will he have at QB, Darian Durant, Drew Willy, James Franklin or Johnny Manziel? The Als have some good receivers but that doesn’t mean much without a dependable QB.
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