Mitchell Gale Talks of Canadian Pro Football

[shayman]

I came across this Youtube video of QB Mitchell Gale filmed in February talking to a group in his hometown of Alva Oklahoma about his experiences in the CFL. Very interesting to hear him describe the league and answer questions about his experience in Canada.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9evVowBkAyE

[argotom]

Good find.
Mitchell does by and large speak well of the league.
Boy though, with some of the questions asked there are some pretty isolated and there is no other way to say it, stupid people in the audience not knowing anything outside their little local.

[ArgoRavi]

The folks in that little town sure know about Rob Ford though. Gale's answer about that is funny.

[doubleblue]

Good find. Don't think the Canadian players in the League will forget Mitchell saying there is a huge difference in calibre between the American and Canadian players.
That is true in some cases, but not so much in the starters.

[Neely2005]

Good find. Don't think the Canadian players in the League will forget Mitchell saying there is a huge difference in calibre between the American and Canadian players.
That is true in some cases, but not so much in the starters.

Yeah and then he follows it up with it's because Canadians are playing hockey and ice fishing. :-)

[argotom]

Good find. Don't think the Canadian players in the League will forget Mitchell saying there is a huge difference in calibre between the American and Canadian players.
That is true in some cases, but not so much in the starters.

Good point.
I missed that the first time around.
A horrible evaluation and comment.

[DanoT]

Good point.
I missed that the first time around.
A horrible evaluation and comment.

The comment about Canadians playing hockey is true in that hockey does siphon off the best athletes at an early age. The Canadians that at 6'6" and 275lbs or thereabouts, that are good athletes but too big to play hockey, end up as CFL Olinemen.

[OV Argo]

The comment about Canadians playing hockey is true in that hockey does siphon off the best athletes at an early age. The Canadians that at 6'6" and 275lbs or thereabouts, that are good athletes but too big to play hockey, end up as CFL Olinemen.

Not saying you are championing this idea Dano, but IMO ...
A ludicrous cliche that's been around forever in CFL commentary circles (mostly no nothing blow-hards in the media who have to bleat cliches cause they have no original thoughts) - Canadian players just started playing the game yesterday because they were too busy playing hockey or riding snowmobiles all their lives. And sure - hockey would be the main sport for some young Canadian athletes who might have otherwise played some football instead; yet - funny i never hear that same cliche used to disparge the American football talent pool - so many American athletes were too busy playing baseball or basketball so it affected their ability to produce a lot of good football players ? - a crock of $*** of course, just like it is for the hockey excuse up here.

What Gale (predictably) and a lot of people up here (pathetic/sad) just don't get, is that football IS a Canadian sport - it's been around here and played seriously here (at many levels - from minor ball thru to HS, Junior, University AND the CFL) for over a century. And that Canada does produce a lot of football talent - mostly guys who have been playing the game all their lives or at least many years . And maybe some of these ignorant clowns who spout this good ole cliche need to be shown a list of all the Canadians playing pro football - CFL & NFL - and then they could ask all 200 or more of those guys if their hockey playing affected their ability to be good football players.

[Neely2005]

The comment about Canadians playing hockey is true in that hockey does siphon off the best athletes at an early age. The Canadians that at 6'6" and 275lbs or thereabouts, that are good athletes but too big to play hockey, end up as CFL Olinemen.

There's not really a lot of overlap between the minor hockey and the minor football season. One of my sons plays rep hockey and it starts in September and usually ends in March, it can go a little longer if you go all the way in the playoffs. My friends son plays both hockey and football.

[Wobbler]

Sigh. All this nonsense because Gale suggested that he thinks he can take advantage if he sees a Canadian field corner. Only one team (Winnipeg) is currently starting a Canadian, Matt Bucknor, at field corner.

[ArgoZ]

Sigh. All this nonsense because Gale suggested that he thinks he can take advantage if he sees a Canadian field corner. Only one team (Winnipeg) is currently starting a Canadian, Matt Bucknor, at field corner.

Ya, I am not bothered by any of his comments. He is talking and trying to relate too an audience of fellow alumni and friends. It was more "locker/buddy talk" and not meant for the Canadian public to dissect. For the most part, he said many great things about the CFL. And he thinks Americans are better,,, well he's entitled to his opinion and I can admit that Americans do produce the best players. But how can you argue with him when a player comes up here and sees all the Canadians put on the O-line? Let's not fool ourselves here.