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TORONTO -- The greatest Canadian in the history of the Canadian Football League thinks the league could be committing a huge fumble.
The legendary Russ Jackson can't understand why the CFL would dare to think of dropping the number of starting Canadians for each team in each game to four from seven.
"I don't like it," Jackson said yesterday afternoon. "There are enough good Canadians in the league that you don't have to do this.
"I have not heard a good reason for it. If you take out Canadian content, you are saying Americans are better, and we have enough good Canadian talent. Canadian kids are quite capable."
The CFL and CFL Players' Association are in preliminary talks toward negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement, and among the myriad of issues is the CFL reportedly wants to have less Canadian starters, ostensibly because it would be less costly to pay American-born players. The present CBA is due to expire on the day before training camps open in 2010.
Jackson, who was born in Hamilton and quarterbacked the Ottawa Rough Riders to three Grey Cup victories, doesn't buy it.
"Cheaper?" Jackson said. "It's not like we're talking about millions of dollars here."
Jim Kardash, who was an offensive lineman for the Argonauts from 1986-92 and now is a vice-principal in metro Toronto, added his voice to those who think the decrease in Canadians would be wrong.
"It's non-sensical and a short-sighted view that comes from a position of arrogance," said Kardash, a native of Brandon, Man. "Reducing the number would be a step backward, and (the CFL) would wind up regretting that day."
Kardash has been a summer football coach for years in southwestern Ontario and thought the idea put forth by Edmonton Eskimos GM Danny Maciocia, who told Sun Media on the weekend that there should be a quota on Canadian coaches, was intriguing.
"I tell people it's like apples and oranges," Kardash said. "They're both fruit, but they taste different. It's the same with the Canadian and American game. It's football, but it is played differently."
The lack of Canadians, or certainly Canadian experience on their coaching staff, hurt the Argonauts in 2009. Head coach Bart Andrus was asked yesterday how quickly the autopsy on the season begins.
"We're going to go right into it," Andrus said. "We want to get our coaches out of here for the U.S. Thanksgiving."
That says it all. Only special teams co-ordinator Steve Buratto, defensive co-ordinator Pete Kuharchek (one year) and linebackers coach Ed O'Neil (one year) had CFL experience.
"I think we had enough," Andrus said. "We had good resources in our building. The differences, once you get past the (initial) three or four weeks ... I am pretty used to the game now."
TERRY.KOSHAN@SUNMEDIA.CA