1987 CFL season

As originally written by Tim Brulia:

Here's 1987 info, from the 6/19/87 Brandon Sun

1987 CFL coverage included 24 games on CBC, starting Sat. June 27 at Edmonton. 17 of these would be Saturday nights. They hoped the HNIC audience would keep their CBC Saturday night habit. Don Whittman, Ron Lancaster and “newcomer” Scott Oake called the games. They would broadcast 2 playoff games and simulcast the Grey Cup with the Canadian Football Network.

The CFN, which will carry 37 regular-season games and several playoff contests, is a group of independent stations set up by the league itself. It included stations in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg and Hamilton. WVNY in Burlington VT would serve the Montreal Market, and they were looking for affiliates for Ottawa and the Maritimes. Bob Irving and Dave Hodge called the games.

TSN started their CFL coverage Thu. June 25 with Toronto at Montreal. They had 19 games. John Wells and Leif Petersen called their games, with Vic Rauter as host.

The CFL agreed to lift some blackout lifts for the Toronto-Hamilton market. One article said the number was 4, another said 6.

Below follows a listing of the 1987 CFL commentator crews. As of now, these assignments - when posted - are NOT confirmed. The network assignments however, WILL be.

Changes from 1986:

Literally hours before the start of the season, the Montreal Alouettes fold.  

CTV drops coverage of the CFL. One of the driving forces of the formation of the CTV television network was to cover the CFL. So the the fact that CTV would no longer televise these games was especially noteworthy.

The CFL them formed the Canadian Football Network (CFN), an ad-hoc syndicated network consisting of a myriad of affiliates. Commentators included Bob Irving and Dave Hodge splitting play-by-play duties, with Neil Lumsden working with each as analyst. I am using Bob Irving as calling Eastern based games (He was and is based in Winnipeg, which at the last minute became an Eastern team) and Dave Hodge as calling Western games as he was based in Vancouver (though of course, as a recently fired Hockey Night in Canada host, he has spent many years as Toronto based). CFN crews the are very much subject to change.

Cable sports channel TSN also jumped into the fray, with John Wells on play-by-play and former CTV analyst Leif Pettersen completing the crew.

Any - and I mean ANY - help in crew confirmation would be appreciated.

WEEK 1

Sunday 6/21:

Stampeders-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Thursday 6/25:

Blue Bombers-Argonauts, 7:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 6/26:

TigerCats-Rough Riders, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 6/27:

Stampeders-Eskimos, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 6/28:

Roughriders-Lions, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 2

Wednesday 7/1:

Lions-Stampeders, 3:00, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 7/3:

Rough Riders-Blue Bombers, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 7/4:

Argonauts-Roughriders, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 7/5:

Eskimos-TigerCats, 1:30, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 3

Friday 7/10:

Stampeders-Blue Bombers, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 7/11:

Argonauts-Rough Riders, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 7/12:

TigerCats-Eskimos, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 4

Thursday 7/16:

Blue Bombers-Stampeders, 9:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 7/17:

Argonauts-TigerCats, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 7/18:

Eskimos-Lions, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 7/19:

Roughriders-Rough Riders, 4:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 5

Wednesday 7/22:

Stampeders-Argonauts, 7:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 7/24:

Eskimos-Blue Bombers, CFN, 8:00, Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 7/25:

Rough Riders-Lions, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 7/26:

TigerCats-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 6

Friday 7/31:

Lions-TigerCats, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 8/1:

Roughriders-Eskimos, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 8/2:

Argonauts-Stampeders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 7

Friday 8/7:

Eskimos-Argonauts, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 8/8:

Lions-Blue Bombers, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 8/9:

Stampeders-Rough Riders, 4:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 8

Thursday 8/13:

Argonauts-Lions, 10:00, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 8/14:

Blue Bombers-TigerCats, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Sunday 8/16:

Rough Riders-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 9

Thursday 8/20:

Lions-Stampeders, 9:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Friday 8/21:

TigerCats-Argonauts, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 8/22:

Roughriders-Blue Bombers, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 8/23:

Rough Riders-Eskimos, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 10

Friday 8/28:

Eskimos-Roughriders, 8:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 8/29:

Rough Riders-TigerCats, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 8/30:

Blue Bombers-Lions, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 11

Sunday 9/6:

Blue Bombers-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Monday 9/7:

Eskimos-Stampeders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Argonauts-TigerCats, 7:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

WEEK 12

Friday 9/11:

Lions-Rough Riders, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 9/12:

Argonauts-Eskimos, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 9/13:

Stampeders-Blue Bombers, 4:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 13

Friday 9/18:

Rough Riders-Stampeders, 8:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 9/19:

Roughriders-Eskimos, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 9/20:

TigerCats-Argonauts, 1:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Blue Bombers-Lions, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 14

Saturday 9/26:

Blue Bombers-Rough Riders, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 9/27:

Stampeders-TigerCats, 1:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Lions-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 15

Friday 10/2:

Rough Riders-Eskimos, 8:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Saturday 10/3:

Roughriders-Stampeders, 8:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 10/4:

Lions-Argonauts, 1:30, CBC. Steve Armitage, (?)

TigerCats-Blue Bombers, 4:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 16

Friday 10/9:

Argonauts-Rough Riders, 8:00, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Sunday 10/11:

Roughriders-TigerCats, 1:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Stampeders-Lions, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Monday 10/12:

Eskimos-Blue Bombers, 3:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

WEEK 17

Friday 10/16:

Rough Riders-Argonauts, 8:00, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Saturday 10/17:

TigerCats-Lions, 10:00, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Sunday 10/18:

Eskimos-Roughriders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

WEEK 18

Friday 10/23:

Roughriders-Argonauts, 8:00, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Saturday 10/24:

TigerCats-Rough Riders, 1:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 10/25:

Lions-Stampeders, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Blue Bombers-Eskimos, 4:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

WEEK 19

Friday 10/30:

Rough Riders-Roughriders, 8:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Sunday 11/1:

Stampeders-TigerCats, 1:30, Not televised

Argonauts-Blue Bombers, 2:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Lions-Eskimos, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

WEEK 20

Friday 11/6:

TigerCats-Stampeders, 9:30, TSN. John Wells, Leif Pettersen

Saturday 11/7:

Eskimos-Rough Riders, 1:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Sunday 11/8:

Blue Bombers-Argonauts, 1:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Roughriders-Lions, 4:00, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

PLAYOFFS

Division Semi-Finals

Sunday 11/15:

TigerCats-Argonauts, 1:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

Stampeders-Eskimos, 4:30, CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden

Division Finals

Sunday 11/22:

Argonauts-Blue Bombers, 1:30, CFN. Bob Irving, Neil Lumsden

Eskimos-Lions, 4:30, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake

GREY CUP at Vancouver:

Sunday 11/29:

Eskimos-Argonauts, 5:00, CBC. Don Wittman, Ron Lancaster, Scott Oake, Steve Armitage

                                  CFN. Dave Hodge, Neil Lumsden