Grey Cup: The people's football championship

A patriotic gem from Dave Perkins

All right, let's give a great big Toronto welcome to the Winnipeg-Saskatchewan Grey Cup.

Does that involve swearing in 17 languages?

To make the Westerners feel at home, we should leave the roof open Sunday at the occasional future home of the Buffalo Bills.

Just a little joke there – in reality, here's hoping everyone has a good time and the game is its usual entertaining self. That way, we'll know it isn't a Super Bowl.

BUUUURRRRRRRRNNNNN SUPER BOWL!

Actually, this is nowhere near a Super Bowl and, for that, we should be thankful.

Take it from someone who has been to about 10 of the overblown U.S. championship games, seldom leaving impressed: The Grey Cup, bless its Canadian heart and soul, is the fans' game.

The Toronto Star has paid for Dave Perkins to go to the Super Bowl 10 times? There is no god.

The Super Bowl is all about corporations and excess. It is the expense account crowd, the year's top earners and best clients for whom the tickets, at $500 (U.S.) and $600 each but scalped for several times their face value, represent some company's tax write-off.

Fucking suits with their stock portfolios and private jets and peanutbutter and caviar sandwiches.

The Grey Cup certainly has its share of high-end, dress-up events. The swells, in any society, need to be catered to, and that's fine. But scan the list of events as constructed by a Grey Cup committee that has laboured long and hard, and it's easy to find plenty of events for participants who may not be arriving by limousine.

Dented pick up trucks only!

Various parties represent all of Canada. At a couple of them, word is if the action drags, they promise to show Jiri Tlusty home movies.

Oh you're baaaad, Dave Perkins!

There's the Calgary Pancake Breakfast on Front Street Friday at 11 a.m. (who eats breakfast at 11 a.m.? Are they staying on Alberta time?)

Then there's the famous Spirit of Edmonton with a "hospitality zone'' and game day breakfast. There's also the Atlantic Schooners Down East Kitchen Party, which sounds like fun, and traditional stopping-off points like Riderville and Tigertown. At a modest $5 or $10 to get in, who can resist?

Please just read the preceding paragraphs again.

This is the one big difference between Canada's game and the big one down south. Fans will always be front and centre at the Grey Cup, rather than a necessary afterthought.

The bigger contrast? Surely it's the quality of game – there have been a few good Super Bowls, but most have been duds. There have been, by comparison, a few dud Grey Cups, but most are pretty good matchups.

Yeah, the pre grame and halftime shows are the Super Bowl are overblown and boring. Okay. The games haven't always been close. Okay. But please don't compare the quality of football between the NFL and the CFL. You will not win. Also, "slot back" may be the most fun sports position to say out loud.

Here's one more advantage to Grey Cup week: A national championship college game blended in, played on Friday evening. Sure, Canadian university sports aren't the same life-and-death matter as in the Excited States, but at least we arrange, through a real playoff system, a no-doubts national champion, not a made-up title game based on a points and ranking system hardly anyone understands.

Take that Division 1 football! I'd take the York Yeomen over the Kansas Jayhawks any day.

It would have been nice to have the Argos participating in Sunday's Grey Cup, but enough of that.

Let's enjoy what we have, since there's no telling when we'll get another chance.

I'll take that Bills game right about now.