New CFL commissioner Johnston plans to be very visible at start of regular season

TORONTO — Stewart Johnston is set for his first CFL season as commissioner.

Just six weeks after replacing Randy Ambrosie, Johnston is preparing to oversee his first regular season. And the 54-year-old Toronto native plans to visit all nine league cities by the middle of next month.

In fact, Johnston has already started his cross-country trek, having attended the B.C. Lions’ exhibition game May 19 in Langford, B.C., and the Montreal Alouettes’ pre-season contest there May 24.

“I’m so anxious to get out to each market to meet with club personnel, local media and the fans,” Johnston said. “I’ll heading out to Regina for the season opener (between Ottawa and Saskatchewan on Thursday), then off to Vancouver for B.C.’s first home game (Saturday versus Edmonton).

“I liken it to feeling like a kid before Christmas. My schedule is going to be filled with travel over the first six weeks and I couldn’t be more excited to visit those markets.”

The opening week will continue with Montreal hosting the Toronto Argonauts on Friday night. Action concludes Saturday with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats facing the Calgary Stampeders before B.C. hosts the Edmonton Elks.

That final contest will mark the head-coaching debuts of Buck Pierce (B.C.) and Mark Kilam (Edmonton).

Johnston had the luxury of easing into his new job as the CFL begins the 2025 campaign with no major issues lingering. There are no ownership fires to put out, the league has labour peace and its TV deal with TSN runs through the ’26 season.

“I feel like I’m coming in at an excellent time,” Johnston said. “There are always areas for improvement and that’s a journey that won’t end.

“But I feel like we’re in really good shape, the foundation is strong and I think we’re going to have an excellent year.”

The “C” in CFL will certainly be featured very prominently in 2025.

Two CFL teams will have Canadian starting quarterbacks this season. Victoria’s Nathan Rourke returns with the Lions while Tre Ford, of Niagara Falls, Ont., begins his first full season under centre for Edmonton.

Rourke, 27, returned to B.C. last season following NFL stints with Jacksonville, Atlanta and the New York Giants. Rourke headed south after being named the CFL’s top Canadian in 2022.

Edmonton selected Ford, the ’21 Hec Crighton Trophy winner at Waterloo, in the first round of the ’22 CFL draft. He has only made 18 starts over that span but boasts a 9-9 record.

Ford made just four starts last year, winning three, completing 71.8 per cent of his passes for 1,137 yards and 10 touchdowns with only five interceptions. He also ran 26 times for 206 yards (nine-yard average) and was rewarded in the off-season with a three-year extension.

The CFL’s most decorated player last season was also a Canadian. Brady Oliveira of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers was not only the league’s top Canadian for a second straight year but also it’s outstanding player. The five-foot-11, 222-pound running back earned a second straight CFL rushing title with 1,353 yards with his hometown team while topping the league in yards from scrimmage (1,829) for a second consecutive season.

Also enjoying a standout ’24 campaign was B.C. receiver Justin McInnis. The six-foot-five, 210-pound native of Pierrefonds, Que., led the league in receiving yards (1,469) with 92 catches and seven TDs.

And in 2025, there’ll be four Canadian-born head coaches for the first time, led by Winnipeg’s Mike O’Shea, of North Bay, Ont. O’Shea, entering his 11th season with the Blue Bombers is the league’s longest-tenured head coach.

Winnipeg native Bob Dyce is heading into his third full season as Ottawa’s head coach while Corey Mace, of Port Moody, B.C., is in his second CFL campaign with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Kilam, of Lethbridge, Alta., is the other.

“There are more Canadian stars in the CFL,” Johnston said. “There’s more Canadians playing in the NFL, there’s more Canadian talent coming at us through the NCAA and U Sports.

“You’ve got this incredible Canadian representation at a star level across football and certainly in the CFL and that’s being reflected in the wave of patriotism and interest in all things Canadiana. It’s a perfect time for those influences to mesh.”

Veteran receiver Eugene Lewis begins the season with a new team (Ottawa) but looks to continue his record quest. Lewis registered TD grabs in Edmonton’s final eight regular-season games in 2024, leaving him two short of Terry Evanshen’s league mark of 10 consecutive contests.

Winnipeg chases a sixth straight Grey Cup appearance with definite purpose, as this year’s game will be held at Princess Auto Stadium. The Bombers will have an opening-week bye but will be without veteran starter Zach Collaros when they host B.C. on June 12.

Last month, the CFL suspended Collaros for one game for failing to respond to an off-season drug-testing request. That game will also feature Pierce’s return to Winnipeg, where he spent 10 seasons as an assistant before being hired by B.C.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.