'Gades' well about to run dry?
'Gades' well about to run dry?
Once profits from Grey Cup are spent, team could be in serious trouble
By DON BRENNAN -- Ottawa Sun
While the cloud of uncertainty surrounding Renegades ownership remains thick, this much is becoming clear:
If the current group is to go, it's unlikely to go quietly.
Sources have indicated there are members of the team's founding fathers who will try to sue the CFL if they wind up selling, claiming breach of trust.
The Renegades have lost millions since entering the league in 2002, and remain miffed they were sold a bill of goods the league did not deliver on, including the enforcement of a salary cap.
The original ownership group --which includes majority shareholders Randy Gillies and Bill Smith plus minority partners Kevin Kimsa, Rick Baker and Bill and Brad Watters -- is together despite the friction within. Three months after the situation was supposed to be resolved, all options are still being considered, including a split of the diametrically opposed Smith and Gillies and the outright sale of the team.
There is also the possibility the group will remain intact minus Kimsa, who owns 15% and has long expressed his desire to get out. But that could turn out to be the worst scenario of all, as it's believed the partners have, for the most part, stopped writing cheques.
The kitty still contains profits from the Grey Cup, but when that well dries up the team could be in deep trouble.
Meanwhile, no new investors have shown any interest unless it has been done very secretly. Former Rough Riders owner Bernie Glieberman was negotiating to partner up with Smith, but those talks stopped around the time Joe Paopao was rehired as coach/GM.
It's believed the Gliebermans wanted former NFL (and Toronto Argos) coach Forrest Gregg to take over the reins, although they also weren't totally against the continuity that comes with bringing Paopao back. They also think highly of Eric Tillman, who spent the first three years as the Ottawa GM before the current group decided not to offer him a new contract.
Reached yesterday at the successful family-owned ski resort he operates in upper Michigan, Lonie Glieberman said he still has the desire to get back into the CFL.
"If the right deal comes along, we'll certainly look at it," he said.
Stay tuned.
Once profits from Grey Cup are spent, team could be in serious trouble
By DON BRENNAN -- Ottawa Sun
While the cloud of uncertainty surrounding Renegades ownership remains thick, this much is becoming clear:
If the current group is to go, it's unlikely to go quietly.
Sources have indicated there are members of the team's founding fathers who will try to sue the CFL if they wind up selling, claiming breach of trust.
The Renegades have lost millions since entering the league in 2002, and remain miffed they were sold a bill of goods the league did not deliver on, including the enforcement of a salary cap.
The original ownership group --which includes majority shareholders Randy Gillies and Bill Smith plus minority partners Kevin Kimsa, Rick Baker and Bill and Brad Watters -- is together despite the friction within. Three months after the situation was supposed to be resolved, all options are still being considered, including a split of the diametrically opposed Smith and Gillies and the outright sale of the team.
There is also the possibility the group will remain intact minus Kimsa, who owns 15% and has long expressed his desire to get out. But that could turn out to be the worst scenario of all, as it's believed the partners have, for the most part, stopped writing cheques.
The kitty still contains profits from the Grey Cup, but when that well dries up the team could be in deep trouble.
Meanwhile, no new investors have shown any interest unless it has been done very secretly. Former Rough Riders owner Bernie Glieberman was negotiating to partner up with Smith, but those talks stopped around the time Joe Paopao was rehired as coach/GM.
It's believed the Gliebermans wanted former NFL (and Toronto Argos) coach Forrest Gregg to take over the reins, although they also weren't totally against the continuity that comes with bringing Paopao back. They also think highly of Eric Tillman, who spent the first three years as the Ottawa GM before the current group decided not to offer him a new contract.
Reached yesterday at the successful family-owned ski resort he operates in upper Michigan, Lonie Glieberman said he still has the desire to get back into the CFL.
"If the right deal comes along, we'll certainly look at it," he said.
Stay tuned.
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