High hits on Riders QBs spur fan outcry, commissioner statement

Anthony Moretti felt he had to say something after two Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterbacks were taken out of play by head-to-head hits in as many games.

Moretti lives and works in Pittsburgh, but is a fan of the CFL. It didn't matter to him that Zach Collaros and Brandon Bridge were both Riders, what mattered was that two players made potentially damaging tackles and nothing was done by the league or the officials.

"Once was enough and twice was too much," said Moretti on CBC Saskatchewan's The Morning Edition. 

Following the game he wrote an open letter to CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie calling for changes to the way the league deals with hits to the head.

The call was missed because the on-field referees' views were blocked. In his letter, Moretti asked that more officials, on the field or in the booth, be able to throw flags or alert the head referee that an illegal hit was made. 

"There's enough evidence out there, every time you get a concussion you're more likely to get your second. You get a second, more likely to get your third. Something has to stop," said Moretti.

Moretti wrote that three things should happen. The player should be ejected from the game, they should be suspended for at least half of the next game and they should incur a substantial fine. 

Moretti is hopeful that Ambrosie will bring in meaningful changes to make the game a bit safer for players. 

"Something has to stop. Because we're not talking about guys we'd like to see on the field, we're talking about what guys are going to be like when they're 50, 60 and 70 years old," said Moretti. "That's far more important than who wins a football game."

Ambrosie released a statement following the game admitting the refs missed the high hit on Bridge.

"We need to do more than admit an error. We need to search for a solution," said Ambrosie.

With files from The Morning Edition