EDMONTON - The Canadian Football League should change its playoff format in 2015.

The league should move to a nine-team division, with the top six teams making the playoffs.

B.C. Lions general manager and CFL Hall of Famer Wally Buono suggested an even more radical switch.

“I would like to see one division and the best team in the league gets a bye in the first round of the playoffs. Then the next six-best teams would play in a quarter-final,” he said. “Right now, the second-best team in the league gets penalized, while the top team in the East (Division) gets a bye.”

“I think seven teams in the playoffs is good for the individual teams, it is good for selling tickets, and it is good for TV. I think the Grey Cup sells itself, because it is such a special event and no longer do we have to have an East-West matchup to sell the game.”

The best rivalries in the league are currently East vs. East and West vs. West. How great would a Toronto-Hamilton Grey Cup be? Or Winnipeg-Saskatchewan? Or Calgary-Edmonton?

Buono is 64 years young, but unlike many, he isn’t stuck in his ways and afraid of change. In fact, he is encouraging it.

“I think there should be an appetite. I say this very respectfully. We are in Year 2 of the new millennium, not in year 102. I think we need to do things different,” Buono said. “Today, the country is united by technology, where as years and years ago, I’m not sure the eastern teams knew who the western teams were and I’m not sure the eastern fans knew who the western players were.

“Today, with technology, with social media, it is one big league. If we are rewarding excellence, then the top teams should be rewarded,” said the CFL’s all-time leader in victories as a head coach.

Before the naysayers suggest that seven out of nine teams making the playoffs is a farce, keep in mind that the National Hockey League had 16 of 21 teams making the post-season at one point. No one complained when 76 per cent of the NHL teams made the playoffs. If seven of CFL nine teams make it, that’s 77 per cent. That’s not really a mockery.

The CFL could keep the schedule the same as it is now. Every team plays each other twice, with the remaining two games against key rivals.

A new CFL commissioner will be announced in 2015. I hope he listens to Buono and many other CFL people who realize that one division will reward the best teams while creating better potential playoff match-ups.

This ’n’ that

The Eskimos defence didn’t allow a touchdown in their last three games at Commonwealth Stadium. They shut out the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Oct. 19 and B.C. scored only three points on Saturday after a Mike Reilly interception gave the Lions possession at the Edmonton 36-yard line. The Esks should be a heavy favourite when they host one of those two teams in the West Division semifinal on Nov. 15.

There is no debating that the Calgary Stampeders’ Jon Cornish is the league’s best running back, but John White has produced very good numbers as well. Cornish has 1,215 combined yards on 157 touches and is averaging 7.73 yards per touch while White has 1,034 yards and he is averaging 7.38 yards on 140 touches.