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EDMONTON — Wilson Sporting Goods will ship a total of 1,948 new balls to the Canadian Football League this season.

And every one of them will look, to the untrained eye at least, exactly like the 1,948 footballs that Wilson made for the CFL last year.

But they’re slightly different. What that difference might be, however, is open to interpretation. Here’s a sampling of pre-season opinion:

Calgary punter Rene Paredes: “I find it a little less round than the other one. That’s the only difference I see.”

Winnipeg kicker/punter Justin Medlock: “It’s maybe just a little softer. The older balls, you’d get one and just know it was going to be tougher to break in.”

B.C. receiver Manny Arceneaux: “You can tell the pebble part, the grip part, is a little different.”

Edmonton quarterback Mike Reilly: “It doesn’t feel any different to me. Shape and size seems the same. I guess the leather is different. With the old ball, every once in a while you’d get one that felt way different, so essentially I guess the benefit would be they are more consistent.”