If you happen to be a casual CFL watcher who caught the end of the playoff game between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Calgary Stampeders last week, you might have wondered, “What the hell is going on in this extra time?” ?”
The CFL behaves more like college football than the NFL when it comes to extra time. Back in 2010, the federation’s rules committee considered changing the format of overtime, but they decided to only make a small tweak and keep the setup as it was.
So how does the whole thing work? Here’s everything you need to know about the CFL’s overtime format.
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Explanation of CFL’s overtime rule 2021
- Each team is given the same number of attack items.
- A coin toss is held to determine which team will initiate the foul.
- The first team starts hitting the ball with the opponent’s 35-yard ball. Once that team scores or flips the ball, the second team has a chance to score. The second team also started driving at the 35-yard line.
- If a scoring team touches the ball, that team must attempt to convert to two points. (This is a tweak made in 2010.)
- If a team takes the lead after both teams have had a chance to score, that team is declared the winner. If both teams are still drawing, then they will have one more chance to score from the 35m line.
- During the regular season, a match may be declared a draw after each team has scored twice. However, in the knockout round, overtime continues until there is a winner.
Saskatchewan Roughriders beat Calgary Stampeders in extra time
Need a recent example of a CFL game that went overtime? Here you are!
At the end of the fourth half of the Western Semi-Final, Stampeders striker Rene Paredes shot on target from 47 yards to equalize 27-27 and was forced to kick in injury time. Paredes and Roughriders striker Brett Lauther each scored in the first extra time, setting up the second.
Unfortunately for Calgary, Paredes shot the ball wide of the left post on a 44m effort, opening the door for Saskatchewan to secure the win. Lauther didn’t miss his next opportunity, drilling a 34-yard player to take the Roughriders to the Western Finals.
