The 1955 musical “Damn Yankees” was about a middle-aged baseball fan who resorted to questionable measures to help his team win.  He traded his soul to the Devil in exchange for that one key player that would lead his beloved Washington Senators over the Yankees.

The Canadian Football League (CFL) now has its own version of this classic.  The year is 2005.  The middle aged man is Hugh Campbell, General Manager of the Edmonton Eskimos.  The key player is Troy Davis, an elite CFL running back.

In the musical, the middle aged man comes to his senses and nixes his deal with the Devil.  The Eskimos went through with their deals and are now paying the price.  As a result, their version of Damn Yankees could be re-named “The Curse of Troy”.

In case you’re not familiar with Edmonton’s story, here’s a brief history lesson.  In 2005 the Edmonton Eskimos were a proud, storied franchise.  They had made the playoffs a staggering 34 years in a row and were always Grey Cup contenders.  They boasted the league’s last realy dynasty, a dominating 5 year championship reign in the 1970s.  Late in the 2005 season, the Eskimos were again strong but were missing that elite running back that is vital to any championship team.

Enter the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, a terrible team playing out the string and looking to rebuild with youth.  They trade Troy Davis to Edmonton in the most lopsided and questionable deal since the sale of the Island of Manhattan.  Edmonton, led by this newly-formed running attack and the heroics of back-up quarterback Jason Maas, won two playoff games on the road and ultimately the Grey Cup.  Right after the game, in a move that was described during the Grey Cup game as “the worst kept secret in sports”, Edmonton traded the same Jason Maas to Hamilton in the most lopsided trade since….well….the Troy Davis deal.

Some CFL fans (read: Eskimo fans) defend the questionable trades, saying they did not violate any rules.  This may be true, but in the same vein Art Modell didn’t “technically” do anything wrong when he moved the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore either.  Just because your nose is clean doesn’t mean something doesn’t stink.  I will give Eskimos fans this–unlike Dane Cook, I don’t think that Hugh Campbell made a deal with the Devil.

Since that 2005 Grey Cup win hard times have hit the Eskimos.  Their 34 year playoff streak ended the next year.  Again this year they have failed to make the playoffs.  And the Ti-Cats?  Well, they still suck.  And they have Casey Printers to deal with now.  He’s a talented quarterback, but he’s so egotistical you have to shrink his head to make his bobble head doll.  But, that’s another story for another day.

I don’t know how long a team has to suffer before you can call them officially cursed.  I think, however, that a good curse would add to the CFL’s mystique.  Just look at what they’ve done for baseball’s image!  On top of that it’s Edmonton, a city that arrogantly calls itself the “City of Champions”–so I’m going with it.

So how do you break a curse?  Well to start, as they said in Damn Yankees, you gotta have heart.  Long live the Curse of Troy!