Rocket’s Run in CFL Could Be Near Its End

Is Bruce McNall about to tell the Rocket to blast off?

Will the Rocket alter his course and land in Los Angeles as a Raider?

Speculation mounted that this would be the scenario after McNall, owner of the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League, met with advisers of Raghib (Rocket) Ismail in Century City on Wednesday. Under discussion was the disappointing performance of McNall’s star receiver and return man and the possible premature termination of his contract, which still has two years to run.

It’s not so much Ismail’s performance as a football player that is at issue, but his performance as a goodwill ambassador. He may be scoring points on the field, but not with the fans.

Or the Argonauts.

Club officials are angry about Ismail’s performance off the field, where he has become notorious for showing up late, or not at all, for public appearances.

One course of action for McNall would be to break his personal-services contract with Ismail, claiming non-performance.

That would probably force the former Notre Dame star to head south across the border to make his long-awaited NFL debut. Ismail is the property of the Raiders, who made him a fourth-round draft choice in 1991.

McNall, who also owns the Kings, isn’t paying Ismail around $18 million over a four-year period merely to beat defensive backs and run back punts.

Ismail makes a base salary of $120,000 a year plus bonuses. He has a personal-services contract with McNall that pays him $3.5 million per year to promote the CFL in general and the Argonauts in particular.

But the most memorable thing Ismail did last season was kick an opposing player in the head. That didn’t exactly enhance his image.

That image was under discussion Wednesday.

“It was a very friendly meeting,” McNall said. “Nothing has changed with regard to Rocket’s status with the Argonauts.”

Not yet.

But McNall plans to meet further with Ismail’s advisers to discuss Ismail’s shaky future in Toronto.

Gone is some of the optimism that greeted the entry of McNall, and partners Wayne Gretzky and John Candy, into the CFL two years ago. In their first year under the new ownership, the Argonauts broke even financially, went 13-5, won the Grey Cup, symbol of the CFL championship, and increased their average attendance from 22,000 per game to 37,000.

But last season, the Argonauts sunk to last place at 6-12, lost $3 million and saw their attendance drop to 34,000 per game.

Last season, although he missed five games, Ismail scored eight touchdowns and gained 651 yards receiving.

So McNall and Ismail’s brain trust will continue to talk. And the Raiders will continue to wait in the wings.

“He has a contractual obligation with the other league,” said Steve Ortmayer, the Raiders’ director of football operations. “If he got out of that contractual obligation and was free, we’d be interested. We thought a lot of him when he came out of college and we still do. We are interested and will be following what happens.”