Rules

League Structure

• The True North Football Federation consists of 12 teams divided into 2 conferences of 6 teams each. The Dominion conference has 6 teams in eastern Canada, and the Frontier conference has 6 teams in western Canada.
• Each conference uses it's own pool of CFL players. (Teams in different conferences may have the same player, but teams in the same conference may not.)
• Teams located within the Provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador, P.E.I., Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Québec, and Ontario, and the Territory of Nunavut will compete in the Dominion Conference. Teams located within the Provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia, along with the Yukon and Northwest Territories will compete in the Frontier Conference.
• In the off-season, members are free to relocate to open markets within their current conference.
• A member wanting to move to a location within the other conference's territory can give up their current roster and take the roster of an ownerless team in the other conference, should one be available. The member can then keep the team where it is or move that team to a new location within that conference's territory.
• Every year, post pre-season roll call, if there are open teams, a thread will be started within which current members have one week to apply for an open team before it is offered to new applicants.
• If no one applies, the open team is offered to new applicants. If one member applies, at the end of a specified period, they get the team. If more than one member applies, the team is given to whoever has been a member of the TNFF longest, and if applicants have been members for the same length of time, the team is given to the member who finished lower in the overall standings the previous season.
• Whoever gets the open team is free to rename and/or relocate it within their conference's territory.
• Members who give up their current roster and take the roster of an ownerless team in the other conference will not be allowed do so again for five (5) years

League Administration

• The league should be administered by a Commissioner and no more than two Vice-Commissioners.
• Together, the commissioners should be familiar with the league website and how it works. During the season, they should organize the weekly scoring, update the player database when necessary, and address any other issues that may arise. During the off-season, they should organize for the next year by setting up the draft, making a schedule, and ensuring active ownership. When appropriate, they should also review league rules and conduct commissioner elections, among other things.
• Commissioners should initiate, oversee, and enumerate voting when necessary.
• Commissioners are empowered with administrative duties only. They will make no decisions, take no actions, or enact no rules without the explicit consent of a majority of the league's members, as determined by a vote.
• All voting will be done openly, in a voting thread (in the TNFF subforum on CCSLC), except for new membership votes, which will be conducted by PMing votes to a designated commissioner. (Any TNFF member has the right, upon request, to see the detailed results of PM voting.)

Roster Management

• A roster may contain no more than 18 players.
• Of those 18 players, 6 must be designated as 'non-imports' by the CFL.
• No two rosters in the same conference may possess the same player.
• A roster may have no more than two (2) quarterbacks at one time.
• During the season, eligible players can be signed and released using the site's Free Agency tools. If a player you'd like to sign is not listed on the TNFF website, you can claim them in the 'Free Agency' thread (in the TNFF subforum on CCSLC), and a commissioner will enter the player in the site's player database so he can be signed by the person making the claim. (Exclusive to their conference only)
• Free Agents may be signed at the maximum rate of two per day, to ensure all member teams have a chance to sign free agents.
• Players and Draft Picks can be traded by teams within the same conference only. Once a trade has been agreed upon, one party should post it in the 'Trades' thread (in the TNFF subforum on CCSLC), and the other party should post a confirmation. Upon confirmation, one of the commissioners will complete the trade on the TNFF website.

Entry Draft

• Two separate 6 round drafts will be held annually - one for each conference.
• Draft order will be the reverse order of the previous season's final standings, with the Confederation Cup finalists selecting last.
• Teams can protect 9 players from their previous season's final roster prior to the draft.
• The draft-eligible players each year will consist of all eligible CFL players left unprotected in each separate conference. Between the deadline for protection lists and the date of the draft, Draft Kits will be provided for each conference.
• Members unable to attend the draft should submit instructions to an attending member or commissioner from the other conference.
• Any team unable to attend the draft and leaving no instructions will fall to the end of each round in which they have selections. Their picks will be made by those present at the draft, best player available, according to team needs, as determined by those present. (This policy is in place for the health of the league, to help prevent teams from falling into an uncompetitive state.)
• Free agents will be available to be signed beginning at midnight (eastern time) the day the draft is completed.

Quarterback Injury Reserve (QB IR)

• One (1) Injured Reserve spot per TNFF team is available for QBs who are officially placed on IR by their CFL teams.
• Owners wishing to have a QB placed on IR should make their request in the 'NFL Reserve / QB IR' thread (in the TNFF subforum on CCSLC), or by PM to a TNFF commissioner.
• When the QB is re-activated by their CFL team, his TNFF owner will have one week to either activate, trade, or release him.

NFL Reserve

• Should a TNFF team lose a player in the off-season* because they've left the CFL for an NFL team, that player will automatically be placed on the TNFF team's NFL Reserve list. Players placed on NFL Reserve can remain there indefinitely while in the NFL, and their rights are negotiable. (The player can be traded to another TNFF team)
• Each TNFF team may have a maximium of two eligible players on their NFL reserve list. If they have more than two eligible players, they must decide which two to keep on NFL Reserve. If no instruction is given to the TNFF administration, and a TNFF team has more than two players eligible for NFL Reserve by the time Protection Lists are due prior to the annual TNFF draft, by default, their first two eligible players will remain on their NFL Reserve list and the rights to any others will be permanently forfeited.
• Should a player on a TNFF team's NFL Reserve list return to the CFL, that TNFF team will have one week from the official announcement of his signing a contract to either activate the player, trade the player's rights, or permanently forfeit his rights. If the player's rights are forfeited, he will be treated as a free agent, with standard free agency rules applying to him.
• If an NFL Reserve player is activated upon his return to the CFL, normal TNFF roster rules apply, meaning your roster must be adjusted to maintain a maximum of 18 players, at least 6 of which must be non-imports.
• Any former NFL player signing a CFL contract who is not on a TNFF team's NFL Reserve list will be treated as a free agent, with standard free agency rules applying to him.

* A CFL player signing with an NFL team must have been on a TNFF team's end of season roster, and been signed by an NFL team prior to the annual deadline for Protection Lists to be eligible for that TNFF team's NFL reserve list.

Weekly Lineup Management

• A starting lineup consists of a Quarterback, a Running Back, two (2) Wide Receivers (Slotbacks and TEs are listed on the site as WRs), a Kicker, a Punter (may be the same player as the kicker), a Defensive Lineman, a Linebacker, a Defensive Back, and a Kick Returner (may be the same as another starter). Of these positions, 3 must be filled by players designated as 'non-imports' by the CFL.
• Lineup Submission - Log in to the TNFF website, select 'Submit Line-up', and check the boxes corresponding to the players you'd like to start. When done, click the 'Submit line-up!' button at the bottom of the page.
• You can change your lineup as many times as you'd like, provided that the player(s) you want to start isn't/aren't in a game that has already started, or the player(s) you'd like to replace isn't/aren't in a game that has already started. Players are locked in or out of your lineup each week according to the time their CFL game is scheduled to start.
• Even if you don't make any changes to your starting lineup from week to week, please hit the site's 'Submit line-up!' button, which will re-enter your current line-up for a given week.
• If a starting lineup is not submitted or is incomplete, the previous week's lineup will be carried over automatically.
• If a lineup is not submitted for 2 weeks, the team will forfeit every game (beginning with the second game) until a lineup is submitted.
• If no notification is received as to the nature of the owner's absence after a 4 week period, the league may assume control of the team and take whatever measures it deems necessary, under the guidance of the commissioner.
• If, for any reason, a player plays in more than one game during a scoring period (1 TNFF 'Week'), the owner must indicate for which game he would like his player evaluated. - If he fails to do so, the first game will be chosen by default.
• In the event of a tie, the team with the most touchdowns wins. If both teams are still tied, the team with less touchdowns against wins. If the teams are still tied, the team with the most offensive yards gained wins.

Scoring

• All touchdowns (offensive, defensive, or special teams) are worth 6 pts.
• All field goals are worth 3 pts.
• All extra points are worth 1 pt.
• All 2-point conversions (pass, rush, receive) are worth 2 pts.
• All singles are worth 1 pt.
• All fumbles lost by a player (except on special teams) are worth -3 pts.
• All interceptions thrown are worth -3.
• All sacks tackled are worth 2 pts.
• All safeties achieved are worth 2 pts to every defensive player on the scoring team.
• All interceptions caught are worth 3 pts.
• All fumbles forced are worth 2 pts.
• All fumbles recovered by defensive players are worth 2 pts.

If there is any discrepancy in the interpretation or application of the above rules or scoring guidelines, please notify the rules/scoring coordinator and the commissioner immediately.

Standings

• Teams will play a 14 week regular season schedule (10 games (home and home) against their own conference, 4 games against teams in the other conference), and use CFL weeks 16-18 for the TNFF playoffs.
• Teams will be ranked by wins.
• In the event of two teams having identical records, the team with the better head-to-head record receives the higher placement. If the teams are still tied, the team with the greater amount of points for receives the higher placement. If the teams are still tied, the team with the smaller amount of points against receives the higher placement.
• The top four teams in the standings of each conference will advance to the playoffs.
• The playoffs will consist of 5 games played over 3 weeks. In week one, the Dominion and Frontier Semi-Finals will be played between the first and fourth-place teams and the second and third-place teams in each conference, with the first and second-place teams receiving home-field advantage. In week two, the Dominion and Frontier Finals will be played between the winners of the conference semi-finals, with the higher-ranked team in the conference receiving home-field advantage. In week three, the TNFF Championship Game, the Confederation Cup, will be played between the Conference Champions at a neutral site that will rotate among the TNFF member cities.
• The Confederation Cup may not be played twice in a member city until all other member cities have hosted the game. The location for the game will be decided by a vote by member teams on proposals presented by interested member teams. Any member team who has a proposal among those being voted on may not vote for their own proposal.