I also heard a US Buisness man (don't know his name) was the one that convinced the Canadain owners to try the "Southern Experiment", I think it might have been the Sacramento owners or something. Anyway, from what i heard this experiment might have worked if it was only 1 or 2 US Based teams, but he wanted full expansion down south. And like Old Coach said, competing for Markets that already have Major Colleges or NFL teams nearby didn't help out this experiment at all.
And it wasn't the expansion fees that saved the CFL, it was the NFL's loan that got them out of the Red that saved them.
It was only with the sale of the Toronto Argonauts from Harry Ornest to Bruse McNall,John Candy,and Wayne Gretzky,that exspansion into the United States was proactively sought.
A Passing Game
At this time interest in the CFL seemed to be at an all time low.Every year it seemed a possibility that the league would fold same old same old.Then it started to become a mindset for me anyway that yes the league could fold I lived through this period.I seen the news casts and followed it very closely.
It was deperate times it would have to be to consider exspanding into the United States.There was a big concern that exspansion into the United States could lead to another NHL were the Americans would take over the league and change the very foundation of the CFL.
WHICH TO SOME EXSTENT WAS HAPPENING IN MEMPHIS WERE PEPPER ROGERS WAS NOT PROMOTING THE GAME BUT TRYING TO TURN IT INTO 4 down American football he even would put in plays with just 11 men.
The league collected enough exspansion money to keep the league going through this troubled time.With out this infusion of money the CFL would never had made it to get the NFL loan which I agree also helped keep the league going.When the American teams folded there finiancial problems went with then not effecting the league.
When the league contracted to Canadian only teams they put in a marketing stragity that worked Radicaliy Canadian it was called.Whith the NFL loan the league was able to stablize itself.