Who’s peaking at the right time?
Will the Lions roar through the East on their way to Edmonton? Will Hamilton special team terrors Connor McGough and Aaron Crawford from Crescent Heights High chug-a-lug champagne from the Old Grey Mug? Have the Calgary Stampeders returned to form? Can the Three Red River Amigos finally win it all? Will Chris Jones jilt Rider nation like he did after winning the Cup in Edmonton and ride the victory parade down Albert Street and out of town to greener pastures elsewhere? Or will the incredible story of the expansion Ottawa Redblacks continue?
It’s playoff time in the CFL. Who will prevail in the 106th edition of the Grey Cup to be played in our provincial capital?
Winnipeg is the hottest team in the league right now. Although they lost both ends of the Labour Day week series to Saskatchewan, they walloped the Riders 31-0 Oct. 13 in Bomberville. That was part of a five-game winning streak, ended when they lost a meaningless contest in Edmonton Saturday.
West semifinal — Winnipeg at Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan wrapped up the regular season winning five of six, their only loss to the aforementioned Bombers. When Calgary took care of business in Vancouver, the Riders missed out on what would have been their second first-place finish since 1976.
The Riders have exceptional defence and special teams and a mediocre offence. Saskatchewan recorded only 11 touchdown passes this season, none at all in October. It appears Zach Collaros — who left the last game with a concussion — will start. Pundits say Rider fortunes depend on him. But really, how effective has he been? Although coach Chris Jones prefers to restrict quarterback Brandon Bridge to a short passing game, Bridge proved last year he is very good at throwing deep and to the end zone. The Riders signed former Stampeder QB Drew Tate who hasn’t played all year.
Saskatchewan has the best defence in the league with pass rushers Willie Jefferson and Charleston Hughes. Wide-side linebacker Samuel Eguavoen is the CFL’s most underrated defender. Cornerback Nick Marshall and defensive back Ed Gainey are absolutely dominant. To win, they must shut down Weston Dressler.
With quarterback Matt Nichols, receivers Dressler, Darvin Adams, Daniel Petermann, Kembrell Tompkins and Drew Wolitarsky, the Bombers are a bigplay offence. They led the league in points but were fifth in total offence. Their main weapons are running back Andrew Harris and Dressler. Advice to Nichols: throw where Jefferson isn’t.
Defensively, they are stingy against the run, vulnerable through the air.
Both teams have excellent kicking games. The Riders have the edge with Christian Jones on returns.
The Bombers should’ve eased up instead of winning 31-0. They may have exorcised one demon but released another. The forecast for Regina on Sunday is a high of -5 C. Saskatchewan’s defence will cool off the red hot Bombers and head for Calgary.
East semifinal — B.C. at Hamilton
This could be the year a crossover team finally makes it to the Grey Cup. This feline fight at Tim Horton’s Field features teams going in opposite directions. B.C. won four of its last five games to make the playoffs. In a two-game showdown with Ottawa for first place in the East, the Ti-Cats lost both. The Tabbies finished on top of the league in net offence but a lot of that yardage came the first half of the season before the injuries started piling up, particularly to receivers. The Lions were near the bottom in that category but improved considerably since Labour Day, winning five of six.
Quarterbacks Jeremiah Masoli and Travis Lulay are born leaders but right now, the B.C. pivot has more weapons at his disposal. Neither team has much of a ground game but recent addition Tyrell Sutton gives the Lions an edge.
B.C. was No. 1 at sacking the quarterback and interceptions, Hamilton was eighth in both categories. Lion Chris Rainey was first in return yards. Ty Long was first in punting. Lirim Hajrullahu and Long are equal in field goals but the Ti-Cat missed five converts.
Defence will dominate. Odell Willis and Shawn Lemon with 11 sacks each will pressure Masoli. Ted Laurent tops the Ti-Cats with 8. B.C. has a better secondary.
Cat coach June Jones makes bad decisions at times. Wally Buono doesn’t. His coaching career will continue.
Graham Kelly has covered the CFL for the Medicine Hat News for 46 years. Feedback for this column can be emailed to sports@medicinehatnews.com.