RACES ON FOR FINAL SEEDINGS
Much to decide as regular season winds down
There are two weeks to go in the CFL regular season, and there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered.
Who is going to finish first in the East Division?
Who is going to be the crossover team?
Who is going to host the West semifinal?
It promises to be an entertaining final eight games, starting with three contests this weekend that will have major playoff implications. The fourth, Calgary at Montreal, means nothing.
The Bombers and Redblacks are the front runners to finish second and first, respectively, in the West and in the East, but they play one another on Saturday. That means one of them will be sitting pretty on Saturday night, while the other will have some work to do.
The Eskimos look like they are going to be the crossover team, because they are two games behind both the Bombers and Lions. Losing to B.C. last Saturday night was actually the best thing that could have happened to the Green and Gold, because going through the East will be a much easier path to the Grey Cup than it will be trying to navigate through Calgary.
Here are this weekend’s playoff scenarios:
The Redblacks can clinch first in the East with a win and a Ticats loss to the Eskimos.
The Bombers can clinch second in the West with a win and a Lions loss to the Roughriders.
If Winnipeg wins or ties, the Eskimos will be the crossover team.
If the Eskimos lose or tie, they will be the crossover team.
ODD SEASON
The CFL is on the verge of a couple of rare happenings.
The first one is in the East Division, where there is a mighty fine chance the first place team is going to finish with a losing record. That has never happened before.
The Redblacks currently lead the four team group with a 7-8-1 record. The Ticats are 7-9. If they both lose this weekend, and that’s a distinct possibility given they are playing West Division clubs, it will guarantee a first place squad with a losing mark.
The other oddity is road teams have still won more games than the home sides, and it looks like it’s going to remain that way.
The visitors are 38-34-1 this season, and another .500 weekend would all but seal it for the road teams. Making that even more strange is the Stampeders went 9-0 at McMahon Stadium this season, meaning the other eight teams are 25-38-1 in their own parks.
SO LONG
It will be the end of an era in Regina on Saturday night when the final CFL game is played at Mosaic Stadium, known lately by its old name: Taylor Field.
The old stadium has been around since 1936, and Saturday’s clash against the B.C. Lions will be the 611th and final one at the park since the Riders will miss this year’s playoffs.
The organization has plenty of festivities planned for the day, including a 25-minute post game ceremony to say goodbye to the stadium where the Green and White captured the 2013 Grey Cup. The team moves into snazzy new Mosaic Stadium next season.
ESKS BRING THE EYES
In case you missed it last week, the Eskimos are the CFL’s most viewed team on TSN and RDS this season.
The Roughriders held the title between 2013 and 2015, but the defending champion Eskimos have taken over this year.
The Esks have attracted an average audience of 649,000 viewers, and the Roughriders are second with 627,000. Edmonton’s number represents an increase of 8.7 per cent over last season, while Saskatchewan’s viewership is down 6.8 per cent.
The Bombers are third with an average of 615,000 viewers through 16 games, and that marks a 5.4 per cent increase over the 2015 campaign.
HELP WANTED
A fundraising campaign is underway for Jennifer Miles, the wife of Eskimos defensive backs coach Barron Miles.
Jennifer has a rare abdominal condition that requires a $30,000 procedure to determine exactly what is wrong. Lions GM and head coach Wally Buono brought the issue to light last week, and a GoFundMe campaign to help the Miles family has already raised more than $15,000.
Miles is second in CFL career interceptions with 66.
LATE HITS
The CFL earlier this week released the list of players who are eligible for its most outstanding rookie award, and Stampeders receiver DaVaris Daniels, who has 847 yards and nine touchdowns, looks to be the favourite ... The league is on pace to have the fewest interceptions per game in a season. There have been 125 through 18 weeks, or only 1.7 per contest ... The CFL says 56 per cent of its matches this season have been decided in the final three minutes. That is up from 54 per cent last season but slightly down from 57 per cent two years ago.