FIVE THINGS TO WATCH

1 A SAFETY DANCE: No one would have been happier to hear that Cauchy Muamba was drawing in to start at safety in place of injured Eskimos DB Neil King than Stampeders receiver Marquay McDaniel. In this same West Division final game back in 2012, McDaniel burned Muamba, who was with the B.C. Lions at the time, for a wide-open 68-yard touchdown toss from Kevin Glenn.

2 TURNOVER TALE: Turnovers could tip the scales in Calgary’s favour, as the Stamps led the league with a giveaway-takeaway ratio of plus-20. Edmonton finished even (31-31). The Eskimos were 7-1 when winning the turnover battle in the regular season and 4-3 when losing it, while going turnover free in last week’s West Division final against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

3 CAN CALGARY RUN? It’s been a long, long time since the Stamps running game looked like the way folks around McMahon Stadium would like to see it. In fact, you’d have to go all the way back to the Week 15 game against the Alouettes to find a night where they ran for more than 55 yards. Head coach Dave Dickenson opted to stick with Jerome Messam as his team’s primary option and leave Terry Williams off the roster. If Messam gives them a big game, it could — and probably should — be the difference.

4 IN THE THRENCHES: The solution to limiting Esks QB Mike Reilly, in the Stamps’ minds, is hit him, hit him and hit him again. The Stamps boast the best D-line in the league and have tortured CFL QB when they deploy Ja’Gared Davis and Charleston Hughes on the edge and sacked Reilly nine times in three regular season meetings.

5 ALL HERE: Stamps DB Josh Bell said Saturday he was pretty sure QB Bo Levi Mitchell was ‘licking his chops’ at the prospect of finally playing with his full receiving group. For all intents and purposes, Sunday will mark the first time that Mitchell has had his best unit available to him since Marken Michel emerged as a Most Outstanding Rookie candidate in July. Yes, there could be chemistry issues, but the Stamps could also unleash a vicious aerial assault that leaves the Eskimos scrambling to play catch-up.