2013 CFL Season

[Mowich]

Around the League in Week 16

CFL fans in general will be hoping for a more exciting week of football after last weekend’s rather lop-sided efforts that saw a majority of games in which the defence was the story of the game – not the offence.

Montreal is experiencing somewhat of a resurgence in the latter half of the season. After giving the Riders a licking in Week 14, they went on to crush almost any hope of the Edmonton Eskimos making the play-offs last weekend. The Als have struggled mightily this season and their woes have been well-documented – from the hiring and subsequent firing of an ineffective coach to the concussion suffered by their hall-of-fame bound QB Anthony Calvillo – it has been far from a good season for the Als. Thus, they should be commended for their tenacity and ability to reform the team to the point where they could very well host a play-off game. Word is that Anthony Calvillo could very well be back for the last game of the season as he is reportedly symptom free now.

The acquisition of DE Alex Hall by the Roughriders from the Blue Bombers is also of note. The Riders traded NI OL Patrick Neufeld for the DE and a second round pick in the 2014 CFL Draft. Alex leads the CFL with 15 sacks to his credit - he also has 31 tackles and 3 fumble recoveries to date. Alex is known as a ‘rental’ player – someone in his last year of a CFL contract and who has his eyes on the NFL next year. Meanwhile, Sask will be hoping to see their sack total rise.

Jacques Chapdelaine, OC for the BC Lions, was talking about the need to have his back-up QB Thomas DeMarco ‘comfortable’ in his position. In order to do that the offense had to design plays that matched their player’s skills. So far, I would say the Lions have done an admirable job of doing just that. DeMarco put up 378 yards of offense completing 33 of 54 passes for 3 TDs and 0 interceptions in his first two games as pivot for the team. Sask was his undoing however as he managed only 19 of 36 passes for 286 yards, I TD and 3 interceptions including a pick in the end zone that stopped the Lions drive when they trailed the Riders by 4 points. Sask also managed to get to the QB for five sacks in the game. To be fair, DeMarco did not lose the game by himself – penalties played a pivotal role in the outcome too.

Considering that it takes upwards of 2 to 3 years – or longer – for a QB to really come into his own in the CFL, Thomas DeMarco has shown he has the skills and the adaptability needed if he is to continue to start for the team. It will be interesting to see how he responds in the Lions next game against the Stampeders on Friday.

In other QB news, TO’s Rickie Ray took first team reps in practice this week further adding to the speculation that he might return as pivot in the Argo’s game this weekend against the Ti-Cats.

Week 16 Schedule

Friday -BC at Calgary – 6:00 PM PST/ 9:00 PM EST
Saturday - Edmonton at Saskatchewan – 1:30 PM PST/ 4:30 PM EST
Monday - Winnipeg at Montreal – 10:00 AM PST/ 1:00 PM EST
Monday - Toronto at Hamilton – 1:30 PM PST/ 4:30 PM EST

 

[petros]

Go Lions!

 

[Mowich]

After losing a tough one to Calgary last night, the Lions now find themselves six points back of the leading Western Division Stamps but retain their play-off berth. The game got off to a slow start with both teams defenses stepping up and preventing any major scores in the early going though it didn't take long for the Stamps to assert their supremacy as they led by 13 points at the end of the 1rst Q.

The Lions were unable to get a single 1rst D in the game until the last seconds of the 1rst Q when DeMarco connected with his favorite receiver Shawn Gore for a beautiful 45-yard reception. They were able to move the ball to the red zone but were prevented from a major settling for FG from Paul McCallum. Helped by a 6-play, 69 yard drive and a great TD catch by Courtenay Taylor the Lions ended the half just 8 points back of the Stamps.

After trading punts early in the 3rd, Calgary managed to pin the Lions deep forcing a quick 2 and out, then their new DB Smith put them in great scoring position after returning the punt to the 30 of BC. Kevin Glenn had little difficulty completing the drive with a 20-yard pass to McDaniel in the end zone giving the Stamps a 15 point lead.

The Lions responded with an impressive drive of their own when DeMarco found Gore for a 39-yard gain followed by a completion to Emmanuel Arcenaux which had them at the 1. DeMarco called his own number and took the ball over the goal line and the Lions cut the lead to 8 points.

The teams defenses dug in and the score remained static until Kevin Glenn was picked off by the Lions' rookie DB Cord Parks. DeMarco took full advantage of the TO when he found Gore for a 27-yard gain, then Nick Moore for an important second down conversion. Emmanuel Arcenaux got them another 1rst D and DeMarco connected with Shawn Gore for the TD followed by a 2-point conversion to Taylor and the Lions had tied the game.

Calgary not to be outdone, came storming back thanks in a large part to Jon Cornish who broke tackle for a 38-yard gain that put the Stamps at the 11-yard line. On 2nd D, Glenn found rookie Smith in the end zone to put the Stamps back up by 7.

The Lions were once again threatening to tie the game when an errant pass by DeMarco was picked off by the Stamps Chris Randle who returned the ball for 65-yard TD which put paid to any chances for a Lions victory.

Stamps won the game 40 to 26.

GREEN IS THE COLOR
FOOTBALL IS THE GAME
WE'RE ALL TOGETHER AND WINNING IS OUR AIM
SO CHEER US ON THROUGH THE SUN AND RAIN
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS IS OUR NAME.


GO, TEAM, GO!
​

 

[Mowich]

A very unimpressive win by my Riders today. Were it not for a lot of help from the Eskimos in terms of dropped passes at key moments, a number of 15-yard penalties and tough stands by our defense, the Riders may very well have lost.

The biggest moment of the game came when the Eskimos were 3rd and goal with a yard to the line and the Sask D stopped them cold as the seconds ticked away on the 4th Q. It was yet another stalwart effort by the Rider defense who’d spent the majority of the second half on the field as the offense faltered on play after play. I have nothing but praise for them.

The Riders led by 14 after the half and never put another point on the board. Two FGs, a long punt for a single and a conceded single in were the only points the Eskimos were allowed to put up in the game.

The win by the Riders snuffed any remaining chance that the Eskimos would make the play-offs.

Final Score: Riders 14 – Eskimos 10

I had questions about the readiness of the team going into this game and the only ones answered concerned the defense. Not one single point in the second half is not good enough. It most certainly will not get us past the Calgary Stampeders, the way they are playing these days. I do not know the answers but I sure hope someone on the Rider’s staff does or we are in trouble.

On a more sobering note Eskimo punt returner Almondo Sewell was taken off the field and directly to the hospital after suffering a neck injury that saw the game stopped for about 10 minutes while medical staff attended to him. Best wishes on a good recovery, Almondo.

 

[Mowich]

CFL Thanksgiving Day Double-Header

This is the point in the season when teams seeing their play-off chances becoming slim to nonexistent can often become difference makers for the hopes of other teams. Such was the case in the Winnipeg vs Montreal game on Monday as the Blue and Gold rose to the occasion beating Montreal 34 to 27. It was the second time this season that they beat the Als giving the Bombers a 2 and 1 record against Montreal in their 3-game series. Though the win kept their play-off chances alive, the Bombers will need to win all of their remaining 3 games and have Montreal lose every one of theirs in order for Winnipeg to gain a play-off berth.

It was anything but a well-played game by the Als who turned the ball over 5 times in the first half alone ending the game with a total of 7. Montreal QB Josh Neiswander was intercepted 3 times while back-up Troy Smith was picked for 1 but that was not the only problem for Montreal as they also were penalized heavily giving up over 100 yards in the process.

The lead would change 4 times in the game but it was Winnipeg who got off to an early start as they capitalized on 2 Montreal TOs to go ahead 10 – 0 at the end of the 1rst Q.

Montreal got on the board around the midway mark of the second quarter when Troy Smith connected with SJ Green for the TD cutting Winnipeg’s lead to 3. With 2:13 left in the half, Josh Neiswander would find Duron Carter for the Al’s second TD of the game and a 14 – 10 lead. They would add 3 more points to that total on a Sean Whyte FG.

But Winnipeg came roaring back to the tie the game 17 – 17 when Max Hall connected with Clarence Denmark for a TD with: 09 seconds left in the half.

Montreal would again top the scoreboard after another Whyte FG early in the 3 rd though it was short lived as the Bombers took advantage of a couple of forward pass interference calls against the Als in a drive that finished with an end zone dive for the TD by short-yardage QB Jason Boltus – Winnipeg led by 4.

Montreal once again cut into Winnipeg’s lead with another 3-pointer off the boot of Sean Whyte ending the third quarter with the score 24 to 23 in Winnipeg’s favor.

Whyte would connect on a 23-yarder to put the Als in front once again at the 11:45 mark of the 4 th Q. It wasn’t until the midway mark of the last quarter that Winnipeg were finally able to regain the lead on the strength of TD by Will Ford. Whyte would miss on his final FG attempt but got a single as the score stood at 31 to 27. Winnipeg would round out their scoring when FG kicker Sandro DeAngelis put up 3 more points sealing the teams win against the Alouettes.

The win was the first for Winnipeg designated starting QB Max Hall as he completed 16 of his passes for 233 yards helping the Bombers to 309 yards on offense – the first time they have passed the 300 yard mark in 7 games.


The second game of the day pitted the Hamilton Ti-Cats against the Toronto Argonauts in TO QB Ricky Ray’s first game back after being out for six.

CJ Gable contributions were felt by the team as he rushed for 118 yards and a TD while catching 5 passes for another 46 yards in the game. Gable was the man to call on when Hamilton needed yardage and he answered the call all night long.

Henry Burris was good on 27 of 36 passes for 350 yards and 1 interception. Luke Tasker – rookie RB for the Cats caught 7 passes for 113 yards. Back-up QB Dan LeFevour rushed for the other 2 Hamilton TDs while Brett Lauther got the single point converts and another single off a missed FG attempt.

The Argo’s first half was anything but well executed as they were penalized 10 times managing just 5-1rst downs for a measly 137 yards of offense. Still they trailed by only 8 points late in the 2nd Q after a 32-yard TD pass from Ray to Spencer Watt in the end zone. Ricky Ray was 26 of 34 for 303 yards and threw his first interception of the year.

In spite of numerous penalties that saw the ball moved up then down the field, the Argos under Ray managed to bring the game within 6 points as he found Jason Barnes for a 13-yard TD strike late in the 4th Q. Then with just over 4 minutes left on the time clock, Ray engineered a drive that took the Argos to Hamilton’s 37 yard when the wheels fell off the bus as Ricky was picked by the Ti-Cats Arthur Hobbs in the end zone.

Hamilton held on to win the game 24 to 18 pulling the team within 2 points of the top spot Argos and 4 points ahead of the Montreal Alouettes.


Injury Update: Edmonton DT Almondo Sewell returned home on Sunday after being released from Regina General Hospital. Sewell was taken directly to hospital after a suspected neck injury suffered in a hit during the Esks game against the Riders on Saturday. All tests came back negative for spinal injury but he will be further evaluated by the team's doctors.

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

CFL Thanksgiving Day Double-Header

This is the point in the season when teams seeing their play-off chances becoming slim to nonexistent can often become difference makers for the hopes of other teams. Such was the case in the Winnipeg vs Montreal game on Monday as the Blue and Gold rose to the occasion beating Montreal 34 to 27. It was the second time this season that they beat the Als giving the Bombers a 2 and 1 record against Montreal in their 3-game series. Though the win kept their play-off chances alive, the Bombers will need to win all of their remaining 3 games and have Montreal lose every one of theirs in order for Winnipeg to gain a play-off berth.

Montreal Schedule (1 home game):
vs Hamilton
@ Hamilton
@ Toronto

Winnipeg Schedule (2 home games):
@ Toronto
vs Toronto
vs Hamilton

It is unlikely for Winnipeg to make the playoffs but possbile.
Question, if Edmonton wins out and Montreal loses out, they would also be tied. Can Edmonton still do the crossover in this scenario (with or without Winnipeg winning out)?

 

[Mowich]

Montreal Schedule (1 home game):
vs Hamilton
@ Hamilton
@ Toronto

Winnipeg Schedule (2 home games):
@ Toronto
vs Toronto
vs Hamilton

It is unlikely for Winnipeg to make the playoffs but possbile.
Question, if Edmonton wins out and Montreal loses out, they would also be tied. Can Edmonton still do the crossover in this scenario (with or without Winnipeg winning out)?

No. The loss to Saskatchewan on Saturday effectively eliminated the Esks from play-off contention so it matters not what Winnipeg does now - it's next year for the Esks.

 

[Mowich]

Around the League in Week 17

There’s a good chance we will see import QB Troy Smith start for the Montreal Alouettes this weekend. Though Anthony will be at the game – his first since suffering a concussion – he will be there to re-acclimatize to the atmosphere and noise.

BC Lions fans will be hoping that the return of RB Stephan Logan to the team will be the spark that ignites their running game. After gaining only 10 yards in their game against the Riders and 31 against the Stamps, RB Andrew Harris is not getting the job done for the team. Logan was a Lion back in 2008 when he rushed for 889 yards in addition to 447 through the air and 3 TDs. On ST returns, he was good for 126 yards on 12 punt returns and 266 yards on 9 kick returns.

CJ Gable rightfully garnered the CFL Player of the Week Award after he racked up an impressive 118 yards rushing and a TD while adding another 46 through the air in the Cats game against the Argos last week.

For the fifth time this year, Stamp’s RB Jon Cornish grabbed the Canadian Player of the Week award as he rushed for 130 yards and a TD on 15 touches. He also had 3 receptions for another 35 yards.

Defensive honors of the week went to Eskimo LB Rennie Curran who recorded 11 tackles – a career high for Rennie – and an interception in the Esks game against Sask.

Special Teams Player of the Week went to the Stamps Rod Maver after he recorded 5 punts for 245 yards in Calgary’s win over the BC Lions.

The league announced this week that they fined Sask DT Carlos Thomas for his illegal hit to the head on Eskimo QB Mike Reilly last week. The following is an excerpt of an interview Reilly did with the Edmonton Journal.

“I’m a pretty tall guy. It’s pretty hard to get up to that area of your head without trying to,” Reilly said. “I was honestly a little bit surprised by the hit, given the fact that there’s been so much media coverage of the head shots I’ve taken this year.”

Reilly suffered a concussion on Sept. 28 when Laing hit the back of the QB’s head after he already had been tackled by two Argos players. Reilly went through the concussion recovery protocols over a span of six days, was medically cleared and played the first half of the game on Oct. 5 against the Montreal Alouettes.

“When we played Montreal, the guys were very aware of (head shots) and they played pretty smart,” Reilly said.

The hit he took at Regina was different.

“That incident, (Thomas) didn’t really seem to care. But whatever, like I say, in the course of the game, the refs can only throw the flags and give us the penalty for it and they did, they caught it, so I was happy with that.

“If the league decides to take any further action on it, that’s on them, that’s for them to decide. But I am certainly not excited about a guy targeting my head like that.”

The process is crystal clear to Reilly. Take the hit, hope you’re OK, take the 15 yards (when a penalty is called) and comment on the punishment handed out later in the week, if anything comes down from the league.

Reilly understands that the CFL is trying to do everything it can, but he would like to see the parameters of that process re-evaluated in the off-season. He also realizes the Canadian Football League Players’ Association is in a predictament.

“I think it’s something we’ve got to sit down and talk with our CFLPA about,” he said. “We’ve got to say, ‘Hey, you’ve got to protect us and if that’s protecting us from ourselves, meaning other players in the league, then that needs to happen.’

“They’re in a tough spot because they’re trying to protect everybody and, sometimes, to do that you have to punish other guys within your same union. It’s got to be a culture change. It’s got to be guys … you have to respect your fellow player in the league. Yeah, we play for different teams, but it just comes down to a respect level.

“If I’m running down the field and I see a guy with his back turned to me, I’m not going to dive and stick my helmet on the side of his knee and take him out of the game,” Reilly continued. “I just have too much respect for the other guy and the work that he’s put into his game to get to this level that I’m not going to just try to take him out like that.

“It’s got to be a total culture change. The accidental hits, they’re trying to change those, they’re trying to teach guys to tackle differently and all that stuff, but ultimately, it’s on us as players to eliminate the obvious attempts to injure guys.”

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/touch/story.html?id=9039856

Week 17 Game Schedule

Friday: Calgary vs Edmonton – 6 PM PST/ 9 PM/ EST
Saturday: Toronto vs Winnipeg – 1:30 AM PST/ 3:30 PM EST
Saturday: – BC vs Saskatchewan – 4 PM PST/ 7:00 PM EST
Sunday – Hamilton vs Montreal - 10:00 AM PST/ 1:00 AM EST

 

[Mowich]

To the surprise of no one, Calgary easily prevailed over the hapless Edmonton Eskimos last night - it was hardly a contest though the Eskimo defense did put up a brave fight in the early going but a blocked punt in the final minute of the first half proved to be the deciding factor in the Stamps win. Grant Shaw took the snap rolled out, found he was blocked and under pressure tried to get off a quick kick. Jamal Wall knocked down the punt, recovered the ball and ran it into the end zone for the Stamps second TD of the game.

The Stamps went on to win the game 27 to 13.

Update on Anthony Calvillo. After announcing earlier this week that Anthony would be back on the sidelines for Montreal's game against the Ti-Cats on Sunday, the club has now stated that Anthony suffered a set-back and will be out for the rest of the season. So the questions continue about Anthony's future in the CFL with everyone from TSN panel members to fans weighing in and offering their takes on what the future Hall of Famer will do. With age becoming a factor in his playing game, it may very well be the last we see of one of our greatest CFL QBs - there but for Dan Hawkins and his inability to play to the strengths of his QB, things could have been very different.

Double-header in the CFL today sees the Toronto Argonauts in Winnipeg to take on the Bombers followed by the Sask Roughriders hosting the BC Lions. The Riders need a win today in order to lock-up a home-field play-off spot. We fans can only hope that they are able to do so but don't expect that the Lions are going to make it easy on us even with Lulay still on the sidelines.

 

[petros]

Double-header in the CFL today sees the Toronto Argonauts in Winnipeg to take on the Bombers followed by the Sask Roughriders hosting the BC Lions. The Riders need a win today in order to lock-up a home-field play-off spot. We fans can only hope that they are able to do so but don't expect that the Lions are going to make it easy on us even with Lulay still on the sidelines.

The Lions are going to have to deal with the 13th man in Regina.

Go Riders!

 

[Mowich]

The Lions are going to have to deal with the 13th man in Regina.

Go Riders!

I always give credit to the Rider's 13th man but today I'm givin' a ton to our defense and a big thanks to the Lions for their inability to hold onto the ball yesterday. 9 TOs by the kitty-cats and 3 by our guys - don't win many games that way and this one was done by the end of the 3rd. BC had no answer for our D and though our O struggled again in the second half - we only got 4 measly points - the team was able to prevent the Lions from making it a game. So, we have our play-off berth and now face the mighty Stamps - who are going to be anything but easy to beat.

My Eastern team - the Ti-Cats packed it in early today in a huge loss to the Montreal Alouettes' under their latest starter Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith - most definitely looks like a keeper.

 

[Mowich]

TURNOVERS HELP ROUGHRIDERS BEAT LIONS, EARN HOME PLAYOFF GAME

REGINA - The Saskatchewan Roughriders scored 28 points off turnovers as they clinched their first home playoff game since 2010 with a 35-14 win Saturday over the B.C. Lions.

It was the third straight win for Saskatchewan (11-5), which can now finish no lower than second in the CFL's West Division.

The Riders secured at least the chance to host the CFL's West Division semifinal by virtue of holding the tiebreaker against B.C (9-7) in the event of a tie in the standings at season's end. They could also host the West final should they win their final two games combined with two Calgary losses.

Saskatchewan was shaky off the start Saturday with B.C. linebacker Adam Bighill causing both Kory Sheets and Geroy Simon to fumble.

The former erased a 41-yard run by Sheets and the latter led to an 11-yard touchdown pass from Thomas DeMarco to Nick Moore, who reached 1,000 yards receiving for the first time on the play.

Then it was the Saskatchewan defence's turn to shine.

DeMarco fumbled under pressure from John Chick and the returning Weldon Brown returned the loose ball 46 yards for a touchdown and a 10-7 Saskatchewan lead.

Middle linebacker Mike McCullough created his first turnover of the game on the very next play when he forced B.C. running back Stefan Logan to fumble at the end of an 11-yard run, setting up a 14-yard field goal from Chris Milo.

Two plays later, DeMarco threw over the middle right into the arms of Riders halfback Carlos Thomas, leading to a 20-yard touchdown pass from Darian Durant to Weston Dressler.

On the play after that Courtney Taylor was stripped by McCullough near midfield. Dressler then caught a 42-yard pass from Durant to set up a one-yard TD run from Sheets and a 27-7 lead.

And just when it looked like things couldn't get worse for the Lions, B.C. turned the ball over for the fourth time in five plays. Taylor bobbled a catch on the first play from scrimmage and linebacker Craig Butler made a diving grab for the interception near midfield.

Milo missed the ensuing field-goal attempt but the ball went deep enough for a single, and he nailed a 15-yard kick before halftime to extend the lead to 31-7.

Milo had kicked his longest score, from 30 yards out, on Saskatchewan's third possession of the game to get the Riders on the board.

The Lions let Saskatchewan know they were still alive when Lin-J Shell intercepted Durant in the third and turned that into a seven-yard TD catch by Shawn Gore, but Ricky Schmitt added a punt single for the Riders to close out the scoring.

Tristan Jackson and Dwight Anderson added interceptions for Saskatchewan in the fourth quarter, and B.C. turned the ball over on downs late in the quarter allowing Milo to kick a 38-yard field goal to put the game away.

Durant finished 13-of-29 passes for 187 yards. DeMarco was also 13 for 29, but for 147 yards.

Turnovers help Roughriders beat Lions, earn home playoff game

Our D was either taking advantage of opportunities or creating them - they were simply wonderful. They won the game for us. Thank you Sask D!

 

[petros]

I'm going to try for some playoff tickets. It'll be a full house at Taylor Field.

 

[Mowich]

I'm going to try for some playoff tickets. It'll be a full house at Taylor Field.

Got my fingers crossed for you petros..........you do Need to See these guys play! LOL!

Week 18 CFL Game Schedule

Thursday – Winnipeg at Toronto – 4:30 PM PST/ 7:30 PM EST
Friday – Edmonton at BC – 7:00 PM PST/ 10:00 PM EST
Saturday – Montreal at Hamilton – 10:00 AM PST/ 1:00 PM EST
Saturday – Saskatchewan at Calgary – 4:00 PM PST/ 7:00 PM EST

Calgary’s Nik Lewis is managing to make head-lines though not for his play on the field. Lewis has been side-lines with a leg injury and was not dressed for the Stamps game against the Eskimos last weekend. However that did not stop him from using social media to criticize the officiating in that game. For his troubles, the league fined Lewis an undisclosed amount.

The TO Argos got good news this week when Chad Kackert was deemed good to go for the team’s game this weekend against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers . Kackert has been out for the last two weeks with a shoulder injury. It has not been a great season for the TO RB as he had to sit out nine of the Argos 16 games with knee and shoulder injuries and a concussion.

There are two weeks left in the regular season including this week and the race for first place in each division is heating up. In the East, if Hamilton wins they will secure a home play-off game. If TO wins or Hamilton loses, the Argos will take top spot in their division. In the West, Calgary could finish on top with a win or a tie in their remaining games.

Just came over from the Rider forum wherein I found a hilarious photo taken during a CBC interview with DD - in the background the camera caught one of the players sans clothing. You gotta wonder what the heck the camera man was thinking. LOL!

First up, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers take on the Toronto Argonauts tonight and Hamilton fans will be hoping to see the Blue and Gold come away with a win.

 

[Mowich]

Celebrating in Style

I sometimes wonder how Eskimo fans feel when they watch Ricky Ray play. This is the guy the Edmonton honchos felt was a tad long in the tooth for their organization. Toronto snatched him up and they never looked back. Grey Cup Champs of 2012 and tonight they clinched first place in the East with a solid win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. And a good part of the credit for both those victories goes to the guy who just turned 34 on Tuesday – he can celebrate in style tonight. Ricky set a career high 505 yards passing and 3 TDs. He was good on 21 of 22 passes in the first half and completed 39 of 45 attempts on the night. His longest pass was to Dontrelle Inman – a 69 yarder that Inman took to the end zone for the Argos 3 rd TD of the night. This is the 9 th time in his career that Ricky has thrown over 400 yards in one game. Ricky sits atop the QB standings in the CFL with a 77.7 completion record breaking the previous record set by Dave ****enson who had a single season best of 73.98. No rust on Ricky.

The win was the first time since 2007 that the Argos finished first in their division and only the 3 rd since 1997. They also secured home-field for the division final by beating the Bombers in back-to-back games.

It was a hard fought game by both teams and flags flew readily especially in the first half. Both sides contributed to roughing the passer, unnecessary roughness after the play, illegal blocks, forward pass interference – that one cost Toronto a total of 35 yards. Nico Thorpe was taken off the field and directly to hospital after suffering what appeared to be a head injury. Marcus Ball accounted for 30 yards of the Argo penalties with a hit to the head of Max Hall and unnecessary roughness out of bounds. Not to be outdone, Jonny Sears drew 2 of his own – unnecessary roughness and objectionable conduct after the play - that cost the Blue and Gold 30 yards.

Winnipeg HC Tim Burke was not half-pleased when interviewed by TSN at half-time specifically referring to the penalties in rather colorful language. The Bombers were only trailing by 3 points at the half – a real tribute to their defense as the offense though managing a TD and an FG had not had a stellar performance.

Winnipeg fought a good fight for most of the night but were unable to finish many of their drives. They trailed by 3 at the half and held TO scoreless until late in the 3 rd when Waters connected on one from the 43. They went 3 and out on their next series and TO got another 3 from Waters. Trailing the Argos by 7 going int the 4th, they mounted their best drive of the night but fell short of a major. Starting at their own 6 yard line they moved the ball downfield to the TO 38 before a holding penalty and a near miss forced them to 3 and 12. Renaud got a single off his 68 yard boot. Max Hall would leave the game with less than 4 minutes to play in the 4 th after taking a hard hit to the ribs from Marcus Ball. His replacement, Jason Boltus would finish the final minutes of the game for Winnipeg with 2 of 5 for 25 yards and an interception with 40 seconds left on the time clock.

Swayze Waters got back on track adding 12 points off 4 FGs and a single on a long punt to the end zone while converting on the 3 Argo TDs. Chad Kackert left no doubt he was fit to play as he scampered and scrambled for 79 yards on 11 carries. He also had 7 touches for 55 yards receiving. Dontrelle Inman racked up 152 on 4 receptions and a TD. Chad Owens was good for 11 receptions for 105 yards plus another 82 kick returns and 39 on punts. Rhomby Bryant had two of the Argo’s TDs and Dontrelle Inman the 3 rd.
Wallace Miles was the top receiver for the Bombers with 6 carries for 100 yards and a TD to his credit. Saskatchewan’s own Rory Kohlert scored the only other Bomber TD.

This team so deserves a better fan base – the attendance at tonight’s game where the division title stood on the line – was 18,478.

Final Score: 36 to 21 Toronto

 

[Mowich]

This is it CFL fans the last games of the regular season then we are on to the play-offs with the Cup as the finale.

It appears the odds are on the Calgary Stampeders to take the Cup this year. Considering what a well-rounded team they are and the fact that their HC along with several of their vets have been there before, it is not a stretch to bet on them. That said, my heart is with my Riders to the bitter or glorious end.

I am praying for the Hamilton Ti-Cats to come through and pull out an Eastern final victory over the Argos. I like the Argos and think RR is the best QB in our league but I have been a fan of the Ti-Cats for years now and would really love to see Kent Austin's team take it all the way to the Cup. Meanwhile they have to get through this weekend and their game against the Bombers. Now many would say that it should be a mail-in win for the Cats but as has been seen late in the season, teams eliminated from the final rounds often play the spoiler. So I am not counting out the Blue and Gold by any means. Hope they give the Cats all they can handle so the guys are prepared for the Argos.


The division semi-finalists have all ready been decided and will feature Montreal at Hamilton and BC and Sask on November 10th. The division championships are scheduled for November 17 and will be held in Toronto and Calgary this year.


Week 19 Game Schedule

Friday – Montreal at Toronto – 4 pm PST/ 7 pm EST
Friday – Calgary vs Lions – 7 pm PST/ 10 pm EST
Saturday – Ti-Cats vs Blue Bombers – 11 AM PST/ 2 PM EST
Saturday – Eskimos vs Riders – 2 pm PST/ 5 pm EST



First ballot results are in the for Gibson’s Finest CFL Players of 2013

Selections are made by voting members of the Football Reports of Canada and the CFL head coaches.

A * represents a unanimous selection – and the nominees are:


Most Outstanding Player

Adam Bighill – BC Lions – LB
Jon Cornish* - Calgary Stampeders – RB
Fred Stamps – Edmonton Eskimos – SB
Kory Sheets – Saskatchewan Roughriders – RB
Henoc Muamba* - Winnipeg Blue Bombers – LB
Henry Burris – Hamilton Ti-Cats – QB
Ricky Ray – Toronto Argonauts – QB
Chip Cox - Montreal Alouettes – LB

Most Outstanding Defensive Player

Adam Bighill* - BC Lions – LB
Charleston Hughes* – Calgary Stampeders – DL
Marcus Howard – Edmonton Eskimos – DL
Tyron Brackenridge – Saskatchewan Roughriders – S
Henoc Muamba* – Winnipeg Blue Bombers – LB
Brian Bulcke – Hamilton Tiger Cats – DL
Robert McCune – Toronto Argonauts – LB
Chip Cox* - Montreal Alouettes – LB

Most Outstanding Canadian

Andrew Harris – BC Lions – RB
Jon Cornish* - Calgary Stampeders – RB
Shamawd Chambers – Edmonton Eskimos – REC
Chris Getzlaf* - Saskatchewan Roughriders – SB
Henoc Muamba* – Winnipeg Blue Bombers – LB
Brian Bulcke – Hamilton Tiger Cats – DL
Andre Durie* - Toronto Argonauts – SB
Mike Edem – Montreal Alouettes – S

Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman

Jovan Olafioye – BC Lions – OL
Stanley Bryant – Calgary Stampeders – OL
Matt O’Donnell – Edmonton Eskimos – OL
Brendon LaBatte – Saskatchewan Roughriders – OL
Glenn January – Winnipeg Blue Bombers – OL
Greg Wojt* - Hamilton Tiger Cats – OL
Jeff Keeping – Toronto Argonauts – OL
Luc Brodeur-Jourdain – Montreal Alouettes – OL

Most Outstanding Special Teams Player

Tim Brown – BC Lions – KR
Rene Paredes* - Calgary Stampeders – K
Eric Samuels – Edmonton Eskimos – LB
Ricky Schmitt – Saskatchewan Roughriders – P
Will Ford – Winnipeg Blue Bombers – KR
Marc Beswick* - Hamilton Tiger Cats – LB
Swayze Waters – Toronto Argonauts – K
Daryl Townsend – Montreal Alouettes – S

Most Outstanding Rookie

Seydou Junior Haidara – BC Lions – REC
Brett Jones* - Calgary Stampeders – OL
Eric Samuels – Edmonton Eskimos – LB
Levi Steinhauer – Saskatchewan Roughriders – DL
Ian Wild – Winnipeg Blue Bombers – LB
CJ Gable* - Hamilton Tiger Cats – RB
John Chiles – Toronto Argonauts – REC
Mike Edem – Montreal Alouettes – S

 

[Mowich]

This weekend could very well see several players meet or exceed personal, team or CFL records. Some are shoe-ins, a few are very makeable while others might be a stretch - good luck to all the guys.

1000 yards receiving:
Andre Durie TOR - 986 (14)
Chad Owens TOR - 979 (21)
Bakari Grant HAM - 947 (53)
Taj Smith SSK 901 - (99)
Andy Fantuz HAM - 896 (104)

100 Defensive Tackles:
Robert McCune TOR - 99 (1)
Henoc Muamba WPG - 97 (3)

100 Career Games:
Glenn January WPG - 99 (1)


5000 yards passing:
Henry Burris HAM - 4,792 (208) - this is supposed to be an eight as is the number below but I keep getting a smilie??

2000 yards from scrimmage:
Kory Sheets SSK - 1,862 (138)

300 rushing attempts:
Kory Sheets SSK - 287 (13)

20 QB Sacks:
Charleston Hughes CGY - 18 (2)

1000 yards rushing:
Andrew Harris BC - 896 (104)

100 Career QB wins:
Henry Burris HAM - 99 (1)

TSN has released the results of their CFL players poll. More than 250 current players took part in the exercise. The voting players must select one player in each of 11 categories. What I like most about this poll is that it is peer to peer and gives us an inside of view of how the guys feel about the other teams in the league.
And the winners are –



Toughest Player
Mike Reilly (ED) – 83%
Keith Shologan (SK) – 12%
Rob Bagg (SK) – 4%


Fastest Player
Maurice Price (CAL) – 65%
Brandon Parks (HAM) – 16%
Chip Cox (MON) – 8%
Will Ford (WINN) – 4%
....and there were 8 players tied at 1%


Toughest To Bring Down
Jon Cornish (CAL) – 64%
Andre Durie (TOR) – 14%
Nik Lewis (CAL) – 13%
Darian Durant (SK) – 5%
Kory Sheets (SK) – 5%


Most Underrated
Marquay McDaniel (CAL) – 27%
Kevin Glenn (CAL) – 20%
CJ Gable (HAM) – 12%
Shane Horton (TOR) – 9%
Eric Taylor (BC) – 7%
Weldon Brown (SK) – 5%
Billy Parker (MON) – 4%
Alex Suber (WINN) – 4%
...and 10 were tied at 1%


Biggest Threat To Score
Chad Owens (TOR) – 46%
Maurice Price (CAL) – 26%
Weston Dressler (SK) – 16%
SJ Green (MON) – 3%
Fred Stamps (ED) – 3%
....and 6 tied at 1%


Most Accurate Passer
Ricky Ray (TOR) – 99%
Henry Burris (HAM) – 1%


Nastiest Player
Khalif Mitchell (TOR) – 40%
Shea Emery (MON) – 33%
Diamond Ferri (SK) – 10%
Dominic Picard (SK) – 7%
.....3 players at 3%


Trash Talker
Dwight Anderson (SK) – 93%
Desmond Washington (WINN) – 4%
Charleston Hughes (CAL) – 2 %
Korey Banks (BC) – 1%


Hardest Hitter
Tyron Brackenridge (SK) – 32%
Solomon Elimimian (BC) – 19%
Robert McCune (TOR) – 15%
Kyries Hebert (MON) – 14%
Johnny Sears (WINN) – 7%
Marcus Ball (TOR) – 7%
Brandon Isaac (HAM) – 3%
Adam Bighill (BC) – 3%


Best Hands
SJ Green (MON) – 29%
Weston Dressler (SK) – 28%
Fred Stamps (ED) – 27%
Andy Fantuz (SK) – 16%
Dontrelle Inman (TOR) – 14%


Best Clutch Player
Ricky Ray (TOR) – 59%
Rene Paredes (CAL) – 15%
Weston Dressler (SK) – 8%
Kevin Glenn (CAL) – 6%
Andy Fantuz (HAM) – 3%
Henry Burris (HAM) – 3%
SJ Green (MON) – 3%
Chip Cox (MON) – 3%


The Sun Life Grey Cup March is back – a chance for fans to carry the Cup to the Mosaic Stadium as part of the festivities during Grey Cup week. Sure hope TSN covers this if only in part because I would expect to see the streets painted Green by Rider Nation.

 

[Mowich]

Kavis Reed and the Eskimos have parted ways just two days after the Esks won their final game of the regular season against the Riders. This really comes as no surprise to anyone following the league – Kavis’ days were numbered when the losses kept mounting and someone had to pay for the lack of wins. Will be interesting to see what Hervey does regarding Marshall the Esk’s DC. I wish Mr Reed all the best in the future.

Expect an announcement soon about the future of Winnipeg’s HC Tim Burke – rumors are that he has declined a new role with the team though no word on what that might have been. A press conference is to be held on Wed or Thurs by the team.

Now that the regular season is behind us and the final teams are set for the play-offs, talk of the upcoming CFL draft has started with fans weighing in on who should and shouldn't be protected. Both the Eskimos and the Bombers have a fair bit of re-building to do in the off-season and are hoping to find the right mix for their teams. There is a lot of talk about Paul LaPolice being hired as the HC of either the Esks or the Bombers though I doubt he would go back to a team that fired him mid-season.

I am all ready looking forward to next season when we will see the Bombers back where they belong in the Western Conference and the expansion of the season with the addition of the Ottawa Redblacks - great for the league and CFL fans.

With the CFL intent on getting a team somewhere in the Atlantic region in the next few years, things are looking pretty good for our game.

 

[Mowich]

For the first time in the long history of the CFL – Canadian players dominated the Gibson’s Finest Player Awards.

TORONTO -- The Canadian Football League announced today the 2013 Gibson’s Finest Most Outstanding Players for the East and West Divisions and they included a record number of Canadians. A total of seven Canadian players were honoured for eight most outstanding player awards, the most in league history.

Several of this year’s winners were also setting records on the field, combing to set six CFL single season records: most rushing yards by a Canadian (Jon Cornish), most yards from scrimmage by a Canadian (Jon Cornish), most consecutive field-goals made (Rene Paredes), highest field-goal percentage (Rene Paredes), highest pass completion percentage (Ricky Ray) and highest pass efficiency (Ricky Ray).

“Our players continue to play at an extremely high level, setting new records and providing our fans with exciting games and an exciting product,” said CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon. “On behalf of our entire league and our fans, congratulations to all of this year’s divisional winners -- a very well deserved honour.”
This year’s winners are:

Most Outstanding Player:
Jon Cornish (CGY) | Ricky Ray (TOR)

Most Outstanding Defensive Player:
Charleston Hughes (CGY) | Chip Cox (MTL)

Most Outstanding Canadian:
Jon Cornish (CGY) | Henoc Muamba (WPG)

Most Outstanding Special Teams Player:
Rene Paredes (CGY) | Marc Beswick (HAM)

Most Outstanding Rookie:
Brett Jones (CGY) | CJ Gable (HAM)

Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman:
Brendon LaBatte (SSK) | Jeff Keeping (TOR)

Cornish could become the first Canadian player to be named CFL Most Outstanding Player since Tony Gabriel in 1978. Only two Canadian players have been named the CFL Most Outstanding Player – Gabriel (1978) and Russ Jackson (1969, 1966, 1963).

This marks the first time that both divisional winners for Most Outstanding Special Teams Players are Canadian since the award’s inaugural season in 1999.

The last Canadian player to be named the CFL Most Outstanding Rookie was Jason Clermont in 2002. Only four Canadian Players have been named the CFL Most Outstanding Rookie – Clermont (2002), Michael O’Shea (1993), Orville Lee (1988), and Joe Poplawski (1978).

The last time both East and West Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman were both Canadian was in 2008 when Scott Flory and Gene Makowsky were honoured.

The East and West Player Award winners were selected by 77 voters, including members of the Football Reporters of Canada (FRC) and CFL head coaches.

Voters were asked to select players from their local CFL division who, through on-field performance excellence, best represent the awards’ title – Most Outstanding Player, Most Outstanding Canadian Player, Most Outstanding Defensive Player, Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman, Most Outstanding Rookie and Most Outstanding Special Teams Player.


http://www.cfl.ca/article/canadians-dominate-divisional-player-awards

Congratulations to all the winners for their outstanding efforts this year.

 

[Tecumsehsbones]

That's excellent! and speaks well of the growing popularity and professionalism of Canadian football.

I hope they repeat the expansion experiment. I'd like to see maybe a 16-team league, with 10-12 in Canada and 4-6 in the U.S.