Now for the Fun Part

Other than that, Rider fans can take heart in knowing a team of back ups gave competitive games to the Stony Mountain Blue Bombers and BC Lions who were playing for playoff positioning. The bottom line is if the Riders experience any injuries during the western final and Grey Cup, their back ups are more than able to do the job.

The difference between this game and the Winnipeg game is the Riders had more starters playing longer including quarterback Trevor Harris who after a BC one play touchdown drive drove the Riders down for a touchdown and the lead. Harris looked sharp and Jake Maier may have had a fumble and an ill-advised interception but otherwise treaded water as a back up who might be called into action.

The Riders have a depth to this team that should see them weather any injuries on their playoff run. The question is which teams will stand between the Riders and the Grey Cup.

But, before that, let’s take a quick look at the announcement Saskatchewan will host the 2027 Grey Cup on November 7, which is a bit of a surprise considering the Grey Cup was last here in 2022 but makes sense when you consider 2027 is the first year of the changes in the CFL including shortening the field.

The CFL is no doubt looking forward to fans playing Sammy Hagar’s I Can’t Drive 55 to lament the loss of the 55-yard line in addition to the shortening of the end zones and needs a viable location to sell the changes in the field and potentially what new fun zones will be built for fans to sit where the end zones used to be.

Putting the Grey Cup in Saskatchewan at the best-looking stadium in Canada and an informed fan base which is not on day parole like Bomber fans is an interesting way for the CFL to sell the new field size to appeal to uh, Americans?

The November 7th date is the earliest date for the Grey Cup, and November 7 is also my birthday, Considering the Grey Cup this year is November 16, its basically a difference of a week and there are some who are wondering if the CFL was looking to add another team for 2027 to balance out the schedule.

I think they will start the season a week earlier unless they award a CFL franchise to St. Louis, or Halifax. The Regina bid was against Edmonton which lost for the second year in a row, mostly because Edmonton is still getting its act together in its first year of private ownership.

The lack of eastern host cities is understandable since Montreal has not yet finished repairs to the Olympic Stadium roof to allow them to host the Grey Cup there, Ottawa is renovating its entire stadium with no guarantee it would be ready by Grey Cup and Hamilton just had it twice in three years.

On the Prairies it is always a coin flip on weather in mid to late November and I can say the latest generation is not as tough weather wise as their elders so anything to make it easier is worth it. I will say this, if the Riders make it to the Grey Cup and win it on my birthday, I will need medical attention right away because my heart will be able to take it.

The last weekend of the CFL has a lot of loose ends to tie up, which makes it good for fan interest, except this year the CFL was competing with the Jays World Series appearance against the Dodgers. The Saturday game between BC and the Riders had a lot of people following the Jays game.

Hamilton crushed Ottawa 35-15 which might sound impressive, but Bob Dyce was let go after the game by Ottawa and I am not seeing anything in Hamilton’s defense that fills me with any anxiety about seeing them in three weeks. The Riders line up well against Hamilton.

Calgary beat Edmonton 20-10 which featured some of the mental errors Edmonton inflicted on their fan base this year including getting a ball punched out of your grasp before you cross the goal line like the Elk did. The most notable thing about the game was the absolute lack of action Tre Ford saw at quarterback which considering he was the starter for six games and signed a three-year contract sending a message Ford will not be in Edmonton next season.

Calgary unleashed their running game against the Elk and Vernon Adams Jr. gave us his Best Vernon look at quarterback. Calgary has made some changes on defense and their receiving corps to deal with injuries and it seems Calgary is going to go with a ball control offense for the playoffs.

Hamilton’s win over Ottawa ensured Montreal could not finish any better than second in the east so Montreal stood down quarterback Davis Alexander but unfortunately suffered the loss of two defensive linemen and a running back. The Bombers may well be without Nic Demski at slotback, but the younger players they had in performed better than their aging vets, which makes the Bombers an interesting team in the eastern final.

The Bombers did lose Chris Streveler to a leg injury although he was seen on the sidelines at Bomber practice this week looking mobile so maybe the extent of the injury is not as bad as it could be.

Montreal had McLeod Bethel Thompson at the helm in place of Alexander and the question has to be asked how long will he be allowed to be a backup? McBLT was supposed to be a calming influence, but he has either lost interest or his ability to make a good decision. Then again, the game meant nothing to Montreal and since they play the Bombers this week, no need to show the other team everything.

Before this weekend I would have picked Montreal over Winnipeg in the eastern final based on the return of Davis Alexander and his superior control of the Montreal offense while the Bombers cannot seem to figure out how to use Brady Olivera while people like Demski are injured. I remember when Calgary lost two defensive lineman in their last regular season game of 2013 including Micah Johnson and in the western final, they were run over by Kory Sheets and the Riders.

I hate to say this, but Winnipeg has a shot in the eastern final. The injuries on the Montreal defensive line should light up in someone’s head in Princess Incestuous Field that maybe running on Montreal is a good idea, especially when you have a senior citizen quarterback in Collaros who falls over in a light breeze.

Alexander has gone his first 10 games as a starter without a loss,

If Winnipeg does not take advantage of the Montreal injuries, they deserve to lose and lose badly. I’m thinking the Bombers cannot be that dumb, so gulp, they win 30-24.

Calgary goes to BC, and this should be a good game, but there is something in Calgary’s inconsistency that gives a person pause. In the first third of the season, I would not argue the Stampeders were playing the best football in the league, but a combination of injuries and mental errors had them tumble to third.

The Lions are on a six-game winning streak, but their starters were taken to the limit by the Rider backups. For a team that is supposed to be an offensive juggernaut and being led by the likely most outstanding player and Canadian in Nathan Rourke, that should give a moment’s pause.

If Calgary goes into BC and uses a ball control offense to keep Rourke and his offense off the field as long as possible, then Calgary will win tis game 31-27. That sets up a Saskatchewan Calgary western final where the Riders will get one more chance to beat the Stampeders and prove they are ready for a spot in the Grey Cup.

Oh, and I will pick the Jays to win their third World Series on Halloween.

by Greg Urbanoski

Now for the Fun Part

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