This is the first all ESPN3 weekend for the CFL in the United States. After showing 3 of the 4 games over the last 2 weeks, the NBC Sports Network is taking the weekend off from the CFL.
Hamilton could take over 2nd place in the East by itself with a win in Winnipeg. The Blue Bombers will have their 3rd starting quarterback in 3 games with Max Hall.
The B.C. Lions can gain a tie for 2nd place with a home win over the Stampeders. But the Lions will have to figure out how to stop Jon Cornish, especially after scoring 4 touchdowns last week against Saskatchewan.
We haven't really seen too many true upsets this year. If Edmonton can win in Rogers Centre and/or the Alouettes winning in Saskatchewan, that would break the trend.
The scheduling on Saturday looks a bit odd with a 2-hour gap in between. Turns out the Montréal Impact will host D.C. United in between on TSN. The obsessed CFL fans can schedule a quiet dinner in between the two games and look at their family members while eating.
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TSN
Friday
Hamilton @ Winnipeg, 8p
Saturday
Montréal @ Saskatchewan, 4p
Calgary @ BC, 9p
Sunday
Edmonton @ Toronto, 7p
Montréal games also air on RDS. ESPN3 carries all non-TV games in U.S.
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I'm working my way through the telecasts from the bye weekends, so I apologize for not having more notes on the actual telecasts. With a TV break in the States until Thursday, I'll have time to catch up on the previous telecasts.
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More on this later, but I absolutely love the new roof at B.C. Place. Wish there had been more of a breeze, but later in the season, you can get some natural cooling through the roof. B.C. Day was sunny and nice in Vancouver, so the sun was very generous.
To save a few bucks, I picked a spot in the corner of the second deck (and to be closer to the roof). Well, the sun shone at us through virtually all of the second half. Most of the crowd didn't have as much direct contact with the sun as we did.
The 4 pm local start did not help the direction of the sun. Was hoping the sun would get covered by the middle of the roof, creating an eclipse, but the sun didn't get high enough.
If you've been to B.C. Place but not since the new roof, you should go back.
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The way the game went in Montréal, you have to figure that Toronto has clinched the East. I made that joke earlier, but seriously, there isn't an East team that will catch the Argos. Montréal, Hamilton, and Winnipeg: one of these teams has to finished second in the East. This will come down to which team can beat up on the other two and Edmonton.
Winnipeg will try Max Hall at quarterback this week. Justin Goltz played well enough, but the Blue Bombers fans sitting in front of me noted that Goltz only looked in one direction when passing the ball. They were spot on in their analysis. That is a common, fixable mistake, but Winnipeg management is hasty with this move.
The Alouettes can finish second, but not any higher. The turnovers against Toronto got ridiculous. Hamilton on paper could be that 2nd place team, but would need a growth spurt to overcome their provincial rivals.
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The CFL is known as a high-scoring game. But in two of the four games, only 1 point was scored in the entire 3rd quarter. Perhaps the Argos offense was tired, and could only muster a single point in Montréal. In Vancouver, the point was more crucial since the Lions gave up the 1-point halftime lead. In fact, B.C. finally took the lead on a safety with about 11 minutes remaining in regulation.
You can't just score 1 point for a quarter in the NFL, so you definitely are getting a phenomena you won't find in the States.
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I figured I had missed the Argos and Alouettes with the time difference on the West Coast. But walking through downtown Vancouver, I peeked into a bar and noticed that the game was in the first quarter. When I took a closer look, I saw that the logo read TSN2. Turns out TSN2 showed the game tape-delayed starting at midnight Eastern/9pm Pacific. What a great idea, especially for the West Coast viewers.
When I tuned in, Toronto was up 7-0; I stayed through the end of the first half, including Chad Owens 118-yard TD run off the deflected Sean White FG attempt. Owens also ran a punt back for a TD, but an Argos penalty took that off the board.
Canadians are fortunate to get the games live and on same-day tape.
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I had questioned the availability of CFL bumpers from the other teams. On the TSN telecasts in Canada, I did see a bumper for Chris Getzlaf (Saskatchewan) and Marc-Olivier Brouillette (Montréal). This leaves Hamilton and Edmonton that I haven't accounted for in the list. Though Winnipeg should have someone other than Buck Pierce.
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Speaking of the CFL on TSN, I remember reading that the B.C. Lions home games were blacked out. Turns out the games are blacked out in SD, but you can watch them in Vancouver in HD. As much as I think I understand how Canadian TV works, this is a head scratcher. If you are watching SD channels and not paying for HD, well, you might not have an HD set, but getting the home games on TV would be worth the price.
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Chris Cuthbert and Glen Suitor are back after a week off. They even had Saturday and Sunday off in the bye weekend they worked. Gord Miller and Matt Dunigan were in Montréal for what in past years would be a close matchup. Rod Black and Duane Forde called the game in Calgary, the best game on paper and the field. The schedule worked out that way, but having your #2 crew call a Western game between the two top teams in the league felt a little off.
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