The Hamilton Tiger-Cats hope to play their Labour Day Classic on Labour Day at Tim Hortons Field.
Option 2 is to play the game in the new stadium on Tuesday. Option 3 is Tuesday at Rogers Centre. McMaster University isn't an option on Monday.
The hope is we get to see Tim Hortons Field, even if U.S. residents can only watch through ESPN3. Check out the Twitter feed for updates.
The Battle of Alberta is the late game on Labour Day. Both Calgary and Edmonton are 7-1.
We finally get some East on East action as we head into the Labour Day weekend. The Ottawa-Montréal rivalry makes its debut on Friday Night Football. This will be a good test to see how well the RedBlacks fans travel. The prelude to the Banjo Bowl in Regina will be on Sunday.
BC sits out on Labour Day with no natural rival. The Lions actually get a holiday.
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TSN
Friday
Ottawa @ Montréal, 7:30p
Sunday
Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 4p
Monday
Toronto @ Hamilton, 1p
Edmonton @ Calgary, 4:30p
Bye week
BC
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Darian Durant and Mike Reilly didn't finish their games last week. Thomas DeMarco is out for the season for Ottawa.
Hamilton is on its 3rd quarterback in Jeremiah Masoli, though Zach Collaros is off the injured list and back at practice for the Tiger-Cats. Montréal is on its 3rd QB in Jonathan Crompton, though Tanner Marsh hasn't been one of those choices. Why Alex Brink got an earlier chance than Tanner Marsh is a head-scratcher.
Troy Smith was a lot better last season. So was Marsh. The problem in Montréal has little to do with quarterbacks, but a lack of an effective offensive plan.
2 stars came back from injuries last week. Jon Cornish and Chad Owens — 2 of the biggest CFL stars — have been out for some time. While their teams have done okay without them, they have been missed by the league.
Cornish had decent results. So did Owens until he had to come out of last week's game. Owens likely won't dress for the Labour Day Classic.
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We applaud BC Lions president and CEO Dennis Skulsky for having the courage of calling a "guaranteed win night" at BC Place. Perhaps Skulsky could have waited until an East team arrived in Vancouver.
"We're gonna go and win and we're guaranteeing it."
Saskatchewan edged out the Lions 20-16. Skulsky and the Lions will now have to deliver on a promise to Sunday night's attendees for a free ticket to one of the next 4 home games.
The Roughriders travel well as we saw with a billboard in Vancouver: Green is the new Orange. When I was in Edmonton 2 years ago, I noticed a Riders billboard near Commonwealth Stadium.
Guaranteeing a win can be a sound strategy. Doing so against Saskatchewan can be a tricky proposition.
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The East has only played 3 games against each other before the Labour Day weekend. Ottawa upset Toronto 18-17 in its home opener. The Argos beat up on Montréal 31-5 at Molson Stadium. Hamilton beat Ottawa 33-23 at McMaster University. The Argos won't play a Eastern opponent at home until well into October.
Unless these games will end in 0-0 ties, we'll finally see some daylight between Toronto and the rest of the division. Yes, the Argos are under .500 but the team has as many wins as the other 3 teams combined.
For the Ticats and RedBlacks, their lone CFL win has come against an East opponent. Montréal's lone win is 1 of 3 wins for an East team over a West team (BC Lions).
By contrast, the West has played 8 games against each other.
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Saskatchewan could be down a quarterback, but gained a wide receiver. Longtime Saskatchewan Roughriders wide receiver Weston Dressler has returned to the green and white after being cut by Kansas City.
As a true CFL free agent, Dressler had some very tempting offers, especially from the RedBlacks. In the end, Dressler picked where he had been.
Andy Fantuz did come back to Saskatchewan (he had to in order to play in the CFL) after being waived by the NFL Chicago Bears, but then signed with Hamilton in the off-season.
Former Roughrider RB Kory Sheets suffering a season-ending Achilles tendon injury while playing for Oakland in the preseason.
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I got to see first hand the unveiling and implementation of the Argos CFL alternative uniforms. Colour me not impressed.
Not a fan of the marketing gimmicks to entice people to spend yet more money, and while the Argos jerseys were decent, they were too remnant of the Tennessee Titans of the NFL. Not a good look in general.
It's "good" for the CFL to be doing these things as this is relevant in the modern sports world. The plaid in the Ottawa helmets is a daring choice, but somewhat relevant given the lumberjack mascot.
The August 17 contest was between the "Titans" and the already horrible all-black BC uniforms. In the fashion world, this was a 0-0 tie.
We got to see a lovely marketing video from Reebok and the CFL as "entertainment" at Rogers Centre. I was amused at the reaction by fans in the Toronto Blue Jays, er, Argos team store at halftime on August 12 when the uniforms were unveiled. Fans were positive about the new uniform, and having it in front of you so soon after the unveiling was a genius move.
If you like or hate a particular alternative uniform, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.
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Chris Cuthbert and Glen Suitor will have extra travel expenses this past week. The broadcast team covered games in Winnipeg, Edmonton, and Vancouver in 3 consecutive days. Gord Miller filled in for Rod Black to work with Duane Forde in the nation's capital.
The TSN5 setup launched this week. CFL games will be on TSN2 (the true national feed), though please check your local listings. CFL is on TSN, though you have to figure out which one.
The BC Lions are looking for a new radio voice. Rick Ball, who also called the Vancouver Canucks on radio, will be the new play-by-play TV person for the Calgary Flames on Rogers Sportsnet West. Ball will team up with Kelly Hrudey on the telecasts.