Canadian Crossing

Winnipeg Blue Bombers are back-to-back Grey Cup champions

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers had to rise from 3rd place in 2019 to win the Grey Cup. The 2021 squad was the cream of the crop all year long. There were stumbles toward the end but the Blue Bombers won back-to-back CFL titles with a 33-25 overtime win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Hamilton.

Winnipeg trailed at halftime for the second week in a row. The Blue Bombers defence in the fourth quarter remained strong, holding the Tiger-Cats to a tying field goal near the end of regulation.

After a drought since 1990, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are the first CFL team to go back to back since the 2009-2010 Montréal Alouettes.

Every point counts: We make this point often and this Grey Cup game proved this to be true. The kickers were perfect last night in a season with missed field goals and extra points.

Winnipeg scored a punt single in the 1st quarter and 2 kick singles in the 4th quarter when the Blue Bombers had the wind. The wind was not surprisingly a factor in Tim Hortons Field, known for wind issues since its construction. The Blue Bombers did concede a safety in the 3rd quarter when the team did not have the wind at its back.

The Tiger-Cats could have won the Grey Cup in regulation without that final rouge in the 4th quarter.

Hamilton had a 22-10 lead early in the 4th quarter. Winnipeg has dominated the 4th quarter in 2021.

Splish, splash....goin' back to back!#CFL | @GatoradeCanada pic.twitter.com/tVj2Tv1wfT

— CFL (@CFL) December 13, 2021

In overtime, Zach Collaros, voted the Most Outstanding Player in the season and the 2021 Grey Cup, led the team to a touchdown (Darvin Adams) and 2-point conversion (Rasheed Bailey). Hamilton needed 8 points to stay alive. However, Jeremiah Masoli, in for an injured Dane Evans, threw a pass where Winnipeg defenders Deatrick Nichols and Winston Rose before Kyrie Wilson caught the ball to end the 2021 Grey Cup.

Nic Demski won Most Outstanding Canadian for the Grey Cup for Winnipeg.

Kameron Kelly had 2 interceptions for Hamilton. Dane Evans went 4-9 for 24 yards before the injury. Jeremiah Masoli was 20-25 for 185 yards for the Tiger-Cats.

Absolute SCENE at Portage & Main 😳#ForTheW #DefendTheCup pic.twitter.com/TaIj19s75a

— Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) December 13, 2021

2021 Grey Cup preview

This was the 4th overtime Grey Cup game ever. The first happened in 1961 when Winnipeg beat Hamilton 21-14. Edmonton edged Montreal in 2005 and Ottawa took care of Calgary in 2016.

The Blue Bombers previously won back-to-back Grey Cup titles in 1958-1959 and 1961-1962. This was under Bud Grant in Winnipeg. Grant coached Winnipeg for 10 seasons with 6 Grey Cup appearances and the 4 titles. Michael O'Shea is in good company.

We were told the capacity for the 2021 Grey Cup was 24,000. Turns out the actual attendance number was 26,324. Everything we said about the attendance figures last week remain true. Will be curious what the capacity will be for the 2023 Grey Cup in Hamilton.

The back to back wins is rather impressive in modern times. Doug Flutie and the Toronto Argonauts won in 1996-1997. The legendary Edmonton teams led by Warren Moon won from 1978-1982.

CFL attracting attention to the East final for very wrong reasons

2021 CFL division finals preview

pic.twitter.com/Zf5OAoZoXr

— Hamilton Tiger-Cats (@Ticats) December 13, 2021

The 2021 Hamilton Tiger-Cats became the first CFL team to lose a Grey Cup at home since the 2008 Montréal Alouettes at Olympic Stadium. The 2011-2013 Grey Cup games all had the home team win the title.

Hamilton has the longest streak in the CFL without a Grey Cup title going back to winning the 1999 Grey Cup. Montréal is second not having won a Grey Cup since 2010.

2021 CFL playoffs preview

The halftime show with the Arkells, Lumineers, and K.Flay was rather good. Robin Sparkles and Robin Daggers would have been proud.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

TSN had extensive coverage leading up and including then 108th Grey Cup. The radio side had a new team with Dustin Nielson alongside analyst Natey Adjei. Nielson also did the TV introductions that Rod Black had done for years.

The TV call went well. Rod Smith and Glen Suitor called their first Grey Cup together. The drones could have been used more. We had injuries during the game and the crew barely went to Sara Orlesky and Matthew Scianitti.

Current Calgary quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was on the secondary TSN panel.

ESPNews carried the last half hour (5:30 pm-6 pm Eastern) of pregame coverage, something we don't recall U.S. television doing. The U.S. channel carried the first few minutes of the regular coverage since ESPN2 joined in progress a few minutes past 6 pm.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The 14-game season went fairly smooth with a singular COVID-19 hangup. Having 3 East teams in the CFL playoffs was an improvement. A June 2022 kickoff to a season will be a welcome sight. The league still has a number of issues; the offence on the field needs to pick up as well.

The 2022 Grey Cup will be at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.

photo credit: @CFL
Twitter captures: @CFL; @Wpg_BlueBombers; @Ticats

2021 Grey Cup preview

For the first time since 2009-2010, we have a Grey Cup rematch with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Montréal Alouettes beat the Saskatchewan Roughriders in both Grey Cups, each in the Alberta cities that have a CFL franchise.

The 2019 Grey Cup had the longest losing streaks for the Grey Cup: Hamilton (1999) and Winnipeg (1990). The Winnipeg win meant every CFL team won in the 2010s except for Hamilton. Toronto and Calgary won 2 Grey Cups in that decade.

Since the Grey Cup win in 1999, Hamilton has been to the Grey Cup in 2013, 2014, and 2019. All the CFL teams would have a Grey Cup win in the last decade if there hadn't be an illegal block call on the 90-yard punt return by Brandon Banks.

The Tiger-Cats have 8 Grey Cup titles; Blue Bombers have 11 titles.

Toronto (17) and Edmonton (14) top the list for Grey Cup titles. Ottawa has 10 titles: Rough Riders (9) and RedBlacks (1).

The rest of the current CFL franchises rank this way: Calgary (8), Montréal (7), BC (6), and Saskatchewan (4).

Hamilton has 7 Grey Cup titles with different teams: Tigers (5), Flying Wildcats (1), Alerts (1).

The 108th edition of the Grey Cup is Sunday at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton. Either the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will be the first back-to-back winners since the Alouettes of 2009-2010 or the Hamilton Tiger-Cats will win their first Grey Cup in the 21st century.

ESPN2

Sunday
Hamilton vs. Winnipeg @ Hamilton, 6:30p

TSN

Sunday
Hamilton vs. Winnipeg @ Hamilton, 6:30p

CFL attracting attention to the East final for very wrong reasons

Andrew Harris made an impact last Sunday in Winnipeg with 136 yards and a touchdown. Fresh legs might be an understatement, given how much time he lost this year due to injuries. With not so great weather in December, the running game should be crucial on Sunday.

Winnipeg had 6 turnovers against Saskatchewan and won the game 21-17. The Blue Bombers continued its defence dominance in the 4th quarter, holding the Roughiders to 0 points in the final quarter.

Dane Evans went 16-16 for 249 yards and a touchdown in the comeback win over Toronto. The Papi White 92-yard 3rd quarter punt return for a touchdown lifted the hopes and spirits of the visitors. The Argos got all of their points from kicker Boris Bede and wasn't enough in the 27-19 loss.

The TSN coverage of the game mentioned the rough week for McLeod Bethel-Thompson. We ran an extra story to go over what happened. TSN, during the game, didn't mention the other 4 players or their status. Your humble narrator had to look that up after the game. Dexter McCoil and Jeff Richards did pass the COVID-19 protocols. Charleston Hughes and Llevi Noel were on Toronto's injured list.

The Arkells will be the halftime entertainment for the 2021 Grey Cup in Hamilton. While every selection can upset some people, this is an obvious and well-chosen selection, especially with the Arkells love for the CFL and being from Hamilton.

The Lumineers and K.Flay (not Canadian) will be a part of the halftime show.

If your Relationship Goals are to avoid hearing, yet again, What You're Made Of, you might want to skip the CFL pregame concert with Steven Lee Olsen. Jessia is opening up for Olsen for that mini concert. If you love hearing that song over and over, then tune in the show.

Juno Award winner Savannah Ré will sing O Canada. TSN rarely airs the anthem on the CFL telecasts but this anthem will air.

2021 CFL division finals preview

The 2021 Grey Cup opponents only met once due to the shortened schedule. They met on Opening Night with a 19-6 Winnipeg win over Hamilton at IG Field. Rod Black and Glen Suitor called that game for TSN that was simulcast on ESPN2.

2021 CFL playoffs preview

"We're coming home." -- Hamilton coach Orlondo Steinauer

In the modern era (1958-present), 6 CFL teams have won the Grey Cup on the home turf and 6 more teams have come up short on home turf.

Teams that got to celebrate at home: 2013 Saskatchewan; 2012 Toronto; 2011 BC; 1994 BC; 1977 Montréal; 1972 Hamilton

Home teams that watched someone else celebrate: 2008 Montréal; 2002 Edmonton; 1983 BC; 1982 Toronto; 1979 Montréal; 1963 BC

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The 2021 Grey Cup has an attendance of 24,000, which is only because of COVID-19 and the decision not to have expanded seating. This will be the smallest Grey Cup crowd since 20,087 gathered at Varsity Stadium in Toronto for the 1949 Grey Cup.

The crowd in Hamilton won't be much larger than the 21,492 who came to see the East final in Toronto on Sunday. That mark is just under half of doubling the previous high attendance of 2021, 10,851 for the last Hamilton regular season game at BMO Field.

The mark is also higher than in 2014 where your humble narrator saw 2 Toronto Argos games in person in a week: 18,106 on Tuesday, August 12 against Winnipeg and 18,283 on Sunday, August 17 vs. the BC Lions. Both games were at Rogers Centre.

🏴 GREY CUP BLACKOUT DRESS CODE IN EFFECT 🏴

Hamilton, you know the drill. All black everything from head to toe again this Sunday.

Let’s black out the Donut Box and bring that infamous home-field advantage to the championship game!#Ticats | #GreyCup pic.twitter.com/IzUfYDsFLm

— Hamilton Tiger-Cats (@Ticats) December 8, 2021

Hamilton was a frequent host of the Grey Cup at the Hamilton Amateur Athletic Association Grounds or AAA Grounds. The stadium held the Grey Cup in 1910, 1912-1913, 1928-1929, 1932, and 1935. The stadium hosted the Hamilton Tigers.

The Hamilton appearances dropped off. Civic Stadium (later Ivor Wynne Stadium) hosted the 1944 Grey Cup. As Ivor Wynne Stadium, the Grey Cup was in Hamilton in 1972 and 1996.

The Grey Cup was not spread around in that time. From 1945-1966, Toronto hosted all but 5 games that were in Vancouver. Montréal had the game in 1931 and didn't get another Grey Cup until the Autostade in 1969.

Still, Hamilton (10) is third among Canadian cities to have hosted the Grey Cup behind Toronto (48) and Vancouver (16).

Alberta has had 10 Grey Cups: Edmonton [1984, 1997, 2002, 2010, 2018] has 5; Calgary [1975, 1993, 2000, 2009, 2019] has 5. Winnipeg has 4 Grey Cups: 1991, 1998, 2006, 2015 while Regina, home of the 2022 Grey Cup, has had 3 Grey Cups: 1995, 2003, 2013.

Kingston (1922) and Sarnia (1933), both in Ontario, were non-modern CFL cities that hosted the Grey Cup.

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats last hosted the 1996 Grey Cup at Ivor Wynne Stadium. Since then, the Grey Cup has been at a few stadiums.

CFL cities hosting the Grey Cup
Team	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4
Edmonton	1997	2002	2010	2018
Winnipeg	1998	2006	2015
Vancouver	1999	2005	2011	2014
Calgary	2000	2009	2019
Montréal	2001	2008
Regina	2003	2013
Ottawa	2004	2017
Toronto	2007	2012	2016

 

CFL stadiums hosting the Grey Cup
Stadium	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4
Commonwealth Stadium	1997	2002	2010	2018
Canad Inns Stadium	1998	2006
BC Place	1999	2005	2011	2014
McMahon Stadium	2000	2009	2019
Olympic Stadium	2001	2008
Taylor Field	2003	2013
Frank Clair Stadium	2004
Rogers Centre	2007	2012
IG Field	2015
BMO Field	2016
TD Place	2017

Goodbye, eh, to How I Met Your Mother

Fans of the U.S. TV show might remember that How I Met Your Mother referenced the 1996 Grey Cup in Hamilton, the last time the game was in the Steel City. Robin Sparkles and Robin Daggers will not be a part of the halftime show. Canadian celebrities might be at a Tim Hortons but they aren't required to be there.

We send our love to the folks behind the show for their love of Canada. If Cobie Smulders is at the game, we ask TSN to point her out in the crowd.

I called this Grey Cup for ESPN. Our producer decided we should go down to field level to record our opening. When I got back to our booth, it was covered in snow, the TV lights had been left on and my charts-written in Sharpie on file folders-had turned into unreadable soup. https://t.co/DZeIue5h7l

— Gord Miller (@GMillerTSN) November 24, 2021

Gord Miller did call a Grey Cup on TV, the last one in Hamilton in 1996. Miller called the game with Danny Kepley.

For the first time that we can remember, Miller didn't call a CFL game. Chris Cuthbert called 0 CFL games though his excuse is a bit better. Brian Williams is retiring from TSN. Williams has worked on numerous Grey Cups in his time at CBC and TSN.

That does it for my first FULL-TIME year in the booth. Great game to wrap up it up with the Ticats & Argos!

Huge thanks to everyone I worked with @CEdwardsTSN @rubedirector @jonperlberg Jon Hynes, Dave Moir @GlenSuitor & @DuaneFordeTSN!

Next up, radio call for Grey Cup! pic.twitter.com/Gfh1KAzXDn

— Dustin Nielson (@nielsonTSN1260) December 5, 2021

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

For the first time since 1995, someone other than Cuthbert and Mark Lee will call a Grey Cup on television. That honour will go to Rod Smith, who will work with Glen Suitor, who has called a lot of Grey Cup games.

Dustin Nielson will have the radio call. We are in a whole new era of the CFL on TSN.

Thank you to Chris Cuthbert for calling 21 of the last 24 Grey Cup games. An impressive feat not likely to be duplicated anytime soon.

photos credit: CFL
Twitter captures: @Ticats; @GMillerTSN; @nielsonTSN1260

CFL attracting attention to the East final for very wrong reasons

Is there anyone in charge at the CFL? Commissioner Randy Ambrosie has been rather invisible in 2021.

The CFL has a COVID-19 protocol policy where players are subject to missing 4 days for violating that policy. Toronto Argonauts players McLeod Bethel-Thompson along with Dexter McCoil, Charleston Hughes, Llevi Noel, and Jeff Richards violated that policy by attending the Toronto Raptors game Thursday night. They were reportedly there at the insistence of Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment (MLSE), owners of the Toronto Raptors and the Argos.

Then the CFL clarifies said policy into 2 days and 2 nights (not 48 hours) in a matter of hours with strict rules in place.

The players must quarantine for the 2 days and 2 nights, no practices or in-person meetings. They must undergo a PCR test on Friday, a PCR test on Saturday, and a Rapid Antigen Test on Sunday, the East final. Provided all the tests are negative, they can play on Sunday.

We are not disputing whether the players were there. TSN literally interviewed Bethel-Thompson at Thursday's Raptors home game against the Milwaukee Bucks. The photo (above) with Kayla Grey is definite proof.

2021 CFL division finals preview

2021 CFL playoffs preview

The impression is that the Argos are getting a huge break with the change. The question also rests with MLSE, which had to know the appearances would violate CFL protocol. The players didn't sneak off to a nightclub; the team knew where they were.

Antonio Pipkin would start at quarterback if Bethel-Thompson can't start. You might recall the Argos traded Nick Arbuckle to Edmonton.

There are fans who think the Argos already cheated this season when Chris Jones was brought in with as a defensive consultant who essentially has been a defensive coach. The CFL has cracked down in recent years over the costs of the coaching staff.

Hamilton wide receiver Brandon Banks pointed out on Twitter that he wanted to go to a Raptors game but the league said no. Ottawa wide receiver Kenny Stafford said he had to quarantine and miss a week of practice just for sitting in the stands to support his team.

Tiger-Cats defensive end Ja'Gared Davis missed a game against Montréal back in August for breaking COVID-19 protocols.

"The CFL playoff rosters could have a hiccup with the division finals and the Grey Cup. Players who are unvaccinated (even in an Aaron Rodgers kind of way) can't participate beyond the division semifinals. The restrictions are for air and rail travel but would also affect traveling by car or even GO train."

Arash Madani of Rogers Sportsnet is, well, reporting that a prominent Hamilton player is unvaccinated and is playing on Sunday. The paragraph above says any unvaccinated player can't play. We aren't mentioning the player's name because we don't have verification.

Maybe Madani's sources are correct. The motivation is questionable because playoff time has been open season for some in the Canadian sports media to tear down the CFL. Damien Cox of the Toronto Star leaps to mind. They did not need extra help from the Toronto Argonauts and the CFL.

Note that none of these people work for TSN.

Hearing @TorontoArgos QB MacLeod Bethel-Thompson has been sent home and is being held out of practice today because of attending the @Raptors game at his team’s request. It's a violation of CFL Covid protocol, which states he must now quarantine 4 days. Game day is Sunday.#CFL

— Dave Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) December 3, 2021

Dave Naylor of TSN reported this early on Friday because this was the rule on Friday morning but isn't the rule now.

The players were trying to promote the East final, something where the CFL struggles: self-promotion. In the COVID-19 era, this backfired significantly.

There was always going to be a question of how many fans would come out to Toronto for the East final. The empty seats in Regina were a bit of a shock last week. The Argos have drawn poorly even with a good team.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

A Hamilton win tomorrow will make most of this go away leading into the 2021 Grey Cup in Hamilton. A Toronto win, especially a close win, puts the integrity into question. That isn't fair but certainly where we are.

The CFL took a strong stance after Edmonton released offensive lineman Jacob Ruby reportedly had a fake vaccination card. The league told the other teams they could not sign him for 2021.

Right or wrong, the impression is that the CFL stepped into help because the Toronto Argonauts receive special treatment. As much as the CFL needs success in Toronto, this shouldn't affect the on-field performance of the team.

We are excited to find out which teams are going to the 2021 Grey Cup. We are not excited about this latest development.

photo credit: Toronto Raptors/TSN
Twitter capture: @TSNDaveNaylor

2021 CFL division finals preview

Editor's note: Toronto quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson status for Sunday is in doubt over COVID-19 protocols for attending last night's Toronto Raptors game. The path to playing is harsh but possible for Bethel-Thompson as well as fellow Argos Dexter McCoil, Charleston Hughes, Llevi Noel and Jeff Richards. 

2 of the top 3 Labour Day rivalries in the CFL will be featured in the 2021 CFL division finals in the playoffs. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats make the very short trip to BMO Field in Toronto in the opener. Saskatchewan Roughriders work their way east to Winnipeg to battle the Blue Bombers.

The 33-30 Saskatchewan win over Calgary was the 10th overtime game in CFL history. A touchdown return from a missed field goal that should have counted. A recovered onside kick to start the second half. Missed field goals from 2 very good kickers. Cody Fajardo, the winning quarterback, threw 4 interceptions.

This was the first home playoff win at Mosaic Stadium for the Roughriders. The Stampeders have not won a playoff game in Regina since 1971.

Montréal dominated the first quarter in Hamilton yet only had a 3-0 lead. Hamilton came back with 20 straight points to finish the half. The defence was in charge in the second half for both teams.

The Alouettes had the running game but William Stanback wasn't effective enough and the team didn't really utilize Cameron Artis-Payne in the backfield. The Tiger-Cats took good advantage of the turnovers.

The start times are 30 minutes earlier than traditional. Toronto at Winnipeg in hockey on December 5 got pushed back an hour to 7 pm Central. The games was moved to accommodate Winnipeg sports fans. The NHL team plays downtown while the CFL team plays 10 km (6 miles) south of the arena.

ESPNews

Sunday
Hamilton @ Toronto, 12:30p
Saskatchewan @ Winnipeg, 4p

TSN

Sunday
Hamilton @ Toronto, 12:30p
Saskatchewan @ Winnipeg, 4p

Toronto and Hamilton played 14 games, 4 of them against each other from Labour Day through mid-November.

• September 6 Hamilton 32-19 @ Hamilton
• September 10 Toronto 17-16 @ Toronto
• October 11 Toronto 24-23 @ Hamilton
• November 12 Toronto 31-12 @ Toronto

The teams last met in the 2015 East semifinal in Hamilton with a 25-22 Tiger-Cats win. This will be the first Hamilton-Toronto playoff game at BMO Field. Toronto last hosted the teams in 2013 in the CFL East final. Hamilton won that day 36-24 at Rogers Centre. You might recall, or prefer not to recall, that was days after Rob Ford told the world he had more than enough to eat at home. The Argonauts were ahead when Ford arrived and then the team collapsed on the field.

Winnipeg and Saskatchewan haven't played since the Banjo Bowl. The Roughriders started that series 3-0 and came out at 3-2.

• September 5 Winnipeg 23-8 @ Saskatchewan
• September 11 Winnipeg 33-9 @ Winnipeg

The teams met in the 2019 West final with the road team Blue Bombers pulling out the 20-13 upset over the Roughriders.

Your humble narrator has been to a game in every CFL city and Moncton. The 2 stadiums on display on Sunday — Mosaic Stadium in Regina and Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton — are the only current stadiums where I have not been. I came close a couple of times to get to Hamilton but circumstances did not go my way. I would love to see those stadiums in the near future.

Those stadiums will host the 2021 Grey Cup and 2023 Grey Cup (Hamilton) and the 2022 Grey Cup (Regina) in case someone wants to invite me to those Grey Cup games.

2021 CFL playoffs preview

The viewing audience had better drone coverage in Regina versus the coverage in Hamilton. The quality of the production out west suffered with discolorations at times. We realize colder temperatures could account for the trouble. The production issues will turn off casual fans, especially ones randomly searching for something to watch.

The CFL playoff rosters could have a hiccup with the division finals and the Grey Cup. Players who are unvaccinated (even in an Aaron Rodgers kind of way) can't participate beyond the division semifinals.

The restrictions are for air and rail travel but would also affect traveling by car or even GO train.

2021 CFL Week 16 preview

For many CFL fans, the festivities preceding the Grey Cup is the best part of the end of the CFL season. While the activities are a bit subdued thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still gatherings in the coming week.

There is a section about what to do in Hamilton. After all, the Grey Cup hasn't been to Hamilton in 25 years. The Canadian Football Hall of Fame is inside Tim Hortons Field.

Your humble narrator has been to Hamilton once and that was for a CFL game at the old Ivor Wynne Stadium. There are buses that run from the GO Train station in downtown Hamilton to the stadium. I recall taking the #2 bus to Ivor Wynne Stadium. The new stadium is on the site of the old stadium.  

The guide will also be helpful if you come to Hamilton for a regular season game, the 2022 NHL Heritage Classic in March, as well as the 2023 Grey Cup.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

We have seen a few CFL voices disappear lately. Bob Irving, the legendary radio voice of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, will call the West final as his final game for 680 CJOB. The team is dedicating the game to him and will recognize Irving in a pre-game ceremony.

Irving called the 1988 and 1990 Grey Cups for the Canadian Football Network (CFN), the official TV syndication service of the league from 1987-1990. He also called the first half of the 2011 Grey Cup for Bell Media Radio. Rick Ball called the second half.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

The TSN coverage is laid out for the division finals. The regular pattern gets mixed a bit with Dustin Nielson, Duane Forde, and Matthew Scianitti in Toronto and Rod Smith, Glen Suitor, and Sara Orlesky in Winnipeg. Expect Orlesky to pull double duty at Canada Life Centre for TSN3 for the Winnipeg Jets game that night.

James Duthie set up in Regina with Jim Barker with extra analysis.

Rod Black has done play by play for the Grey Cup since 2012. Black worked with his traditional partner Duane Forde in 2012 and 2013 and with Giulio Caravatta since 2014.

Dustin Nielson would be a good replacement for Black on the radio call, though there are regular CFL radio people who would be fine candidates.

photos and video credit: CFL

2021 CFL playoffs preview

The #RoadToTheGreyCup is paved.

Here.
We.
Go.
🏆

🗞 https://t.co/IS0oDqUJxO#GCPlayoffs | #CFL pic.twitter.com/FTD9X75dCT

— CFL (@CFL) November 20, 2021

We poked fun at the CFL schedule for scheduling all 3 of the Calgary-Saskatchewan games in a 4-week period. The Stampeders traveled to Vancouver in the middle while the Roughriders had a bye week.

Calgary won the first 2 games before Saskatchewan won the final game. The Stampeders had the tiebreaker but the Roughriders were undefeated against the league minus Winnipeg and Calgary.

Calgary is a surprising 5-2 on the road, including 1-0 in Regina. Saskatchewan is 5-2 at home. The winner travels to Winnipeg for the West final.

Hamilton and Montréal had to wait until the last week to know which team would host the East semifinal. Montréal's collapse at the end of the game Friday meant the Tiger-Cats got home field advantage.

The Tiger-Cats are 5-2 at home while the Alouettes are 4-3 on the road. The winner travels to Toronto for the East final.

This may be a confusing phenomenon for our U.S. readers but the CFL playoff games are on cable television, not your computer. ESPN2 will have the East semifinal while ESPNews had the West semifinal with the TSN feed.

ESPN2

Sunday
Montréal @ Hamilton, 1p

ESPNews

Sunday
Calgary @ Saskatchewan, 4:30p

TSN

Sunday
Montréal @ Hamilton, 1p
Calgary @ Saskatchewan, 4:30p

The Tiger-Cats and Alouettes split the season series. Hamilton earned its first win of the season in Montréal with a 27-10 win. The Alouettes needed overtime to edge out the Tiger-Cats in a rare home loss in Hamilton 23-20 on October 2.

Hamilton would have had the tiebreaker over Montréal on point differential in the games against each other.

Calgary won the first 2 of 3 games in 4 weeks over Saskatchewan. The Stampeders won 23-17 in Calgary on October 2. The same result came with a closer score October 9 in Regina.

The Roughriders finally got some respect with a 20-17 win in Calgary on October 23.

Year	Team	Result
2019	Edmonton (8-10)	beat Montréal (10-8), lost to Hamilton (15-3)
2018	BC (9-9)	lost to Hamilton (8-10)
2017	Saskatchewan (10-8)	beat Ottawa (8-9-1), lost to Toronto (9-9)
2016	Edmonton (10-8)	beat Hamilton (7-11), lost to Ottawa (8-9-1)
2014	BC (9-9)	lost to Montréal (9-9)
2012	Edmonton (7-11)	lost to Toronto (9-9)
2009	BC (8-10)	beat Hamilton (9-9), lost to Montréal (15-3)
2008	Edmonton (10-8)	beat Winnipeg (8-10), lost to Montréal (11-7)
2005	Saskatchewan (9-9)	lost to Montréal (10-8)
2003	BC (11-7)	lost to Toronto (9-9)
2002	Saskatchewan (8-10)	lost to Toronto (8-10)
1997	BC (8-10)	lost to Montréal (13-5)

We feel vulnerable in not listing the CFL crossover history even if this is the first season since 2015 with (gasp) 3 East teams in the playoffs. 2015 and 2021 are the only seasons since Ottawa returned to the CFL where there has not been a crossover.

The East Division has been an embarrassment in recent seasons.

Hamilton has made the playoffs 5 of these 6 seasons but twice at below .500 and once at .500. Ottawa has made the playoffs 4 of these 6 seasons but twice at below .500.

Toronto and Montréal made the playoffs 2 of these 6 seasons: once at .500.

2019 Hamilton Montréal 
2018 Ottawa Hamilton (8-10)
2017 Toronto (9-9) Ottawa (8-9-1)
2016 Ottawa (8-9-1) Hamilton (7-11)
2015 Ottawa Hamilton Toronto
2014 Hamilton (9-9) Montréal (9-9)

We noted earlier that Calgary has now made the playoffs 16 seasons in a row, the Winnipeg streak is at 6, and the Saskatchewan streak is at 5. Hamilton has a 3-season playoffs streak and Montréal has a 2-season playoffs streak.

Team	Total	Home	Road
Winnipeg	5	2	3
Saskatchewan	4	3	1
BC	3	3	0
Edmonton	3	1	2
Hamilton	3	0	3
Calgary	2	1	1
Toronto	2	1	1
Montréal	1	1	0
Ottawa	1	0	1

There were 12 ESPN telecasts in a shortened season, compared to 17 telecasts each in 2018 and 2019. There were 3 post Labour Day telecasts and none past October 1.

Winnipeg led the way with 5 games followed by Saskatchewan with 4 games. The 2019 Roughriders didn't make U.S. TV until the playoffs. The West dominated the TV time with 17 of the 24 appearances.

Tim Hortons Field, home of the 2021 Grey Cup, and TD Place were the only stadiums not on TV. BC and Montréal were not shown on the road.

August 5 Hamilton @ Winnipeg, 8:30p ESPN2
August 7 Ottawa @ Edmonton, 10p ESPN2
August 14 Hamilton @ Saskatchewan, 10p ESPNews
August 19 Edmonton @ BC, 10p ESPN2
August 21 Winnipeg @ Toronto, 4p ESPN2
August 27 Hamilton @ Montréal, 7:30p ESPNews
August 29 Calgary @ Winnipeg, 7p ESPN2
September 5 Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 6p ESPNews
September 6 Edmonton @ Calgary, 4:30p ESPNews
September 17 Toronto @ Saskatchewan, 9:45p ESPNews
September 24 Saskatchewan @ BC, 10:30p ESPN2
October 1 Winnipeg @ BC, 10p ESPNews

2021 CFL Week 16 preview

The 3 teams missing the playoffs had steep second-half collapses but found an upturn at the end. Edmonton won the middle game of the 3-game road trip in 7 calendar days and lost to the BC Lions on Friday.

These teams went winless in October. As a contrast, Montréal won all but 1 game in October.

Team	Previous win	Loss streak	Last win
Edmonton	September 6	8	November 16
BC	September 18	7	November 19
Ottawa	September 28	6	November 19

The CFL is a league where the teams are relatively close together in quality but these teams had injuries and not so great luck along the way.

Winnipeg finished 11-3 on the other end of the scale with a 2-game losing streak. The Blue Bombers won the 2019 Grey Cup as the 3rd place team in the West. This year, Winnipeg finished 7-0 at home and hosting the West final.

With @elks cleaning house, former @calstampeders and @BCLions head coach/GM Wally Buono will serve in a transitional role until new GM is in place by start of new year. #CFL #Elks

— Dave Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) November 22, 2021

The Edmonton Elks sent a not-so-subtle message, firing president and CEO Chris Presson, general manager Brock Sunderland, and head coach Jaime Elizondo on Monday.

Cries of "Chris Jones" will have to wait until Toronto is done with the CFL playoffs.

The decision to acquire Nick Arbuckle and not have him play spoke to problems in leadership on several levels. Arbuckle signed an extension through 2022 and will be playing for all new people.

The team had recent success in the playoffs, making the East final in 2019 and the West final in 2017. The 2018 squad finished at 9-9, losing a tiebreaker with BC to crossover.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

All-time passing yards quarterback Anthony Calvillo visited the TSN booth in Montréal. Calvillo, originally from the Los Angeles area, is now a Canadian citizen.

Calvillo spent 2015-2017 in various roles with the Alouettes coaching staff. He spent a hectic 2015 as receivers coach, then quarterbacks coach, and finally the co-offensive coordinator. Calvillo was the offensive coordinator with help in 2016 and the quarterbacks coach in 2017.

Calvillo spent 2018 as the quarterback coach for the Toronto Argonauts, working with his former bosses Jim Popp and Marc Trestman. Since 2019, he has been working with the Montréal Carabins football team in U Sports.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Rod Smith and Duane Forde stayed out east with stops in Montréal on Friday and Hamilton on Saturday. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor were in Vancouver on Friday and Calgary on Saturday.

We expect those same crews for the division semifinals and finals with Matthew Scianitti/John Lu in the East with Sara Orlesky/Farhan Lalji in the West.

Twitter captures: @CFL; @TSNDaveNaylor
photo credit: CFL

2021 CFL Week 16 preview

The CFL teams finish this shortened 14-game season with mostly divisional matchups and one intriguing exception.

Ottawa goes east in a very short trip to Montréal to finish the season to start out Friday night.

Edmonton goes west to BC Place to visit the Lions in Vancouver. The Elks have the busiest road trip in CFL history with a stop in Regina, Toronto, and Vancouver in 7 days. The CFL and the Canadian Football League Players Association agreed that both teams on Friday can have an additional 5 players to their active rosters.

The lone inter-divisional matchup as the Saskatchewan Roughriders go to the site of the 2021 Grey Cup in Hamilton late Saturday afternoon. The Tiger-Cats will know whether they need to win before the kickoff on Saturday.

Winnipeg doesn't have to go too far to finish the year in Calgary in the evening in southern Alberta.

Toronto has finished all its games and gets to have cookies and milk with extra time off, not playing until December 5.

TSN

Friday
Ottawa @ Montréal, 7:30p
Edmonton @ BC, 10:30p
Saturday
Saskatchewan @ Hamilton, 4p
Winnipeg @ Calgary, 7p

Bye week: Toronto

The 2021 Grey Cup will go through Winnipeg and Toronto. The Argonauts went 3-1 against Hamilton in 2021 and 7-0 overall at home. Both teams will host the division final on December 5 and ironically their hockey counterparts play that night in Winnipeg.

Hamilton didn't reach the end zone until the final 2 minutes at BMO Field. The Tiger-Cats will host the East semifinal with a win or tie or an Alouettes tie or loss. Montréal kept its home playoff hopes alive giving Winnipeg its second loss of the season. The Blue Bombers rested a lot of regulars in the game. The Winnipeg winning streak is snapped at 9.

Trevor Harris had 3 touchdown passes while Sean McGuire had 4 interceptions.

Saskatchewan clinches a home playoff game, so the West semifinal will be in Regina. Calgary has a 2-1 edge in the regular season. 

Calgary reaches the playoffs for the 16th straight season. Winnipeg will now have 6 as of 2021 and Saskatchewan will have 5.

The Stampeders mark is more impressive when you consider Calgary has made the playoffs every year since 1989, except for 2002-2004. The NHL teams in Canada wish for that level of success.

The BC Lions have had a lousy playoff stretch lately, missing the playoffs in 2017, 2019, and 2021. The Lions have had only 1 playoff win (2016) since the 2011 Grey Cup win. 2016 was also the last time in the West playoffs for BC, doing the crossover twice in the East in that time (2014, 2018).

From 1991-2011, BC only missed the playoffs in 1992 and 1996. The BC Lions are trying to rebuild their base to come to games under new owner Amar Doman. The league is rooting for Doman to succeed. I have sat in the upper bowl at BC Place, an area that is currently closed. Winning will help.

You might argue that with 6 of 9 teams making the playoffs, making the playoffs is not a big deal. While every team but Hamilton won a Grey Cup in the 2010s, the teams on the early part of the decade (Montréal, BC) have itchy fanbases.

2021 CFL Week 15 preview

2021 CFL Week 14 preview

.@CFL didn't have a preseason in 2021. Tonight's game felt like a preseason game. The @elks did win and @TorontoArgos suffered first home loss.

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) November 17, 2021

There are 4 CFL teams with a negative point differential, surrendering more points than those scored. They are the 3 teams not going to the playoffs and the Toronto Argonauts.

The Argos had a -9 point differential: 309 points scored vs. 318 points given up. We noted earlier all of the close wins Toronto had this season. This is a surprise for a team that finished 9-5.

Edmonton snapped its 8-game losing streak on Tuesday; the last win was Labour Day. This was the Elks only win against an East team in 2021. The last win against the East for Edmonton was the 2019 East semifinal with a 37-29 win over Montréal.

.@CFL made great choice for #GreyCup halftime band. Though we were hoping for #RobinDaggers to make an appearance. #cdnmusichttps://t.co/BGUSA1D9tD

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) November 13, 2021

The Arkells got the Toronto Argonauts in June 2019 to move the CFL game to start earlier on a Saturday since the band was playing "300 feet" away at the Budweiser stage that night. The band playfully suggested the move. The teams and CFL were positive about the change and the announcement of that change came very quickly. 

Hamilton was the opponent that day and the hometown of the band. With the first Grey Cup in Hamilton since 1996, the Arkells were the consensus choice to be the halftime band.

Arkells lead singer Max Kerman talked with Kate Beirness at halftime and was in the booth with Rod Smith and Duane Forde Friday night in Toronto.

Robin Daggers was the alter ego of Robin Sparkles. How I Met Your Mother imagined Daggers played at the 1996 Grey Cup with her song P.S. I Love You. Someone please invite Cobie Smulders and Paul Shaffer to the Grey Cup December 12 in Hamilton.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The NFL will never surpass the CFL in one area: on-air swearing picked up by microphones. The words said on the field match words said in living rooms while watching the game. Canada is more comfortable with swearing than in the United States.

The f-word was a bit more obvious in the Saskatchewan-Edmonton game. The league and the official both apologized; that might have been more about the context than the actual word.

Getting to BMO Field in Toronto should be a good experience

Construction can impede a route to get to BMO Field in Toronto, especially when that construction involves the GO train on a night where Hamilton fans were going to the CFL game in Toronto.

Seemed like GO train folks anticipated an influx of Tiger-Cats fans at the home of the Argonauts.

There was a robust 10,851 (season high) crowd in Toronto, quite a few fans from down the Queen Elizabeth Way made the trip.

The cameras show the north stands. We have heard whispers that the crowd sits on that side to look better on TV. I sat in the south stands in my lone visit to BMO Field.

The weather could turn by December 5 when Toronto hosts the East final. If Hamilton is the opponent, would be nice to see 15,000 people come out to BMO Field.

.@CFLonTSN you should fine @GlenSuitor every time he says @elks old nickname. Repeat offender is an understatement. Give $ to #Indigenous groups. And get him to just stop.

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) November 13, 2021

The Edmonton CFL team nickname change has had some backlash among some fans. Going 0-7 at home does not help. The whining is mostly about change and not understanding the significance of the need for that change.

Glen Suitor's slips in mentioning the old nickname have been numerous and aren't really slips. Suitor mentioned the old nickname about the current team Friday night in Vancouver. He might even think of his actions as a deliberate homage to the old nickname.

Duane Forde accidentally mentioned the old nickname Tuesday night before quickly saying the new nickname. Sounded by an accident though pretty late in the season.

Having people complain in online forums and in social media is understandable. Glen Suitor is a major face of the CFL on TSN coverage; Suitor using a slur against the Inuit people when he doesn't have to is an insult.

Suitor should pay out of his pocket for TSN researchers to count up how many times he used the word on the air in 2021. Then he should write a check for $1,000 x each mention and give that money to Indigenous groups. A heartfelt apology, if Suitor believes the apology, would also be nice.

As much fun as Glen Suitor writing a very expensive check would be, the whole point is not to mention the word again. Using the slur in the context of sports was "justified" because that was the team nickname. Changing the nickname is set up to not sports people repeat the slur.

TSN personalities have been good or perfect in not repeating the old nickname, except for Suitor. Just make him stop.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

As we noted, Rod Smith and Duane Forde were in Toronto Friday night. Smith and Duane Forde were also in Toronto on Tuesday for the makeup game. Farhan Lalji and Glen Suitor called the game in Vancouver with Calgary in town.

Smith and Matt Dunigan called the game in the rain in Montréal. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor were there for the start of the Edmonton road trip in Regina.

logo credit: CFL
photo credit: TSN
Twitter captures: @canadian_xing (x3)

2021 CFL Week 15 preview

Hamilton has its shortest road trip with a visit up the Queen Elizabeth Way to Toronto to start things on Friday night. This game was originally scheduled to be on ESPNews but the network picked up a game in mid-September.

The Argos get a few days to rest up for another game on Tuesday.

Calgary works its way west for a very late start in Vancouver in the nightcap on Friday.

Winnipeg returns the favour to play the Alouettes in Montréal. The game was rescheduled to a more sensible early afternoon start on Saturday due to the Elks COVID-19 scenario earlier this season.

Saskatchewan and Edmonton switch places and visit the Saskatchewan capital in an afternoon start. That is a change from the original schedule.

Toronto returns with a home game on Tuesday to host Edmonton in the makeup date for the previously postponed game due to COVID-19 issues with the Elks. The CFL and the Canadian Football League Players Association agreed that both teams on Tuesday can have an additional 5 players to their active rosters.

Ottawa rests its collective feet watching other teams play football.

TSN

Friday
Hamilton @ Toronto, 7:30p
Calgary @ BC, 10:30p
Saturday
Winnipeg @ Montréal, 1p
Edmonton @ Saskatchewan, 4p
Tuesday
Edmonton @ Toronto, 7:30p

Bye week: Ottawa

For the first time since 2015, @CFL will not have a crossover in the playoffs. 3 East teams, 3 West teams. Balanced.

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) November 6, 2021

Hamilton's win over the BC Lions brought the Tiger-Cats and the Montréal Alouettes into the CFL playoffs. The BC Lions lost a tunnel to the east to attempt to make the playoffs.

The Lions have lost 6 games in a row and yet still have a path to the postseason. If BC beats Calgary this week, the Lions will have the tiebreaker. A BC win over Edmonton and a Calgary loss at home to Winnipeg next week, and BC is in the West playoffs at 6-8.

Speaking of tiebreakers, Hamilton needs a win to tie up the season series with Toronto. The Tiger-Cats have the point differential in the first 3 games so even a 1-point win will give Hamilton the tiebreaker between the teams. A Toronto win or a tie and the Argos get the tiebreaker and the division title.

Hamilton controls its own fate. Win out and the Tiger-Cats will be the East champion. Montréal can't win the division. If the Alouettes lose to Winnipeg or Hamilton beats Toronto, the Als clinch 3rd place.

If Toronto loses against Hamilton, the Argos have to beat or tie Edmonton while the Ticats tie or lose to Saskatchewan to claim the East title.

Hamilton has the tiebreaker over Montréal and the Alouettes have the tiebreaker over the Argonauts.

Saskatchewan clinched a playoff spot. The Roughriders won their 3rd straight road game in a schedule dominant with road games in the second half. Saskatchewan is 2 games ahead of Calgary but the Stampeders have the tiebreaker. Calgary is 2 games ahead of the BC Lions with the tiebreaker to be determined tonight. A Saskatchewan win means hosting the West semifinal and a Calgary win puts the Stampeders in the playoffs with the BC Lions joining Edmonton and Ottawa in the home for the holidays group.

2021 CFL Week 14 preview

We noted last week that the Argos have excelled at winning close games. Toronto defeated Ottawa by 3 points in the RedBlacks final home game. Ottawa won a single home game against Edmonton, the only team the RedBlacks have beat this season.

Best stat of the week: Winnipeg has outscored the opposition 116-6 in the 4th quarter this season. The Alouettes and Blue Bombers were tied through 3 quarters. Montréal didn't score in the 4th quarter.

2021 CFL Week 13 preview

Since BC last played a home game on October 16, the British Columbia government expanded to 100% capacity for indoor spaces. The Lions finish the last 2 weeks with home games.

The upper bowl will still be closed. BC is 1-4 at home in 2021.

Saskatchewan and Edmonton normally travel well to Vancouver.

2021 CFL Week 12 preview

The CFL missed out on not offering a travel package for the Edmonton tour of Canada. The tour starts in Regina on Saturday, Toronto on Tuesday, and Vancouver on Friday.

The football will be ridiculous, even with the extra players the teams will get for the last 2 games. Edmonton already knows going into the trip that the playoffs aren't an option and will have several months to rest up.

You could fly into Regina today, fly to Toronto on Sunday morning, struggle to find restaurants in Toronto open on Sunday and Monday, fly out Wednesday morning to Vancouver, and stay an extra day in Vancouver before flying home on Sunday.

Games were adjusted due to the Elks COVID-19 outbreak earlier this season. The Saskatchewan-Edmonton locations were flipped so the Elks would be on the road to finish the season.

Nick Arbuckle will get a chance to show what he can do with the northern Alberta team, though away from home.

The Elks finished the first season in franchise history without a home win. The last Edmonton home win came on October 12, 2019 with a 19-6 win over the BC Lions. The current home losing streak stands at 8 until 2022.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Toronto has to play 2 games in 5 days with playoff implications. The Argos played 2 games in 6 days last month leading up to Thanksgiving, so the team has done this. The team had a home game before going all the way to Hamilton. The Argos stay at home for these games. They do get 5 extra players for the second game and then they get to rest for the final week. If they clinch home field, the Argos will get an extra week of rest.

Thanks and goodbye, Angie.#RememberingMosca pic.twitter.com/k2cOKaXlrq

— x - Hamilton Tiger-Cats (@Ticats) November 6, 2021

Angelo Mosca was a CFL legend, especially for his time with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. In a year where Hamilton will finally host the Grey Cup perhaps with the Tiger-Cats on the field, having Mosca be a part of all of that would have been electric. Unfortunately, Mosca passed away on Saturday at the age of 84 after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer's.

If you recall a fight among old CFL players in 2011, Mosca was swinging the cane at Joe Kapp. RIP to a legend.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

That’s it for my 2021 @CFLonTSN season.

Heartfelt thanks to all the behind-the-scenes crew who make our broadcasts possible, Producers Chris Edwards, Jon Hynes & Mike Marshall for guiding a TV rookie and @TSNScianitti, @DuaneFordeTSN, @MattDuniganTSN for embracing a new voice 🙏 pic.twitter.com/gJ9ezCWuy8

— 🇨🇦 Marshall Ferguson 🏈 (@TSN_Marsh) November 6, 2021

Marshall Ferguson and Duane Forde covered the biggest game of the week with the Lions in Hamilton. Good to see Ferguson getting some reps. Either Ferguson or Dustin Nielson would call the Grey Cup on radio, something Rod Black used to do with Forde.

Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor stayed out west in Edmonton on Friday night and an early evening in Winnipeg on Saturday.

Rod Smith and Matt Dunigan hung out in Ottawa on Saturday afternoon.

Ferguson showed a lot of promise in his brief introduction. Nielson went from a couple of handfuls of games in 2019 to a division semifinal in 2021.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter captures: @canadian_xing; @Ticats; @TSN_Marsh

2021 CFL Week 14 preview

BC stays in southern Ontario, starting out in Hamilton on Friday Night Football.

The green of Saskatchewan travels to the green of Edmonton in the Friday nightcap with an awkward start time.

You might recall that this game originally was in Regina but was moved due to rescheduling to accommodate the Elks rescheduling due to COVID-19 issues.

This is the first time these teams have played each other since 2019.

Toronto plays its eastern Ontario rival with a trip to visit the RedBlacks in a Saturday late afternoon start.

Montréal visits its old eastern rival in Winnipeg to take on the Blue Bombers.

Calgary has the week off to finish its Halloween candy.

TSN

Friday
BC @ Hamilton, 7p
Saskatchewan @ Edmonton, 9:45p
Saturday
Toronto @ Ottawa, 4p
Montréal @ Winnipeg, 7p

Bye week: Calgary

.@MTLAlouettes go from 1st to 3rd in @CFL East Division (@Ticats have tiebreaker). @sskroughriders along with @TorontoArgos clinch playoff spot.

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) October 31, 2021

Saskatchewan and Calgary kept pace in the West playoff chase. Toronto and Hamilton wins helped take Montréal from 1st (with the tiebreaker) to 3rd (a different tiebreaker).

We are getting close to not having a crossover. A Hamilton win this week over the BC Lions and 3 teams from the East will go to the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

The Calgary hot streak continues as the Stampeders have won 4 of the last 5 games to get to .500 at 6-6. Ka’Deem Carey in now at 784 yards for the season with 103 yards in Ottawa. Bo Levi Mitchell is now the 18th player in CFL history to eclipse 30,000 passing yards.

The Ottawa RedBlacks actually had a 10-3 first quarter lead but could only score a field goal in the rest of the game.

Don Jackson delivered 120 rushing yards, more than any other Hamilton Tiger-Cats running back this season, on a team with good running backs. The Edmonton Elks had little response to Jackson on the ground or Jeremiah Masoli through the air.

Calgary and Hamilton had inferior opponents on the road, didn't overlook them and churned out needed wins to keep up in the playoff chase.

The rope that Calgary has climbed is parallel to the rope where the BC Lions have fallen. The Lions were 4-2 before the current 5-game losing streak. BC hasn't won since September 18. Before this past week's 2-point loss, the Lions were outscored 84-10 in the 2 previous games.

Montréal was undefeated in October before the loss to the Roughriders last week.

2021 CFL Week 13 preview

The Toronto Argonauts are 7-4 despite a -25 point differential (248-273). How does that work? Win the close games.

5 of the 7 Argos wins have been by 3 or fewer points:

• Week 1 23-20 @ Calgary
• Week 6 17-16 Hamilton
• Week 8 30-27 Montréal
• Week 10 24-23 @ Hamilton
• Week 13 31-29 (OT) BC

Toronto is also 1 of 2 teams still undefeated at home (5-0). Winnipeg, whose only road loss was in Toronto, has a 6-0 home record.

2021 CFL Week 12 preview

Saskatchewan and Montréal was a defence battle with the Roughriders looking that much better. We saw Trevor Harris at the end of the game for the Alouettes, his 3rd East team. Hamilton is the only East team that has not employed Harris.

Harris will start this week in place of Matthew Shiltz, who is nursing injuries.

BC traded a kicker to Winnipeg and kept Jimmy Camacho. Camacho was 0-3 in field goal attempts in the rain in Toronto. Boris Bede hit 5 field goals for the Argos in that same rain.

Camacho did get rouges for 2 of the kicks that sent the game into overtime. BC had to go for 2 after the TD in overtime but couldn't convert.

Camacho replaced Takeru Yamasaki as the BC Lions kicker earlier this season.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

A contingency in the recent Nick Arbuckle trade: the Edmonton Elks pick going to Toronto would jump from a 3rd round pick to a 2nd round pick if the quarterback's time in Edmonton was extended beyond the end of the season.

Even before Arbuckle took a snap, the Edmonton Elks signed him to a 2022 contract.

Arbuckle could do some damage to Saskatchewan's playoff seeding. There is the trip back to Toronto in the middle of the worst road trip in CFL history.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Rod Smith and Duane Forde spent some time on Highway 417 with stops in Ottawa on Friday and Montréal on Saturday.

Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor hung out in Edmonton on Friday. Marshall Ferguson and Matt Dunigan teamed up again to call the game in Toronto on Saturday.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing

2021 CFL Week 13 preview

The divisions intermingle this week so no progress on tiebreakers. The axis tilts east with 3 of the 4 games east of Hamilton.

Calgary travels to Ottawa to start off a Friday Night Football doubleheader.

The Tiger-Cats are in Edmonton to take on the Elks in the nightcap. This is the singular long post Labour Day trip for Hamilton. The awkward starting time could be a minor headache.

The Saturday doubleheader has healthy start times. BC gathers near Lake Ontario as the Argos welcome the Lions in a late afternoon start.

Saskatchewan travels its longest road trip with a stop in Montréal opposite Hockey Night in Canada. The Roughriders finally play a team other than Calgary for the first time in a month.

Winnipeg gets ready for a Halloween without football.

TSN

Friday
Calgary @ Ottawa, 7p
Hamilton @ Edmonton, 9:45p
Saturday
BC @ Toronto, 4p
Saskatchewan @ Montréal, 7p

Bye week: Winnipeg

#DefendTheCup | 12.05.21

>> https://t.co/yk8KW6J5dF#ForTheW pic.twitter.com/VQKBOpxsqc

— y - Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) October 24, 2021

There are the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and then there is the rest of the CFL. The West Division has a new champion in Winnipeg.

A 10-1 mark with only a road blemish in Toronto, the Blue Bombers have dominated the league in 2021. Winnipeg posted a rare CFL shutout last week 45-0 over BC. Edmonton had the last CFL shutout 26–0 on July 25, 2019 at home against Toronto.

Zach Collaros has had plenty of time and targets for passing. Andrew Harris, out with a leg injury, will have time to recover. Brady Oliveira is a very capable replacement.

While the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have won 7 East Division titles (1987, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2001, 2011), this is the team's first West Division title since 1972. The 2019 team finished in 3rd place and won the Grey Cup, the team's first since 1990.

The team can't do much to help or hurt its fellow division teams in their scramble for a playoff spot. After this week's bye, Winnipeg has a home-and-home with the Montréal Alouettes before going to Calgary in the final week. Backup quarterback Sean McGuire might get more work in the next few weeks.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers will host the West Final on December 5 at 4 pm Eastern. The time of the game has been moved earlier by 30 minutes, as has the East Final. The time shift is due to the Winnipeg Jets hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs, a game that has been moved back from 7 pm Eastern to 8 pm Eastern.

The CFL East Division has a new leader in the Montréal Alouettes. The Als 21-point second quarter helped the team dominate 37-16. Those points were important because Montréal has the tiebreaker thanks to the point differential in the season series against Toronto.

Each team came into last week's game with 3-game winning streaks. William Stanback, back from an injury followed by food poisoning, ran for 203 rushing yards; Matthew Shiltz had 212 passing yards. Stanback had major runs of 65 and 41 yards.

The Als defence made trouble for McLeod Bethel-Thompson, forcing 4 interceptions (which tripled his interception output for the season). Toronto hasn't won in La Belle Province since 2015.

The teams are tied at 6-4. The Alouettes has the tougher schedule with Saskatchewan followed by back-to-back games with Winnipeg. Hamilton is a game behind at 5-5.

The last time the Roughriders traveled to Montréal, the weather was so rough on August 10, 2019 that Saskatchewan won a rain-shortened game. Here's hoping for better weather.

The CFL still has this rule. The summer weather in the Prairies wasn't a factor this season. Ottawa has had a lot of rain but no thunder or weather delays.

The extended November play might produce weather issues out west, except for Vancouver.

2021 CFL Week 12 preview

Hamilton didn't lose a late lead at home against a division foe last week. Then again, Ottawa was the opponent, a team now at 2-9 that is winless in the CFL East Division.

The Duck made his CFL debut in Ottawa. Quarterback Devlin "Duck" Hodges relieved Caleb Evans, going 8 for 16 or 49 yards in his CFL debut with 13 rushing yards.

Hamilton's Jeremiah Masoli went 25 for 28 with 320 passing yards.

The Ottawa RedBlacks are eliminated from playoff contention. The team then on Monday relieved Marcel Desjardins of his general manager duties. Desjardins was the team's original general manager from the start of the franchise.

Desjardins had spent 10 seasons with Montréal as assistant GM under Jim Popp with 3 Grey Cups (2002, 2009, 2010) and as GM for Hamilton (2006-2007). If you go by the buzz in Edmonton, the Elks may have a general manager search as well.

2021 CFL Week 11 preview

The CFL has 9 teams: 2 of them coached by the Dickenson brothers, Craig (Saskatchewan) and Dave (Calgary).

Dave had always defeated Craig on this level. Calgary took 2 straight over Saskatchewan and added a 3rd game against BC for a 3-game winning streak.

Now Craig can claim a win in the Saskatchewan Roughriders comeback 20-17 win. Saskatchewan outscored Calgary 14-7 in the second half. Cody Fajardo threw for 222 yards, including a pair of second half touchdowns. Duke Williams had 48 of those yards in his return to the CFL.

Despite the tumble, Saskatchewan is in second place all alone in the West Division.

Getting to BMO Field in Toronto should be a good experience

The CFL 2021 trade deadline came this week. Toronto QB Nick Arbuckle had been rumoured to go somewhere. Going from the backup on a team heading to the playoffs to a starter on a team that won't make the playoffs is not a fun ride.

Arbuckle goes to the Edmonton Elks for a 3rd round pick and rights to a player (QB Chad Kelly) on the Elks negotiation list. The pick gets upgraded to a 2nd rounder if Arbuckle extends with Edmonton.

Arbuckle is still the only Canadian QB to lead a team to a win over Winnipeg in 2021.

Antonio Pipkin is now the Argonauts backup QB.

2021 CFL Week 10 preview

If you have followed the CFL in recent seasons, you might assume the crossover is a requirement in the CFL where the 4th place West team makes the playoffs with a better record than the 3rd place East team. Since Ottawa returned to the CFL in 2014, the 2015 season where the 3rd place East team has made the CFL playoffs. In 2015, 3 of the 4 East teams had double digit wins while the BC Lions made the playoffs in 3rd place with a 7-11 record.

As of now, Hamilton would make the playoffs at 5-5, beating out the 4-6 BC Lions (4th place). The crossover team needs a better record to qualify in the playoffs.

Tiebreakers may be crucial in 2021. Saskatchewan has a tiebreaker with BC but not with Calgary. Hamilton-Toronto and BC-Calgary tiebreakers will be known at the end of November 12.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

CFL Commissioner Randy Ambroisie downplayed the new rule on how many quarterbacks can be on the game day roster. "Nobody is prevented from having a third quarterback on their roster. It just eliminated that third quarterback rule. So nobody should be concerned that we won’t see teams carrying three quarterbacks — that's a decision the teams will make."

Funny thing: CFL teams are only dressing 2 quarterbacks. Only Winnipeg and Saskatchewan have not had a serious injury to their starting quarterbacks. Ottawa played a wide receiver in a game because both quarterbacks were injured.

Ambroisie is technically correct. Teams can have a third quarterback but have to take someone else off the roster. Teams aren't making those moves.

We saw Trevor Harris not in uniform because the Elks only dressed 2 quarterbacks.

The CFL should seriously consider a system where teams are encouraged to have 3 quarterbacks in uniform, especially with all the quarterback injuries of 2019 and 2021.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Rod Smith and Duane Forde teamed up in Montréal on Friday. Smith and Forde got on different airplanes to go west for the Saturday tripleheader. Forde landed in Winnipeg for the middle game with Dustin Nielson. Smith went all the way to Calgary to hang out with Glen Suitor in the nightcap.

Marshall Ferguson did his 3rd game for TSN with Matt Dunigan in Hamilton to start the tripleheader.

The logic is to have at least one of the broadcast team members on site the day before the game. Nielson and Suitor laid the groundwork for Forde and Smith, respectively.

Jim Barker sat in for Dunigan at the main desk.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @Wpg_BlueBombers
photo credit: TSN/CFL

2021 CFL Week 12 preview

Toronto travels to Montréal to start out on Friday Night Football.

The Saturday tripleheader starts out in the east in the late afternoon as the RedBlacks are in Hamilton. The Tiger-Cats don't want to blow another lead at home.

The BC Lions travel to Winnipeg in the middle game, a Hockey Night in Canada starting time. The Jets are also at home playing at the same time.

The Saskatchewan-Calgary saga finally ends as the teams finish the nightcap in Calgary. Then the teams won't meet again in the regular season.

The early starting time means an overlap between game 2 and game 3 of the tripleheader.

This is the second and final tripleheader of the 2021 season.

Edmonton gets to enjoy some autumn activities, minus its original starting quarterback who has moved on to Montréal.

TSN

Friday
Toronto @ Montréal, 7:30p
Saturday
Ottawa @ Hamilton, 4p
BC @ Winnipeg, 7p
Saskatchewan @ Calgary, 9:45p

Bye week: Edmonton

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers clinched the first playoff spot with a win over the Edmonton Elks. 3 of the 9 Winnipeg wins have come against Edmonton.

The teams were actually tied after 3 quarters at 16-16. The Blue Bombers had just enough going to finish out the win with 10 points in the final quarter. Winnipeg still hasn't surrendered a 4th quarter touchdown in 2021.

Brady Oliveira took over for Andrew Harris after a leg injury.

Winnipeg hopes to solves its kicking woes with the acquisition of Sergio Castillo. The BC Lions, which controlled his rights, got a conditional 4th round pick in 2022.

Taylor Cornelius kept things going enough to keep Trevor Harris out of the Elks quarterback equation.

The Edmonton announced attendance was 24,276: the wide shots of Commonwealth Stadium showed a lot fewer people. The bye week comes at a good time for the Elks.

Calgary and Edmonton had rough starts; Edmonton hasn't bounced back. This is a combination of the name change, apprehension about having to be fully vaccinated to attend a game, the team's own COVID-19 epidemic, financial struggles in Alberta, and a lousy team that lost to Ottawa twice.

The 2021 Edmonton Elks will finish with the last 3 games on the road in a 7-day stretch: road games in Regina, Toronto, and Vancouver. Things will get a lot worse in the Alberta capital.

2021 CFL Week 11 preview

Matthew Shiltz has been around the Montréal quarterback corral for some time. Shiltz had 281 passing yards against Ottawa, 227 yards in the first half. The 12-0 lead helped the Montréal momentum. The Alouettes won the first 3 games against Ottawa this season.

Shiltz and a healthy William Stanback will go a long way to establishing the Alouettes potential playoff status. Maybe there won't be a crossover team to the East. Maybe.

Shiltz will get some help with the Alouettes acquisition of veteran quarterback Trevor Harris from Edmonton for defensive end Antonio Simmons.

Harris is in quarantine after finally getting vaccinated for COVID-19, going the 1-shot Johnson & Johnson route.

Getting to BMO Field in Toronto should be a good experience

Unlike its Alberta cousins, Calgary found a way to climb out of its early-season hole. The Stampeders are on a 3-game winning streak, beating the teams they need to defeat: Saskatchewan (twice) and now BC. The Lions now have a 3-game losing streak.

Calgary got some needed electricity as Roc Thomas took the opening kickoff of the second half and went 101 yards for a touchdown. Jonathan Moxey had a 53-yard interception return for a Pick 6.

The BC Lions are 1-4 at home and 3-1 on the road and an amazing -7 point differential. If Calgary makes a clean sweep on the Roughriders this week, the West playoff picture will have changed dramatically.

We often think patterns are set early in a season. Calgary is trying to prove that theory to be incorrect.

2021 CFL Week 10 preview

We still don't know about the crossover possibility. There are 5 teams in the middle of the pack. Saskatchewan and Montréal are 5-4. Calgary is 5-5. Hamilton and BC are 4-5.

The crossover rules require a distinctly better record for the 4th place team over the 3rd place team in the other division. No ties.

Sometimes we see the best players play on teams that, well, aren't good. The Ottawa RedBlacks have struggled; imagine how much worse they would be without DeVonte Dedmon. This graphic ran in last week's game when Dedmon was injured against Montréal.

Dedmon's 1,889 all-purpose yards is more than double the second place person: Hamilton's Frankie Williams (922).

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The ESPN+ audience didn't get any studio coverage from Friday night's game. The U.S. audience got a visual Saturday afternoon from the studio. No audio. Madness. The late game on Saturday had audio and video from the studio.

These issues have repeated themselves off and on. If the TSN audience isn't running into these issues and the ESPN+ has a much different experience, why is there a discrepancy. If the TSN audience is running into these issues, why does this keep happening.

This discourages the casual fan from tuning into games. This saddens the not so casual fan. We just want the problem to stop.

I have been to all 9 CFL cities and Moncton to see Canadian football. I have yet to see a CFL playoff game in person and haven't been to Tim Hortons Field. Seeing the 2021 Grey Cup, the first in a quarter century in Hamilton, would be amazing. 

That is virtually unlikely to happen this season. This might be the year you decide to go. There are only 24,000 tickets.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor were in Edmonton on Friday. Rod Smith and Duane Forde were in Ottawa on Saturday afternoon. Forde had a nice tribute to the sudden departure of his long-time partner, Rod Black.

Farhan Lalji got his second game of the year with Glen Suitor in Vancouver on Saturday. Would TSN send Lalji to Winnipeg this weekend?

Tripleheaders put extra pressure on play by play options. Lalji should be an option outside Vancouver. Gord Miller is the backup to an emergency backup.

Claire Hanna showed up on the other side of Canada on the sidelines. In case you missed the news last week, Hanna switched gears to covering sports in Ottawa. She made her debut on the Ottawa Senators home opener on TSN5 and was on the sidelines at TD Place at the RedBlacks game.

As for Rod Black, the Toronto Mike'd podcast had a Rod Black Exit Interview. Black mentioned that this had been in the works for some time. 3 Down Nation has more on that angle, including a request from Black to broadcast one more CFL game from each stadium. We suggest that the CBC, with its Olympics and amateur sports coverage, would be an ideal fit for Rod Black, at least for 2022 in Beijing.

logo credit: CFL
photo credit: TSN; CFL