The CFL has 9 markets. The one with the least enthusiasm is Toronto, the team that keeps winning Grey Cups. The Argos slim 17-16 4th quarter lead became a 41-24 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at the 111th Grey Cup Sunday night at BC Place in Vancouver.
The Toronto Argonauts have now won their last 8 Grey Cups with the last loss coming in 1987. The team is 19-6 in Grey Cup games. The Blue Bombers are now 12-17 in those games.
Toronto is 9-0 against Winnipeg in the history of the Grey Cup, winning in 1937, 1938, 1942, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1950, 2022, and now 2024. The Argos edged out a 24-23 win in 2022 with a heroic comeback by Chad Kelly. The 2024 edition has Kelly suspended and then injured in the East final. Nick Arbuckle did what his coach Ryan Dinwiddie couldn't do: win a Grey Cup as the backup quarterback after the starter was injured in the CFL division final (2007).
Arbuckle went 26-for-37 for 252 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Zach Collaros was struggling even before the injured finger he suffered in the second half. Throwing with gloves did not help though the gloves were not the problem. Collaros went 15-for-30 for 202 yards. 3 of his 4 interceptions came after the injured finger. Ontaria Wilson led the Blue Bombers receiving core with 99 yards on 5 catches.
HOUSE CALL!!
— CFL (@CFL) November 18, 2024
Robert Priester takes it all the way back and the @TorontoArgos are up by 18 late!#GreyCup LIVE on TSN, CTV, RDS & CBSSN
📱: Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/hYlrNTDswg
Key moments in championship games is taking advantage of what your opponent does. The Toronto defence was very prepared for such an event.
Winnipeg had its own opportunity to get momentum. Toronto punter John Haggerty had his punt blocked by Michael Ayers at the end of the 3rd quarter. Unfortunately, the Blue Bombers were penalized on the play. Kyrie Wilson had a push in the back that was unnecessary to the play. The Argos got the ball back.
Admittedly, Arbuckle then threw a short interception to Willie Jefferson, who does these sort of matters. Unfortunately, Terry Wilson looked not up to the task and Winnipeg had to settle for a field goal. That made the score 17-16 with the Argos up at that point.
"Where the [bleep] was Jake Dolegala?" That was the question I had in my head as I was watching the game. In a sea of backup quarterback scenarios, Dolegala would have been a better hand in that situation to lead the Blue Bombers to a possible touchdown and lead.
Terry Wilson is a good 3rd string quarterback. Chris Streveler, done in by a cheap hit in September, could only wonder what might have been.
THE @TORONTOARGOS WIN THE 111TH #GREYCUP. pic.twitter.com/GUi1x7uHbQ
— CFL (@CFL) November 18, 2024
The Toronto Argos don't win in a pretty way. Just enough offense, plenty of defence, sprinkle in some special teams, and the team wins another CFL championship.
52,349 fans is the 7th most at a Grey Cup game in Vancouver.
— Ben Steiner (@BenSteiner00) November 18, 2024
1. 1986 - 59,579 (Hamilton)
2. 1987 - 59,478 (Edmonton)
3. 1983 - 59,345 (Toronto)
4. 2005 - 59,157 (Edmonton)
5. 1994 - 55,097 (BC)
6. 2011 - 54,313 (BC)
7. 🏆2024 - 52,349
8. 2014 - 52,056 (Calgary)
The CFL wants to spread around the Grey Cup love to different cities, except for Montréal. Vancouver is a logical destination to have the Grey Cup because of an indoor stadium, large capacity, great weather (low bar), and lots to do. Having the Grey Cup in the West (outside Vancouver) is a relatively new phenomena.
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Our hearty congratulations to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to make it to 5 straight Grey Cups. The posts with lots of hits will focus on 3 straight Grey Cup losses. Takes a lot of talent to reach this point. Brady Oliveira is the 4th Canadian to win the Most Outstanding Player (MOP). Ottawa quarterback Russ Jackson (1963, 1966, 1969), Ottawa tight end Tony Gabriel (1978), and Calgary running back Jon Cornish (2013) are the other Canadians to win this award. Surprisingly, Andrew Harris isn't on this list.
Oliveira had 239 carries for 1,353 yards and 3 touchdowns as the rushing leader. The Winnipeg native also caught 57 passes for 476 yards and a touchdown. Oliveira had the most total yards.
“Let’s go Vancouver, come down and party with us!” 🥳🍻@CFL fans do it right.#GreyCupFestival | #AllROARSLeadToThis pic.twitter.com/JkEuptRrjK
— The Grey Cup Festival (@GreyCupFestival) November 15, 2024
The Grey Cup isn't just about a football game. The week long festival is about bringing together CFL fans.
Doesn't hurt to have Prince Harry and the Jonas Brothers in Vancouver. Prince Harry was there to promote the Invictus Games coming to Vancouver in 2025.
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Thanks for another great CFL season in the books. The off-season should be some stability in Edmonton in the general manager chair and coaches on the sidelines, turmoil in BC, quarterback shuffles, and maybe, possibly a Grey Cup win for Hamilton for the first time in the 21st century.
[We apologize profusely for technical difficulties with this post. We had content that has disappeared thanks to Typepad.]
photo credit: @TSN_Sports
Twitter captures: @CFL (x2); @BenSteiner00; @GreyCupFestival