Jack Bedell
CFL.ca
A Hollywood screenwriter couldn’t have scripted a better set of divisional final tilts than we saw last weekend. Teams battling to nail-biter conclusions, players rising (and falling) to the occasion, maniac crowds willing their teams to victory, even a QB coming up a second short on a last-second lob designed to kill the clock, giving his competitor one more shot to steal the W.
It’ll be a hard act to follow for this weekend’s Grey Cup, for sure.
Probably the best part of last weekend’s games for me was the play of the two visiting teams. Both B.C. and Edmonton jumped out to early leads in their respective finals, taking the home crowds out of the mix and setting up a pair of big-time upsets.
In B.C.’s case, the game really came down to the Lions’ inability to score majors in the red zone. Thanks to some stellar goal-line play by Mike Labinjo and the rest of the Stampeders’ defence, B.C. had to settle for six Paul McCallum field goals from within scoring position, and every one of those three-pointers came with a heavy dose of foreboding. No matter how many yards Stefan Logan racked up between the 20s, it was only a matter of time before Henry Burris and company got untracked, and the Lions simply left too many points off the board to hold off Calgary’s offence at home.
For their part, the Edmonton Eskimos fought an excellent uphill battle as the first crossover team to make it into a divisional final. In fact, it looked for a bit like the Esks had the field tilted their way after returning a blocked punt for a major to take an early lead, but Anthony Calvillo got the Als’ offence purring after as few stalled drives, and Larry Taylor ripped off a CFL-record 203 return yards with a couple of TDs to take the game back. 33 unanswered points later, the Als were headed to a rare Grey Cup home game.
RWB’S DIVISIONAL FINAL HEROS
1) Larry Taylor—two punt-returns for majors, 203 yards, are you kidding me?
2) Anthony Calvillo—20 of 32 for 295 and a TD, consistent excellence
3) Anwar Stewart—two sacks and a forced fumble, just plain mean
4) Mike Labinjo—eight tackles, three sacks, a forced fumble, and several points off the board from his goal-line stands, MONSTER
5) Brandon Browner—one pick in the stat line doesn’t do justice to the day he had
6) Demetris Summers—gave his team a chance to win with field position off his 183 return yards
7) Paul McCallum—six field goals, did all he could to win it for the Lions
RWB’s S DIVISIONAL FINAL GOATS
1) B.C.’s Red Zone Package—too much talent on that team not to punch one in at some point
2) Eskimos’ Run Game—three yards rushing won’t earn a championship bid, ever
3) Edmonton’s Kick Coverage—two words: “Lane Integrity”
4) Jarious Jackson—you have to tuck that ball in traffic
5) Slow Home Starts—both Montreal and Calgary came out looking sluggish offensively in the finals, and had to take the hard road to wins. Recovering will be harder in the Cup…
HOW THE GREY CUP WILL GO DOWN
At first glance, this might just be the best combination of talent versus talent we’ve seen in years.
Montreal boasts the league’s best offence, Calgary the league’s best D. But the Als’ defence isn’t far behind, nor is the Stamps’ offence. Special teams are also equally excellent, especially considering the quality of both squads’ kickers and return men.
The fact of the matter is simple really—these two teams are about as loaded with talent as two rosters could be. The best against the best. What more could we ask for in a championship game?
My bet is a huge, raucous Montreal crowd tilts the field in the Alouettes’ favour. With the luxury of settling into the game quickly in front of its home crowd, the Alouettes’ offence should hit its rhythm quicker. And that advantage might just be all they’ll need to stay out in front of an ultra-dangerous Calgary club.
GREY CUP PREDICTION DOOMED TO GO WRONG
My gut’s done pretty well down the stretch, so I’m going to let it handle the last pick of the season, too. Gut says: it’s the Alouettes’ time to shine.
UP NEXT
I’ll be touching down in Montreal Thursday just in time to weigh in with a little mid-week match up analysis. And I’ll also give a preview of the sights and events I’ll be taking in while I’m in town.
Check back every day to see how my Grey Cup adventure’s going.
