Follow CFL

© 2025 CFL. All rights reserved.

Uncategorized November 10, 2013

Pre-Game Breakdown: Eastern Semi-Final

Ticats.ca Staff

The wait is over. The CFL playoffs are finally here.

Alumni Stadium will taste the pro football playoffs for the first time ever on Sunday when the Tiger-Cats battle the Montreal Alouettes for the right to face the Toronto Argonauts in next Sunday’s Eastern Final.  The Ticats took the season series against the Alouettes 2-1, winning in Guelph and Moncton while losing in Montreal.

In last week’s final regular season tune-up, Henry Burris threw two touchdown passes in the first half against Winnipeg, propelling the Black and Gold to a dominant 37-7 victory. The Ticats were a perfect 5–0 against the East Division at home in 2013, and they’ll look to extend that streak into the postseason.

TIGER-CATS PLAYOFF HISTORY vs. MONTREAL ALOUETTES

  GP WINS LOSS
ALL-TIME  24 15 9
LAST 10 (TOTAL) 10 8 2
LAST 10 (at Home) 10 9 1

 HEAD-TO-HEAD:

C.J. GABLE
TIGER-CATS RUNNING BACK		   CHIP COX
ALOUETTES LINEBACKER
bulcke

Ticats running back C.J. Gable has developed into one of the league’s most dangerous and explosive running backs.

Starting 15 games for the Ticats this season, Gable  put together a total of 1,382 yards and 12 touchdowns.  The East Division All-Star has been a potent weapon on the groud and in the air, running for 782 yards while registering 600 receiving yards as well.  

The East Division’s Most Outstanding Rookie averaged 10.9 yards per catch, while posting two games with 100+ yards receiving.

Gable will face a tough test on Sunday as the Montreal Alouettes defence has had limited his production in three previous contests this season.

In the Ticats season series vs. the Als, Gable was limited to just 28 yards on the ground and a total of 64 yards receiving.

  

bulcke

Veteran linebacker Chip Cox has been the key to the Alouettes defence this year.

The eighth-year vetern posted 115 defensive tackles to not only lead the CFL but set a new Alouettes team record.

Additionally, Cox led the Als in sacks with 12, eight of which came by way of four multiple-sack games, and managed to finish third among Montreal defenders in interceptions with four.

 In three games vs. the Ticats, Cox showed his nose for the ball, compiling a total of 19 defensive tackles, six sacks and an interception.

The Als defence has minimized the success of the Ticats high-powered offence this season. Montreal’s defence, which allowed a league low 314.3 yards per game, held the Ticats to just 255.7 net yards per game. 


REVISITING THE 2011 ESF: 

The Tiger-Cats and Alouettes produced a CFL classic when they last met in the playoffs…

PLAYERS TO WATCH

WR Greg Ellingson
Ellingson took the CFL by storm in his rookie season, amassing 800 yards and 6 touchdowns in his first 12 games to put him in the running for the Ticats Most Outstanding Rookie award. Unfortunately for Ellingson, a lower-body injury has kept him out of action since late September, though he’s now healthy and ready for his return to the lineup. Ellingson has been praised constantly by his teammates and coaches in his first season with the Tiger-Cats and his presence on the field only means good things for Hamilton’s offence.

LB Simoni Lawrence
There are few players on the Ticats defence that have made much of an impact as Simoni Lawrence in 2013. Acquired via trade in the offseason, Lawrence has seized the starting weak-side linebacker role in Hamilton, ranking third on the team in tackles despite playing only 12 games. In his last two games against the Alouettes, Lawrence has totaled 11 tackles and an interception and a forced fumble, and the Cats will be expecting another big game from the second year pro in the Eastern Semi-Final.

DL Brandon Boudreaux
An impact player now in his second season with the Tiger-Cats, Brandon Boudreaux earned his first East Division All-Star nod after racking up a team-high seven sacks, while adding 28 tackles and an interception this year. Boudreaux and the Ticats defence will look to get some added pressure on Troy Smith and the Alouettes this week, after managing just two sacks in their last two meetings.

 

OTHER NEWS AND NOTES

  • In eight previous Eastern Semi-Final meetings, Hamilton has posted a record of 5-3 against the Montreal Alouettes.  Dating back to 1998, four of the Tiger-Cats last five playoff wins have come against the Als.
  • In week 18, Ticats receiver/kick returner Brandon Banks had a total of 294 yards and touchdowns vs. Montreal. Banks’ 107-yard missed field goal return gave the Ticats their first lead with under five minutes left in the game in their 27-24 victory.
  • The Tiger-Cats finished 6-3 during the second half of the season, the top second half record among East Division teams and second-best behind Calgary’s 7-2 run.
  • Tiger-Cats linebacker Marc Beswick is just the first non-kicker or returner to be named the East Division’s Most Outstanding Special Teams Player.
  • After allowing 148 rushing yards per game in the first five weeks, the Tiger-Cats defence surrendered an average of just 80 yards on the ground per game during their final 13 games.
  • 88 players suited up for the Tiger-Cats, with 57 making at least one start this season.  Both numbers are CFL records.

 GETTING SOCIAL: