With just one week to go in the regular season, there are still three possible opponents for the Stampeders when they host the Western Final on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 2:30 p.m.
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The identity of that foe won’t be known until the late afternoon on Nov. 14 but the field is particularly wide open at this late stage of the season because of the late-season resurgence of the BC Lions and Edmonton Eskimos.
The Leos and Esks’ battle for third place in the West Division goes down to the final weekend. Both clubs have 7-10 records and both teams play on the road to wrap up the regular season.
BC will be in Hamilton on Saturday afternoon to take on the Tiger-Cats and the Lions need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. If BC does get a win, then Edmonton must pull out a victory at Saskatchewan to claim third place. The Eskimos have the tie-breaker advantage on BC by virtue of having won the season series against the Lions.
The winner of the third-place battle will be in Regina for the Western Semi-Final on Nov. 14 and the survivor of that contest will travel to Calgary a week later.
Each of the three teams presents its own set of challenges:
Saskatchewan
The Roughriders have struggled the past month, suffering four straight losses, but Saskatchewan has still been able to lock up second place and a home playoff game thanks to a very solid 9-4 start.
It’s also important not to forget the Roughriders were the West representatives in the Grey Cup a year ago and that Saskatchewan was the team that ended the Stamps’ season in the 2009 Western Final at Mosaic Stadium.
The Riders boast potent offensive weapons including a 5,000-yard quarterback (Darian Durant), a 1,000-yard rusher (Wes Cates) and a pair of 1,000-yard receivers (Andy Fantuz and Weston Dressler).
Edmonton
The Stamps swept the season series with the Eskimos but the Green and Gold have turned things around dramatically since the last Battle of Alberta on Sept. 10.
As a matter of fact, it was a trip to New Brunswick for Touchdown Atlantic on Sept. 26 that seemed to put pep in the Eskimos’ step. Richie Hall’s club beat Toronto 24-6 that day, a result which started a run of five wins in six games for the Eskimos.
What’s particularly impressive about the Eskimos’ turnaround is that the wins have been coming even though key players such as Ricky Ray, Arkee Whitlock, Jason Barnes and Kamau Peterson have been sidelined by injuries.
BC
Speaking of turnarounds, consider the case of the BC Lions.
Heading into Labour Day, the Lions were a feeble 1-7. But starting with an impressive 38-17 road win over the Montreal Alouettes on Labour Day Weekend, the Leos have since gone 6-3.
What’s more, two of those three losses came in overtime. BC has faced playoff teams six times over the past two months and turned in five wins and a single loss — a four-point decision to Hamilton Tiger-Cats.