Morning-After Thoughts (Week 18)

Three-way tie in the West; two-way tie in the East. So much for the final week of the season not having any drama. It is going to have plenty. Nothing was decided this past week. It will all come down to last week of the season for five of the six playoff teams.

1. After nearly 60 years of hosting football games, CanadInns Stadium played host to its final regular-season contest. It looks like a great place to watch a game, and hopefully the atmosphere is ported over to the new stadium next season.
2. Maurice Mann suited up for his first game in Double Blue, and was almost invisible. Expect more of that in the future. Mann is a go-to Receiver in his own mind, and Argo fans are going to be very disappointed next season.
3. The year of terrible officiating continues. How could the refs miss the obvious hit in the back by Dominic Picard on Kenny Mainor that resulted in Mainor receiving a 15-yard penalty?
4. Continuing on the refs: can someone explain to me how the catch that Chad Owens made is any different than the one Chris Williams made in Montreal? Owens's was (correctly) called a catch; Williams's was (incorrectly) called incomplete. Looked pretty darn similar to me.
5. More ref stuff: what was with the Keystone Kops routine at the end of the Argo-Bomber game? Winnipeg fans were deservedly angry at what transpired. It was brutal. Someone needs to slap the taste out of Murray Clarke's mouth for being so bloody useless.
6. On a more positive note, congratulations to Byron Parker on setting the career record for interceptions returned for touchdowns. Just two weeks after tying the record, Parker broke it with his ninth interception touchdown of his career.
7. I have seen some nasty hits in my time, but the hit that Johnny Sears leveled on Steven Jyles has to be one of the nastiest I have ever seen. It'll be interesting to see what the fallout is from this. Will Sears be suspended? Will the Argo players that Winnipeg Head Coach Paul LaPolice said threatened Sears be disciplined? Should make for an interesting week when it comes to this story.
8. With Andy Fantuz being shut down for the season, one has to wonder if he has played his last game in Green & White. A free agent come February, Fantuz might try the NFL again, or perhaps sign with another team, but until Fantuz signs his name on a contract with the Riders, the rumours will continue to swirl.
9. It's not every day that you a 108-yard punt, but that's exactly what Chris Milo did on Saturday in Regina, That ties the CFL record for longest punt. The previous record holder was former Argo Punter Zenon Andrusyshyn.
10. The Riders may have found the heir apparent to Wes Cates in Brandon West. He ran hard against the Ti-Cats.
11. This was my first chance to hear Rod Smith do play-by-play, and I have to say I really enjoyed it. I know he did a game earlier this year, but for some reason I didn't get to watch it.
12. Holy crap! A Jamal Robertson sighting! And he played pretty darn well too.
13. And a Paris Jackson sighting too! Was it throwback day in BC or something?
14. Travis Lulay will be the West nominee for Most Outstanding Player. I have made this point before, but Lulay has 28 touchdowns to only 10 interceptions and has thrown for 4,500 yards. The only Quarterback who has more yards and touchdown passes, and less interceptions is Anthony Calvillo. Expectations for Lulay were high entering the season, but he has exceeded them in every way.
15. The Lions made sure that Jerome Messam did not reach 1,000 yards against them. I suspect that because of Messam's ties to BC, the Lions made it a point to deny him. Messam will still get to 1,000 yards, but BC sure didn't want him to do it against them.
16. Can someone come up with a better nickname for Brandon Whitaker than "Two Way," please? It's terrible, and in slightly misleading. Being a two-way player means you play Offense and Defense, not that you can catch and run. Someone find Whitaker a new nickname, please.
17. Speaking of terrible nicknames, did I actually hear Matt Dunigan say that Sean Whyte's nickname is "Legatron"? That has to be a joke, right?
18. Jamel Richardson continues to stat his case for MOP. The man they call Optimus Prime – a nickname I am fine with, by the way – is the first player in CFL history to have at least 100 receiving yards in 12 games in one season. Richardson has had my vote for MOP since mid-season, and unless something amazing happens next week, he'll keep my vote.
19. Nice to hear that Matt Dunigan is on board with every scoring play being automatically reviewed. Hopefully, Dunigan can use his soapbox to get that changed made.
20. I was on a pretty hot streak recently, but that all ended with a pitiful 0-4 showing this past week. That said, I don't that any pundit did better than 2-2 in Week 18. The BC win is one most people got right. But I doubt highly that there were many, if any, that nailed Toronto (over heavily favoured Winnipeg), Saskatchewan (over moderately favoured Hamilton) and Calgary (over heavily favoured Montreal). Anyway, after that showing, my overall record is down to 39-29. Not bad, but 50 correct picks is now officially out the window. Maybe next year.

Saskatchewan 19, Hamilton 3

When the most exciting thing that happened in the game was a 108-yard punt, you know not much of consequence happened. It was a game that mattered little to the Tabbies, and it showed. Nothing went right. The worst part is, despite playing like garbage, Hamilton could have won the game. That's probably the most upsetting thing.

Positives

The more I see of Carlos Thomas at Safety, the more I like it. His coverage skills were never that great, but the guy can hit.

Hard to fault the Defense in this one. In the CFL, if you only give up 19 points, that should be enough to win. Justin Hickman and Stevie Baggs had decent games. The Secondary lost a few of the battles, but didn't give up much. The Defense can be satisifed with their performance.

Negatives

The two red zone interceptions by Kevin Glenn really sting. The first came after what looked like a sure touchdown, and the second was just a bad read. Turn those two interceptions into touchdowns, and it is a different game.

Quinton Porter did nothing to move the team in the first half, and did nothing to separate himself from Glenn. Porter's accuracy was terrible the entire time he was in he game. Despite how poorly Glenn played with his four interceptions, he is still the better Quarterback.

It was nice to see the team use Avon Cobourne in the last six minutes of the game, but where was that in the first 54 minutes? Cobourne is a guy that needs 15-18 touches per game to be effective. The team abandoned the running game way too early, and with a horse like Cobourne in the backfield, they need to keep plowing away.

Whoever was responsible for calling that fake punt needs to give their head a shake. That was almost as bad as the one BC tried to pull off last week. It was just a stupid call.

Final Thoughts

The talk leading up to this game was how Hamilton would use it as a playoff primer. If this is how they are going to play in Montreal or Winnipeg in two weeks, that will be the final game of the season for the Cats. There was no emotion from the team. It truly seemed like they didn't care.

Now 9-9 looks like the record the Cats will finish with for the third straight season. As much as that is a vast improvement over the records from 2005-2008, it's no longer good enough. It's looking more and more like something has to change to get this team over the hump. Of course, with the way this season has gone, the Cats could stroll into the East Division Semi-Final and blowout their opponent.

But before the playoffs, the Tabbies travel one more time to the friendly confines of the Rogers Centre SkyDome for one last game against the hated Argonauts. I'm sure we'll see a different team than the one we saw today. That's just how this team, and this season, has gone. Bad one week, great the next.

This week they were bad; very, very, very bad. But they still could have won the game. That's the most disappointing part. So a great game is coming. Would it be too much to ask that said game be played on November 13th?

Preview: Tiger-Cats at Roughriders

8-8

4-12

Hamilton took care of business last week against an injury-depleted BC Lion teams. The same could happen this week against an even more injury-depleted Saskatchewan Roughrider team.

The Riders will enter this game without the services of Quarterback Darian Durant, Receiver Andy Fantuz and Linebacker Barrin Simpson, all of whom have been shut down for the year. Saskatchewan was going to have a tough time against the Cats to begin with, but losing three key players (to be fair, Fantuz hasn't been much of a factor since his return from the NFL) will make it even tougher for the Riders.

Hamilton enters this game coming off a very impressive showing against BC. The Cats hammered the Lions to the tune of 42-10. The score masked a somewhat poor offensive showing, but the Defense and Special Teams came to play.

The biggest positive to take from last week's game, was the improved play of the Secondary. The group of Carlos Thomas, Woodny Turenne, Marcel Young, Bo Smith and Dee Webb put the clamps on two Hall of Fame Receivers, giving the team hope that the Secondary is no longer a concern. Their play also allowed the Front Seven to get pressure and make plays. If that performance can be repeated, the Cats will have success.

Neither of these teams have anything to play for. Saskatchewan is already eliminated from playoff contention, and Hamilton's seeding is already set. Rider players will be playing for jobs in 2012, and Ti-Cat players will be looking to sharpen their games for a post-season run.

This game has the peculiar start time of 3:00PM EST on Saturday. If you want to catch the game, tune into TSN or AM900 CHML. And don't forget to follow Dief on Cats on Twitter as he provides his unique take on the action.

Smitty's Selections: Week 18

There are two weeks left in the regular season, but nearly everything can be decided this weekend. The playoff seeding in both divisions could be all wrapped up in a tidy bow by the final whistle on Sunday, with one exception. Winnipeg can clinch the East's top spot with a win and a Montreal loss. Edmonton can claim the West title by beating BC. Calgary can be stuck in third if they lose to Montreal and BC beats Edmonton. Should make for an interesting week and an end to the season.

Toronto at Winnipeg

On the surface, it would be ridiculous to take Toronto, but Saskatchewan is as bad, if not worse than the Argos and they beat Winnipeg twice, so the Argos have a chance, right? Not really. Winnipeg by at least two touchdowns.

Winner: Winnipeg, 34-20

Hamilton at Saskatchewan

Neither team has anything to play for, with Hamilton being stuck in third in the East and Saskatchewan having already been eliminated from playoff contention. The Riders – having shelved Darian Durant, Andy Fantuz and Barrin Simpson – are clearly looking to next year. Hamilton wants to build on their big win last week against BC. The Riders will put up a fight for about three quarters, but Hamilton will take control and win going away.

Winner: Hamilton, 31-18

Edmonton at British Columbia

The no-brainer Game of the Week. BC is coming of a humiliating loss at the hands of the Tiger-Cats, and will want to find that winning formula that helped them claim victory in the previous eight games. Edmonton comes in after barely escaping Toronto with a win. Neither team can feel comfortable heading into this first-place showdown. The Eskies helped open BC place back in September, so they know what to expect from that crowd. Injuries are starting to pile up for the Lions, and that will be their downfall. The Eskimos escape with a narrow victory.

Winner: Edmonton, 27-24

Calgary at Montreal

Drew Tate's first road start couldn't be much harder. Winning in Montreal has not been easy for anyone since Marc Trestman took over the Als in 2008. Anthony Calvillo is coming off one of his worst days as a professional, and there is no way he throws up two stinkers in a row. With the home crowd solidly behind them, the Als take it.

Winner: Montreal, 38-25

Recap
Winnipeg, Hamilton, Edmonton, Montreal

Season Record: 39-25

Cats Add Daniel Porter

Quinton is no longer the lone Porter on the Tiger-Cats, as Hamilton have signed former Edmonton Eskimo Running Back Daniel Porter.

The Tabbies have been looking for a backup Running Back ever since Terry Grant was injured against Montreal two weeks ago, and it now looks like they've found their man.

Porter played well during his time in Edmonton, but lost his spot to Jerome Messam earlier this season. The former Louisiana Tech star ended last season on a strong note, with four straight 100-plus-yard games. That lead to high expectations for him in 2011, but the sudden emergence of Messam early in the season made Porter expendable.

He is a very capable player, and is a nice insurance policy and backfield mate for Avon Cobourne.