*These are the picks I made on Friday. I didn't post them then because of the huge World Series game 7 the Jays were facing. I know they don't count because they're posted after the fact, but I thought I would still share them anyways, for consistency's sake.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers/Montréal Alouettes: the CFL was super evenly matched this year as the final standings indicate, Saskatchewan holding the best record with 12 wins, the sixth and fifth place Blue Bombers and Alouettes hanging in there with 10 apiece. It's always tough to determine who'll win the coveted Grey Cup but even more so this chilly November, with no clear frontrunner statistically dominating, it's a wide-open field for anyone to rule. Although the Hamilton Tiger-Cats do still seem to have an edge over the other teams, they can attempt to outmaneuver Steeltown nevertheless, as Winnipeg and the Alouettes will try to earn the right to do this Saturday, the showdown taking place close to downtown Montréal. The Blue Bombers won both matchups during the regular season with stalwart victories at home and on the road, the most recent coming last weekend in fact these teams getting to know each other far too well. Their points-for-and-against aren't remarkably different, neither team stands out, according to the stats this might be a close one, Montréal notably basking emergent. The Alouettes finished the season strong with convincing wins over Saskatchewan and Calgary in weeks 15 and 17, both teams who looked like they were going to run away with it (if they didn't have to play Hamilton), earlier on in the season. Summer stats don't matter a lot of the time in November when it comes down to which teams excel in the cold. Montréal likely threw their second game versus Winnipeg (Hamilton had already locked up the division). Picking the Alouettes at home.
Calgary Stampeders/B.C Lions: I'm starting to miss the old Stampeders/Elks matchups in early-to-mid-November. What's going on in Edmonton? They haven't qualified for the post-season in forever. Still cool to see Calgary taking on the Lions once more nevertheless, B.C having defeated them twice in the Semi-Finals round in recent memory. They have identical records but when they played each other late in the season B.C was dominate, picking up 52-23 and 38-24 victories, the Stampeders may have their work cut out for them. Oddly, Calgary had better defensive stats so maybe some key defensive players were injured, defensive teams with moderately good offences often doing well in the post-season, although the Lions's stats are most impressive. Calgary lost 4 in a row between weeks 14 and 18 (with a bye in week 15) where their early season dominance fell apart, the Lions winning 6 in a row to finish the season, but losing to Ottawa in week 14. B.C's at home and they're playing in a dome so the weather won't be able to influence the outcome. The dome does level the playing field, but this one looks super-heavily-favoured for British Columbia. Hoping it's close. Tough momentum to beat. Picking the Lions at home. Hoping it's a nail-biter.
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