Standings that are for the most part rather congested make week number 12 a pivotal one for more than a few of the hopefuls with thoughts of a Grey Cup berth on their minds.
With the exception of the cellar dwellers of the east, where Hamilton and Winnipeg are still trying to fathom what has gone very wrong in a season they had high hopes for, the remainder of the CFL's squads are still very much in the mix to claim a first place finish, the Western teams have even more to keep in mind, success through to November could at the worst provide for a cross over berth in the East semi.
So, while the Cats and Bombers work on their fundamentals and avoid the newspapers, the pulling away group get to work at keeping their pace going strong, an eye on a first place finish and hosting duties for a divisional final the interim goal, with of course the Grey Cup still the ultimate destination for all.
Friday night opens up the week 12 schedule with those struggling Bombers trying to find their answers in Calgary, no doubt a pretty large task is ahead of them, the Stamps having swept the Eskimos in the home and home over Labour Day are but two points out of first in the West, challenging the Lions for the top honours of the division.
While one imagines that one day the Bombers may finally find a way not to lose a game, the odds surely would suggest that Friday won't be that day.
The Cats may finally have a break cutting their way this week, the struggling Eskimos, who have found disappointment at their door twice through the Labour Day games will be looking to turn around their fortunes on Saturday, before the losing skid becomes a pattern.
Hamilton has been living that pattern for the majority of the season, losing games in a baffling manner, unable to close out what should have been victories, instead they are left on the sidelines at the end of the game once again wondering what went wrong.
They have another chance to avoid that fate with their home date of Saturday.
It's a battle of the first place teams in Vancouver this Saturday, the second half of the Saturday double header features the East leading Argos on the coast to take on the Lions. The Argos moved into first last weekend when the Lions dispatched the Alouettes with little difficulty, as impressive a performance as we've seen thus far in the year by the Lions, who very much are coming back into their own at just the right time of the year.
Travis Lulay threw the big numbers up on the board last week, the Lions defence keeping the Als from putting any of their own, crushing the Alouette attack with precision. Ricky Ray could very well have his hands full for most of the afternoon, a day which could see a serious reduction in his output as he deals with a very strong defensive group.
The weekend wraps up with the Saskatchewan Roughriders looking to extend their winning ways against the Alouettes. The Riders who were gifted a Banjo Bowl victory by the stumbling Bombers, will no doubt prefer to think back to Labour Day when they looked like a fearsome CFL machine.
The take on an Alouette team that once again had trouble on the West Coast a place that they're just not very successful at, in the friendly confines of Molson Stadium, the Als will be looking to correct their struggles of last week and move forward towards a showdown with Toronto for first.
Previews and reviews of week twelve can be found below.
Friday, September 14-- Winnipeg 3 at Calgary 44 28,247
Saturday, September 15-- Edmonton 8 at Hamilton 51 (24,162)
Saturday, September 15-- Toronto 23 at British Columbia 28 (28,526)
Sunday, September 16-- Saskatchewan 17 at Montreal 28 (23,147)
Ten Men Prognostications: Predicted Winners
Calgary
Hamilton
British Columbia
Montreal
Weekly Record
4 - 0
Overal Record
25 correct, 23 wrong
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