OUT OF THE TUNNEL: THE CFL’S QB CAROUSEL

Jeremiah Masoli tore up the Edmonton Elks with 357 yards through the air on just 24 attempts in Hamilton’s 39-23 victory. The 14.9 yards per attempt was the best mark of the season — by a huge margin. Masoli is one of those passers that when he is hot, there are few better in the CFL and for the Ticats there couldn’t be better timing for this to happen. If he continues this pace, everyone’s prediction of Hamilton winning the East division will come to fruition.

This gets us to a curious Down. After Bo Levi Mitchell, Masoli is the longest-tenured quarterback with a single team in the CFL. He is already in his eighth consecutive season with the Tiger-Cats, the only team he has played for in the CFL.

This is one of the weird things about the current state of the CFL; the constant quarterback carousel. Michael Reilly doesn’t count because he was a long-time Edmonton quarterback who is wrapping up his career with the B.C. Lions, which happens all over football, but the rest of the league is a grand mass of vagabonds. 

The past two weeks tell the tale with Trevor Harris heading to Montreal which makes his fourth CFL team since 2012 and Nick Arbuckle going to Edmonton which is his fourth team in in as many years. 

Zach Collaros may have finally found a home in Winnipeg after four previous stops, Vernon Adams Jr. is now in a fight to keep his number one spot in Montreal with Harris in town, Ottawa is a constant carousel, Edmonton will probably have a new quarterback next season, McLeod Bethel-Thompson isn’t a spring chicken in Toronto and will Cody Fajardo still be in Saskatchewan two years from now?

Quarterbacks are the players fans can get attached to and to have someone you can call your own is a big step in the marketing of the CFL.

Winning ugly is an Up this week and the Saskatchewan Roughriders are kings of this in 2021. Their defence ruled in a wretched 19-14 W in Montreal on Saturday night. They bent but managed to come up with crucial big plays keeping the Alouettes all but off the scoreboard. 

Big time defence was needed as the Rider offence managed just 243 yards and the passing game is still miserable as Cody Fajardo completed a little over 50% of his passes for just 158 yards.

At this time of the year, winning ugly on the road is a giant key to successfully winning in the playoffs. The Riders will more than likely have a home date for the West Semi-Final but will have to journey to Winnipeg and play a great Blue Bombers team in December. It will be an ugly day for ugly play and this suits the Green and White just fine.

One last Down and we will continue to pile on the Edmonton Elks. After another gross loss on home turf, Edmonton is a loss to the Roughriders away from going winless at home for the first time in their long and storied franchise history.

No team has fallen so far into the depths of despair than Edmonton. It’s going to take years for them to recover from this mess as the rest of the CFL is revelling in their putrid play.

This Week in Canada West

Alberta (3-2) 23
Regina (1-4) 22

For the fourth time this season the Regina Rams took a lead into the fourth quarter and for the third time they blew it.

The Rams took a 22-5 lead into the fourth, but the Alberta Golden Bears stormed back with 18 straight points to escape with the 23-22 victory.

The Golden Bears took their first and only lead of the game with 56-seconds left in the final frame with a short 17-yard Jonathan Giustini field goal. The Rams drove the ball down the field and had a chance to win but Aldo Galvan missed a game-winning 37-yard field goal with no time left on the clock.

Saskatchewan (4-1) 41
Manitoba (3-2) 12

This was a tight game in Winnipeg for the first 20 minutes of the contest before the Saskatchewan Huskies took complete control, handing the Manitoba Bisons a 44-12 loss.

The Huskies now take a stranglehold on first in the Canada West while the Bisons have now lost back-to-back games and need a win in Regina next week to host a semifinal playoff game.

It was a perfect balance of offence for Saskatchewan that powered them with 269 yards through the air and 236 on the ground.

Calgary (2-3) 53
UBC (2-3) 14

The Calgary Dinos took a full season of frustration out on the UBC Thunderbirds at McMahon Stadium on Saturday.

It was the Philpot show in a game that was over after a 25-0 Dinos lead in the first quarter. Tyson (214 yards) and Jalen (112) combined for 326 yards receiving and four touchdowns in the victory.

Week Six in Canada West (all times local)

Saturday, November 6

Manitoba at Regina 2:00pm

Calgary at Saskatchewan 2:00pm

Alberta at UBC 1:00pm

This Week in the Prairie Football Conference

Quarter-final weekend

Calgary Colts (1-7) 9
Edmonton Huskies (5-3) 53

The Edmonton Huskies used the Prairie Football Conference quarter-final as a warm up for their semifinal battle next week against the Saskatoon Hilltops. 

It was all Huskies in a 53-9 smashing of the Calgary Colts at Jasper Place Bowl in Edmonton.

Winnipeg Rifles (2-6) 18
Edmonton Wildcats (2-6) 29

The Winnipeg Rifles used a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown by Brandon Kamenz to power themselves to a 14-8 halftime lead. From there it was cruise control as they beat the Edmonton Wildcats 29-18.

The Rifles will head to Regina to face the undefeated Thunder in the PFC semifinal next weekend.

Prairie Football Conference Playoffs

Semifinals
Sunday, November 7
Winnipeg Rifles at Regina Thunder 
Edmonton Huskies at Saskatoon Hilltops 

Canadian Player to Watch in the NCAA

Luiji Vilian (Grad Sr.)
Defensive End
Wake Forest
6’4”, 252lbs.
Ottawa, Ontario
High School – Episcopal (Virginia)

The fifth-year graduate student is having a break out year starting on the defensive line of the Cinderella team of the 2021 NCAA season.

Luiji Vilian has 4.5 sacks for the currently undefeated Wake Forest Demon Deacons who are now ranked in the top-10 for the first time ever in program history. 

Vilian started his career with the Michigan Wolverines before transferring to Wake Forest and would be a sneaky good 2022 draft pick as he currently isn’t on top 20 prospects on the CFL Scouting Bureau’s list.

(RODPEDERSEN.COM STAFF)