By Josh Bell-Webster,
Online Editor, CFL.ca
There is something about the release of a CFL schedule that gets the juices flowing.
Why is this? Fans know that each team has virtually the same schedule; each club plays 18 games, plays all the other teams at least two times (both home and away) and plays four extra games against their divisional foes.
But it’s much more than this. It’s the thought that the end of winter is on the horizon. It’s the signal to start making plans, whether it’s purchasing season tickets, or making arrangements to take the family out to that annual game. Perhaps it’s planning a road trip to catch a game in the other side of the country. Then there’s the ultimate party in the ultimate party town; the Grey Cup and Montreal are certainly a nice fit.
For others, it’s fun to see how each team’s schedule plays out. Who has the easy start? Who has the tough finish?
I have taken the liberty of looking at each team’s schedule, and coming up with the following observations.
B.C. Lions
The Lions have been known for their quick starts under the leadership of Wally Buono. They must be wary of their first four games, however, with three of those contests being waged against last season’s Grey Cup finalists. But with five of their first eight games in the friendly confines of BC Place Stadium, the Leos will have an advantage over their West Division counterparts in the summer months.
B.C. pays for this luxury at the end of August with back-to-back trips to the Eastern time zone with games in Montreal and Hamilton. The Lions do avoid playing in the daylight hours in the East, which is always quite a task when their internal clocks are set to the morning hours.
Perhaps the biggest test for the Lions will come in a home-and-home against the Saskatchewan Roughriders in mid-September. The Lions make only one trip to Regina this season, which may be bad news given their recent success at Mosaic Stadium.
A scheduling quirk has the Lions opening and closing their season at McMahon Stadium in Calgary.
Calgary Stampeders
The Stampeders have had trouble winning on the road the past two seasons. In fact, they did not win a game outside Alberta in all of 2007. They perhaps catch a break in 2008 as 11 of their games will take place in Wild Rose Country (nine in Calgary, two in Edmonton). The Stampeders are saddled, however, with back-to-back road games on three separate occasions.
During a 25 day stretch at the end of August, the Stampeders play just one game (on the road in B.C.). The Stampeders will catch a break at the beginning of autumn, as they play four out of six games at McMahon Stadium, great timing for the stretch run.
Consecutive games on two occasions against the Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders in early August and October may tell the tale of the Calgary’s year. They also should be weary of a trip to Hamilton the second-to-last week of the season, a city that hasn’t been kind to the Stampeders the past two seasons.
Edmonton Eskimos
For a team that hasn’t been to the playoffs in consecutive season (an eternity in Edmonton), the Eskimos perhaps select the short end of the straw as they open their season in Regina against defending champion Saskatchewan.
The Eskimos will get their fill of Southern Ontario in late July, starting in Toronto followed by a game in Hamilton five days later. They also play back-to-back road games in late September, first in Montreal then in Winnipeg.
Following the West Division’s Week 8 bye week, the Eskimos play at home three of the next four games, with the annual Labour Day game in Calgary their only road trip. This will likely be make-or-break time, with three of those games against teams with sub-.500 records in 2007.
The last third of the season will be challenge, with five games against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, B.C. Lions and Saskatchewan Roughriders. These teams had a combined record of 36-16-2.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
As a result of their 3-15 record in 2007, every game is going to be a challenge for the Tabbies in 2008.
The schedule maker, however, has given the Ticats a great opportunity to jump out of the gates quick in 2008. With a pair of home games bookending a short trip down the QEW to Toronto in Week 2, the Tiger-Cats will accumulate the least amount of travel miles for any CFL team after three weeks. The only issue is the Tiger-Cats haven’t defeated the Montreal Alouettes, Toronto Argonauts and Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders in 17 tries.
Hamilton will play host to two games in a span of six days to open the month of September, including the annual Labour Day tilt with the Argos followed by a rumble with the B.C. Lions.
The Ticats close the season on the road three of their final four games. Hamilton has not won on the road since September, 2006.
Montreal Alouettes
The Alouettes better get used to living outside of their suitcases during the summer months, as five of their first eight games will be on the road. This makes back-to-back home games in Weeks 2 and 3 all the more important considering this tough stretch.
The Alouettes will have quick turnarounds on their two road trips to Alberta this season; one being a trip to Calgary in September five days after hosting the Argos, and the last game of the year in Edmonton five days after hosting the Blue Bombers.
While they are on the road a lot during the first two months of the season, the Alouettes can enjoy some home cooking the final 10 weeks, playing six games in the friendly confines of Percival Molson Stadium.
There will be no regular season game at Olympic Stadium this season, which may be a good thing; the Als have lost the last three regular season games at the Big O.
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The defending champions have what can be labelled as a soft schedule to begin 2008, with three of their first four games against sub-.500 teams in 2007. The Roughriders visit the B.C. Lions in Week 2 in a re-match of the last two West Finals, an early must-see game for fans across the league. The Roughriders didn’t lose in Vancouver last season.
Saskatchewan plays in consecutive road games twice in 2008. They also have a couple of quick turnarounds. After a road trip to Montreal in late September, the Roughriders host the Stampeders five days later. They have a similar stretch on the final road trip of the season to Toronto.
The Roughriders have a pair of stretches where they host three games in four weeks. The final two games at Mosaic Stadium are against Hamilton and Edmonton, two teams that haven’t qualified for the playoffs the past two seasons.
Toronto Argonauts
Beginning Aug. 1, the Argos play six consecutive games against East Division foes. This will likely be key to the success of the Boatmen this season, however, this is a team that went 9-1 in the final 10 games last year.
On three separate occasions the Argos will play two games in six days, but in all these instances the second game will be played in the friendly confines of Rogers Centre, although the last such instance does involve a trip to Vancouver.
Four of their last six games will be played at home, but during this stretch, the Argos play West Division opponents four times.
Toronto’s only back-to-back road games takes place in the first week of September; the annual Labour Day Classic in Hamilton followed by a trip to Montreal the following Sunday.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Similar to B.C., the Blue Bombers enjoy an advantage in the first eight weeks of the season, playing five games at home at Canad Inns Stadium.
Back-to-back games against the Lions in mid-July will be an early test for Winnipeg. The Blue Bombers along with the Roughriders were the only teams to defeat the Lions in B.C. last season; not surprisingly, both clubs advanced to the Grey Cup.
Labour Day and the Banjo Bowl will have special meaning this year as for the first time it will be a Grey Cup re-match. No doubt the Blue Bombers will have extra motivation for this series. The Blue Bombers will follow the Banjo Bowl with perhaps their most difficult road trip of the year, a visit to Toronto five days later.
The Blue Bombers will take trips to Edmonton, Calgary and Montreal in October, but will play divisional foes Toronto and Hamilton at home. This has the makings of a comfortable stretch run for Winnipeg, as only the Argonauts had a winning record in 2007.
