CFL Week 12 Recap: A Beautiful Disaster

Just when I think the CFL's West Division can't fall any farther into the proverbial abyss, Week 12 showed me how wrong I truly was. So Week 12 began with the team leading the West Division (because somebody had to), the Saskatchewan Roughriders, in Toronto facing an Argonauts team who was welcoming back Chad Kelly as QB, though I wasn't exactly welcoming. After all, I don't take kindly to guys who harass women, but hey, that's just me--and a lot of people in society.

And wouldn't you know it, the Boatmen were struggling and trailing for the whole game. The Riders, who were on a big winless stretch, were looking like the Montréal Alouettes out there, and I was upset at this. I put a lot of the blame on Kelly, who still should be suspended, but lo and behold, the Argos were catching up bit by bit, and with about 90 seconds left in regulation, the game ended up tied at 19. Riders' ball, but a sack and a poorly timed timeout resulted in the Riders punting from their end zone.

This man is Toronto Argonauts kicker Lirim Hajrullahu. Hajrullahu is in his second stint with the Boatmen, he was part of our 2017 Grey Cup Championship before heading off to the NFL and having a short stint in the reborn USFL. It was his field goal that tied this game, and with the punt coming from the Riders' own end zone, it was a foregone conclusion that the Argos would win this. The kick, in the final seconds, was up, and went just wide left, but this is the CFL. A missed field goal that goes through the end zone is a rouge and is worth one point. So the Argos, who never led at all in this game, won 20-19 on a walk-off rouge!

The game's end had a lot of fans, mostly American ones, complaining about the rouge rule. I love the rouge rule; it creates interesting scenarios in this league. Even Canadian fans want that gone, I'm an American fan who is for it. The great thing about the CFL is their stand-out rules. Fans shouldn't blame the rouge. Blame the Riders for finding yet another way to lose this game.

So once again, the top team in the West Division lost. Would the rest of the West capitalize? Well, not really. One day after the final Thursday game of the season, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers hosted the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and after Peg built up a big cushion, it was suddenly gone in the third quarter. Though, the Bombers did climb their way out and make it to a 26-23 win, so they did capitalize. As for other West teams, well, not so much. The BC Lions again found away to lose, this time to the Ottawa Redblacks, upsetting this Argos fan, and the Edmonton Elks narrowly lost to the Alouettes, ending their three game winning streak, but there still seems to be some promise from the Elks.

As a result, with Labour Day Weekend on the horizon, here's how things look:

Congratulations, Roughriders. You guys haven't won a game in five weeks, yet you're still in first place because the rest of the West couldn't find the end zone even if they were living in it. Riders were 4-0, yet have won once in their last seven games. The Lions won five straight after losing their opener, but they have now lost five straight. And remember when the Blue Bombers were 0-4 and looked like they were DEAD?! Winners of five of their last seven since, and look at that, they're in second place via tiebreaker! The Calgary Stampeders were idle that week, but look at the Edmonton Elks. Their win streak is over, but they're only two games out of a playoff spot, and 2.5 games out of first place. Holy moley.

As for the East, wow! The Alouettes are a juggernaut. The Ottawa Redblacks would be in first place in the West. The Toronto Argonauts would be in first place in the West. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats just want this season to be over. The East's playoff teams have been set for weeks, and it's just a matter of positioning. Despite the fact that the Alouettes can't finish lower than third in East, they have not clinched a playoff spot yet. That can come on Labour Day Weekend despite the Als being idle.

Speaking of Labour Day Weekend, that's coming and will feature the core rivalries per usual. It all starts on Saturday, August 31 with the BC Lions hosting the Ottawa Redblacks (the second meeting between the two clubs in a week), and it's followed by the battle between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sunday, September 1--a game that will determine first place in the West Division. The Alouettes will keep an eye on both games. If the Redblacks win, the Alouettes are in the playoffs. If Redblacks/Lions ends tied and the Bombers win, the Alouettes are in. Of course, Labour Day Monday (September 2) will feature the provincial rivalries: the Battle of Ontario (Argonauts @ Tiger-Cats) and the Battle of Alberta (Elks @ Stampeders).

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