3Down picks: Staying in the race

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

Three West Division powers are in a tight race for the coveted first place in the West Division.

Saskatchewan, Calgary and Winnipeg are all in the backstretch of a marathon season with the first goal on their list right in front of them: winning the West and by which comes with it.

Let’s see who the 3Down crew likes in the crucial and not so crucial games on the Week 19 slate.

Friday, October 18
Toronto at Montreal, 7 p.m. EST

The Argonauts are hoping to make it two-in-a-row after opening Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons’ era as general manager with a 28-21 win last week.

Dunk: Something about the double blue. ARGOS
Hodge: Toronto can only beat Ottawa. ALS
Alfieri: The game is meaningless for Montreal, but they need to bounce back. ALS
Ballantine: Even resting players, Montreal is still good enough. ALS
Filoso: Montreal needs it more. ALS
Gasson: A nice warm up for Montreal. ALS
Smith: Montreal is good, Toronto is not. ALS

ALS 6 ARGOS 1

Friday, October 18
Saskatchewan at B.C., 10 p.m. EST

The visitors need a victory to keep pace in a tight race for the West Division crown.

Dunk: Saskie strong. RIDERS
Hodge: Oh Danny Boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling… RIDERS
Alfieri: If Danny O’Brien is the answer, I don’t want to know what the question is. RIDERS
Ballantine: With o Reilly with nothing to play for, I can’t imagine a Lions win. RIDERS
Filoso: Saskatchewan keeps things interesting for another week. RIDERS
Gasson: Good luck without Reilly. RIDERS
Smith: It’ll be NO! NO! NO! not YES! YES! YES! for the Lions with Danny O’Brien. RIDERS

RIDERS 7 LIONS 0

Saturday, October 19
Ottawa at Hamilton, 4 p.m. EST

The Redblacks have lost eight straight while the Ticats are undefeated (7-0) at Tim Hortons Field in 2019.

Dunk: Ticats take lucky win No. 13. TICATS
Hodge: Can Hamilton cover the 17.5-point spread? TICATS
Alfieri: REDBL… kidding. TICATS
Ballantine: Not sure what Ottawa offers but a glorified scrimmage. TICATS
Filoso: Hamilton by an area code. TICATS
Gasson: First versus worst. Yeah. TICATS
Smith: This shouldn’t even be close. TICATS

TICATS 7 REDBLACKS 0

Saturday, October 19
Winnipeg at Calgary, 7 p.m. EST

The Stampeders are 6-2 as the home side this season and hold a game-in-hand over the Bombers in the West standings. The contest pits the West’s two best intra-division clubs against each other: Calgary is 6-1 when facing a Western foe, while Winnipeg is 6-2.

Dunk: It would be a massive upset for Winnipeg…STAMPS
Hodge: Winnipeg won’t win in Cowtown. STAMPS
Alfieri: The Bombers won’t be able to run wild on the Stamps defence. STAMPS
Ballantine: Both teams need a win, which makes this the game of the week. Streveler isn’t up to the task of Calgary’s defence. STAMPS
Filoso: Bo comes through clutch. STAMPS
Gasson: Bo > Streveler. STAMPS
Smith: What Joel said. STAMPS

STAMPS 7 BOMBERS 0

2019 records after Week 18:

Smith: 53-16
Hodge: 52-17
Ballantine: 48-21
Gasson: 48-21
Alfieri: 44-24-1
Dunk: 42-27
Filoso: 41-28