Every CFL week includes enough highlights for fans to talk about until football returns a week later, and a few lowlights that keep fans shaking their heads. The LWOS CFL team takes a look with Three and Out Week 5 at the highlights and lowlights of the week that was in the CFL.
Three and Out Week 5 CFL
Game of the Week: Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs. Edmonton Eskimos
– Thomas Gunther (@ThomasJGunther)
Player of the Week: Jeremiah Masoli
The defending Grey Cup champions were stunned on Saturday night because of an all-time great performance by Masoli.
It was a tale of two halves for the Ticats quarterback. Masoli went 8/13 for 118 yards in the first half, and they were down 24-6 at the half. For many CFL fans, this game was over already and they turned off their televisions.
The Ticats did the impossible scoring 31 unanswered points in the second half for the biggest comeback in team history, and Masoli was the captain of the comeback. Masoli sold his soul to the devil at halftime as he came out firing passes. At one point in the second half, he completed 23 straight passes to break the all-time record held by Eskimos head coach, Jason Maas. During that stretch, he threw for 273 yards and three touchdowns, including two to Fantuz. Masoli finished the night with 391 passing yards for three touchdowns and went 31/38. It was a performance for the ages.
Honorable mention goes to Riders kicker, Tyler Crapigna. Crapigna went 5/5 including a game-winning 53-yard field goal in the Riders 30-29 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks.
– Casey Dulson (@Casey_Dulson)
Unnecessary Participation: Monday Night Football
The CFL has a problem. It’s called BMO Field and its tenants, the Toronto Argonauts. Originally built for Toronto FC in 2007, the Argonauts and the league are playing second fiddle to its soccer neighbours when it comes to scheduling.
MLS games are mainly played on the weekends – mostly on Saturday, a few on Sunday – with some rare games on Wednesday and Friday nights. The league is consistent with this scheduling template, and this has caused the Argos and the CFL to skew their schedule to accommodate them.
From late June to late October, when the Boatmen and the Reds both play, BMO Field hosts soccer 12 times, and football nine times. Seven times TFC plays on a Saturday night, three games on a Sunday and twice on a Wednesday. The Argos, meanwhile, play only twice at home on the standard CFL Thurdsay and Friday nights, three times on the not-so-standard-but-acceptable weekend nights, and two times each on Monday and Wednesday nights. Monday and Wednesday night football just does not fly in the CFL.
An example of this was this past week’s match-up between the Argonauts and the Montreal Alouettes, played on Monday night. Only 16,048 fans filled the 30,991 capacity stadium, and the game lacked energy because of the scheduling change. It was a long week for both teams – Toronto had 12 days off since their Week 4 game, and Montreal had 10 days off – and it was clear from the start both teams were not prepared. Now, the Alouettes only have four days between their game Friday night at home, while the Argos have six days to prepare for Sunday night’s battle in Ottawa.
Not only do fans not like the unorthodox games day – 12,373 showed up for their first Wednesday night game – the players have a hard time adjusting. The league needs to put a foot down next season when it comes to making the schedule. Even though it does not own the building, it should get a fair share of home games on Thursday and Friday nights, or else fans will start turning away from the Argonauts.
– Nicholas Di Giovanni (@LWOSNick)
Main Photo.
