The Edmonton Eskimos are only one win away from the 99th Grey Cup in Vancouver, British Columbia next weekend.
On Sunday, they will have to find a way to beat the Lions without star running back Jerome Messam. As I mentioned earlier in the week, I find the possibility of the Eskimos’ running game getting going is still there because the Lions’ defensive line and ability to stop the run has sometimes been a weakness, even with Solomon Elimimian and Brent Johnson leading the way.
But the Eskimos will need to find a way themselves to do a better job in stopping quarterback Travis Lulay, the Western Division nominee for the Canadian Football League’s most outstanding player award. In the Lions’ 29-20 win over Edmonton on October 29, Lulay had three touchdown passes for 322 yards.
After the Eskimos won their first meeting 33-17 on July 16, the Lions beat the Eskimos three times in rather convincing fashion. Game time is Sunday at 2pm on TSN.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching:
Saturday–NCAA Football–Southern Methodist @ (11) Houston–Sportsnet One–1:30pm–With Oklahoma State losing to Iowa State last night in double overtime by a score of 37-31, it has created BCS chaos, and only two teams undefeated in NCAA Football–top seeded Louisiana State and the eleventh seeded Houston Cougars. So why is Houston ranked so low when they are unbeaten? Well it has to come down to strength of schedule. They play weaker opponents because they’re in a lesser known Conference USA. Still, when you score a minimum of 56 points of seven of your victories, your offense can play football, and I am interested their team today.
Saturday–Presidents Cup–TSN–4:30pm–Jim Furyk has been by far the best golfer for the Americans all week. His putter has been working just like it did back in 2003 when he won the United States Open. Furyk is a major reason why the Americans lead 13-9 going into today’s fourth round singles action.Furyk went 4-0 in team competition by playing with either Phil Mickelson or Nick Watney. On Saturday, he’ll be up against Ernie Els in singles action, in the only match where both players are major champions.
Saturday–NHL–Chicago Blackhawks @ Edmonton Oilers–CBC–8pm–I hate to say it folks, but the Oilers’ current four game losing streak, doesn’t surprise me all that much. I expected it would be coming and unfortunately it happened sooner than many Edmonton Oiler fans had hoped for. On Saturday they are playing the Blackhawks who looked rather flat in a 5-2 loss in Calgary last night. The Oilers are actually out of a playoff spot as well–one point back of San Jose, Phoenix and St. Louis, and five points back of Minnesota for first place in the Northwest.
Sunday–CFL–East Final–Hamilton Tiger-Cats @ Winnipeg Blue Bombers–TSN–11am–The Blue Bombers will be starting Buck Pierce at quarterback Sunday after he missed the final week of the regular season with a sprained knee. It has been rather interesting because Pierce has been telling the media since Wednesday he would be ready to go, but head coach Paul LaPolice only confirmed his starter on Thursday. In other news, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats signed wide receiver Terence Jeffers-Harris on Friday to their practice roster, only a day after being released by Winnipeg. Jeffers-Harris cannot play Sunday, but does have knowledge of the Blue Bomber playbook, something that has made Blue Bomber defensive lineman Doug Brown furious.
Sunday–NFL–Oakland Raiders @ Minnesota Vikings–CBS–11am–At 5-4, the Raiders are currently leading the AFC West, and this week I picked up Carson Palmer on my fantasy team with the injury to Matt Cassel in Kansas City. The Raiders have been a strong road team this season, going 3-1 and winning in tough places such as Houston and San Diego. The Vikings at 2-6 are definitely now in a rebuilding mode.
Sunday–NFL–San Diego Chargers @ Chicago Bears–CBS–2pm–At 6-3, the Bears have won four straight games, and even though they will probably not contend for a NFC North division title, they are clearly in contention for a Wildcard spot, where they are currently tied with the Detroit Lions. On Sunday, they’ll be playing the struggling Chargers, who at 4-5, need a win to back into the AFC West.
Sunday–NFL–Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants–NBC–6pm–The Eagles may be at 3-6, and possibly without Michael Vick at quarterback, but I smell upset. The Eagles are simply the best 3-6 team ever and have all the tools to beat the 6-3 Giants in their backyard.
Tags: brent johnson, british columbia lions, buck pierce, calgary flames, carson palmer, chicago bears, Chicago Blackhawks, detroit lions, Edmonton Eskimos, Edmonton Oilers, ernie els, hamilton tiger-cats, houston cougars, iowa state cyclones, jim furyk, minnesota vikings, minnesota wild, new york giants, nick watney, oakland raiders, phil mickelson, philadelphia eagles, phoenix coyotes, president's cup, saint louis blues, san diego chargers, San Jose Sharks, solomon elimimian, southern methodist mustangs, terence jeffers-harris, travis lulay, winnipeg blue bombers
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