Division crowns up for grabs in Toronto and Winnipeg

| American Football | 11/06/2023

TORONTO — The Canadian Football League’s Division Finals are set for Saturday, November 11.

The Eastern Final will see the Toronto Argonauts welcome the Montreal Alouettes to BMO Field.

The Western Final will feature the Winnipeg Blue Bombers hosting the BC Lions at IG Field.

The victors will meet in Hamilton at Tim Hortons Field in the 110th Grey Cup on Sunday, November 19 with kickoff slated for 6 p.m. ET. The championship contest, featuring Green Day in the Twisted Tea Grey Cup Halftime Show, will be available live across the nation on TSN and RDS – Canada’s home of the CFL, online through CFL+ for all international viewers, as well as on SiriusXM’s Canada Talks (ch. 167). A limited number of tickets are available for purchase via Ticketmaster while supplies last.

The 2023 Grey Cup Festival from November 13-19 will include over 40 events to captivate football fans, music lovers, athletes and families alike. It will feature events organized by various community organizations, such as Sonic Unyon (Supercrawl), Around the Bay and Hamilton Santa Claus Parade, and many more.

The season’s best will be honoured at the 2023 CFL Awards on Thursday, November 16 from the Avalon Theatre at Fallsview Casino & Resort in Niagara Falls, Ont. The CFL ON TSN’s Kate Beirness will co-host the evening with Canadian comedian K. Trevor Wilson, with a guest appearance from two-time GRAMMY award winner Shaggy. The reggae icon will then take the OLG Stage for a special concert following the event. Tickets to the CFL Awards include admission to the concert. Additional information can be found here.

Joining Shaggy as part of the Built in the Hammer Grey Cup Music Festival is country megastar Carrie Underwood on Friday, November 17 (tickets available here). A full event listing and complete details can be found at Greycupfestival.ca.

Playoff records for the remaining teams in the 110th Grey Cup Playoffs:

  • Winnipeg – 1936-2022: 66-52-2 (.558)
  • BC – 1959-2023: 23-34 (.404)
  • Toronto – 1936-2022: 45-38-1 (.548)
  • Montreal – 1946-86, 1996-2023: 39-36 (.520)

EASTERN FINAL SPOTLIGHT

Montreal Alouettes at Toronto Argonauts
​BMO Field
​Saturday, November 11 at 3 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CET

At a glance:

  • Toronto last hosted three consecutive Eastern Finals between 1982-1984.
  • Montreal is playing in back-to-back Eastern Finals for the first time since 2009-10.
  • This will be Montreal’s 35th and Toronto’s 45th appearance in the Eastern Final.
  • Last year, Toronto prevailed with a 34-27 decision.
  • The Argonauts own a 32-16-1 (.656) home record in the playoffs.
  • Since 1973, the host team of the Eastern Final is 33-14 (.702).
  • Montreal is 11-26 (.297) as the road team in the playoffs.
  • Toronto is 3-1 in Eastern Final matchups at home against Montreal (1996, 1997, 2005 and 2022).
  • Toronto swept the season series:
    Week 6: TOR 35 at MTL 27
    Week 14: MTL 10 at TOR 39
    Week 15: TOR 23 at MTL 20
  • Head coaches’ post-season records: Ryan Dinwiddie (2-1, 1-0 in the Grey Cup) and Jason Maas (4-3). Maas is looking for his first head coach appearance in the Grey Cup.
  • Chad Kelly will be making his first playoff start. In the regular season, he is 3-1 as a starter against Montreal.
  • Cody Fajardo is 2-2 as a starter in the playoffs; he has a regular season record of 3-4 against Toronto.

WESTERN FINAL SPOTLIGHT

BC Lions at Winnipeg Blue Bombers
​IG Field
​Saturday, November 11 at 5:30 p.m. CT/6:30 p.m. ET/12:30 a.m. Nov. 12 CET

At a glance:

  • Winnipeg is hosting its third straight Western Final and playing in the game for a fifth consecutive season.
  • BC will be playing its second straight Western Final – a rematch of last year’s 28-20 loss in Winnipeg.
  • Winnipeg is 42-19-2 (.675) at home in the playoffs.
  • Since 1973, the host team of the Western Final is 29-20 (.592).
  • BC is 11-25 (.306) as the road team in the playoffs.
  • The two teams have met in the Western Final on four occasions, with the most recent being in 2022. Each team has two wins in the matchup.
  • Winnipeg won the season series:
    Week 3: BC 30 at WPG 6
    Week 9: BC 14 at WPG 50
    Week 18: WPG 34 at BC 26
  • Head coaches’ post-season records: Rick Campbell (6-4, 1-2 in the Grey Cup) and Mike O’Shea (7-4, 2-1 in the Grey Cup).
  • Vernon Adams Jr. is 1-1 as a starter in the playoffs; he is 3-2 in the regular season against Winnipeg.
  • Zach Collaros is 7-3 as a starter in the post-season, including Grey Cup, and he is a career 11-3 against BC.

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