In a Jekyll and Hyde year in Steel town, the favourite sons are back on the upswing, last weeks strong showing against the Montreal Alouettes, a 41-28 thrashing of Les Als, providing the Cats with a bit of a bump heading into the home stretch of the CFL season, with Thanksgiving Weekend providing the opportunity to show that this time, this time they are for real.
Henry Burris had one of those highlight reel nights last weekend as he directed the Cats to five airborne touchdowns, just part of an arsenal of weapons that the Cats took to using on the Als, who last week at any rate looked very old, very tired and very defeated.
When he wasn't airing the ball out much to the distress of the Alouette DB's, Burris was conducting a running game that left the Als off balance for much of the game, leaving Anthony Calvillo on the Montreal sidelines for extended periods of time as the Cats gobbled mileage and time.
And while Calvillo did put some points on the board, last week was one of those weeks that the Als will no doubt wish to put behind them, having let the Tiger Cats jump back into the race for first in the CFL East.
As Hamilton seeks to build on their success of last week, they take on an Eskimo team that hasn't been this low in a long, long time. From their remarkable start of July, the Eskimos have been in a downward spiral since about mid August, the low light thus far having gone 0 for September for the first time in their CFL history.
The last time the Eskimos were mentioned in the win column was back on August 27th when they defeated the Argos, since then, it's been five consecutive losses, some of them granted by only one or two points, others however total blow outs that have left gaping holes in the Eskimo approach for the rest of the season.
Towards turning around the season, Kavis Reed has taken over the offensive duties for the team, shifting Marcus Crandell to quarterbacking duties, all in the hopes that the Eskies might better follow the offensive game plan we imagine.
We'll find out two things this Friday night, one if the Esks indeed can bounce back and figure it all out before the season gets away from them and on the other side of the field, if the Tiger Cats can finally build on a successful weekend, consistency has been their downfall all year long, Friday offers up a chance to turn that dynamic around just in time for a playoff drive.
Game Time 7 PM MT, 9 ET, 6 PM Commonwealth Stadium TSN
Hamilton 20 at Edmonton 35 (30,557)
Pre Game
CFL.ca Game Preview
CFL.ca Video Preview
Globe and Mail-- Struggling Eskimos hope to find a way to stop Tiger Cats
National Post-- Kavis Reed takes charge of Eskimos offence
Hamilton Spectator-- It isn't a must-win game, but it's darn close
Toronto Sun-- Are they big-game Cats?
Edmonton Journal-- Eskimos offence needs to ignite Friday night
Edmonton Sun-- Edmonton Eskimos season bears resemblance to 1993
Team Backgrounders
Hamilton Tiger Cats
Edmonton Eskimos
Post Game
CFL.ca-- Game Recap
CFL.ca-- Video Highlights
Globe and Mail-- Eskimos snap five-game losing streak with win over the Tiger-Cats
National Post-- Eskimos pull away from Ticats in see-saw affair
Hamilton Spectator-- Playoffs in jeopardy as Ticats fall to Eskimos 35-20
Toronto Sun-- Edmonton Eskimos Kerry Joseph, Fred Stamps finally connect...
Edmonton Journal-- Eskimos offence wakes up, five game slide snapped
Edmonton Sun-- Finally, a positive for Edmonton Eskimos
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