SHAW ROAD TO THE GREY CUP PRESENTS 103RD GREY CUP PLAYOFF SCENARIOS

BC LIONS

- A WIN over Toronto this Friday PLUS a Montreal LOSS at Edmonton Sunday and BC is in the playoffs.

- WINS over Toronto AND Calgary would ensure a BC playoff spot and a trip to the West Semi-Final at either Calgary or Edmonton.

- If BC does not win any of their last two games they can still finish third in the West with a Winnipeg LOSS in Week #20. However, to earn a playoff spot under that scenario, they would require Montreal to LOSE both of their remaining games.

- If BC does get into the playoffs they would extend their consecutive post-season run to 19 years and tie Montreal for the second-longest streak in Canadian football history.

CALGARY STAMPEDERS

- A WIN this Saturday at home over Saskatchewan would force Edmonton win their game on Sunday to ensure a first place finish for the Eskimos.

- IF Calgary WINS and Edmonton LOSES this week, the Stampeders retain a chance to finish first in the West for a third straight season. That scenario would require a win by Calgary in the final week at B.C. Place.

- If Calgary winds up in second place, they would host the West Semi-Final for the first time since 2012 and the sixth time since 2001.

EDMONTON ESKIMOS

- A WIN this week at home over Montreal would secure first place and home field in the 2015 West Final.

- A Calgary LOSS either at Saskatchewan this Saturday, or in Week #20 at BC, would also clinch first place for Edmonton as they hold the 2-1 season series tie-breaker over the Stampeders.

- If Edmonton finishes atop the West it would be for the first time since 2003, and would extend their league-record to 23 regular season Division titles.

WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS

- A WIN OR TIE this week by either BC or Montreal would eliminate Winnipeg from playoff contention.

- If both BC and Montreal lose this week, a Winnipeg win in Week #20 at Toronto combined with losses by BC and Montreal would give the Blue Bombers a playoff spot.

TORONTO ARGONAUTS 

- With the Ottawa versus Hamilton back-to-back set to be played out over the season’s final two weeks, Toronto’s chances of finishing in first place are remote but NOT zero. That unlikely scenario would require the Tiger-Cats and Redblacks to tie BOTH games and thus end up with 10 wins and 22 points in the standings. Toronto could then win both of their games and finish first on the basis of 11 wins as the tie-breaker.

- To place this double-tie scenario into perspective, since the adoption of the CFL’s “Alternating Possession” Overtime rule in 2000, there have been just SIX ties in 1,198 regular season games or ONE every 200 games.

- In 109 years of Canadian football history (1907-2015), only FOUR clubs have ever recorded a tie in consecutive games, and NEVER against the same opponent in both. Only Ottawa in 1946, Montreal in 1974, BC in 1978 and Edmonton in 1979 tied consecutive games in any season.

- Toronto can finish second and secure a home playoff date with wins in their last two games combined with a sweep by either club in the Ottawa-Hamilton back-to-back set.

- If Toronto WINS just ONE of their remaining games, they can finish second only if Ottawa loses both to Hamilton. If Ottawa were to sweep Hamilton, Toronto would still finish third at 10-8 on the basis of the Tiger-Cats 3-0 season series win over the Argos in 2015.

- If Toronto loses both of their games they finish third in the East.

HAMILTON TIGER-CATS & OTTAWA REDBLACKS

- With the Tiger-Cats versus the REDBLACKS back-to-back set to be played out over the season’s final two weeks, first place will not be decided until Saturday, November 7th at TD Place in Ottawa.

- Hamilton and Ottawa have yet to play one another this season and so if the two games are split, it may come down to aggregate points to decide first place in the East.

- Each club has secured a playoff spot going into the game this week at Tim Hortons Field. Hamilton can secure at least a home game with a victory over Ottawa (as they would have a superior 4-0 record in the event of a 3-way tie at season’s end). Ottawa can win this week but cannot secure a home game. Even with that victory, a loss in their last game combined with two Toronto wins would create a 3-way tie at 11-7 which would be decided on “higher winning percentage in all games played against all of the other tied clubs”. That ranking stands currently at: Hamilton 3-0, Toronto 3-3, Ottawa 0-3.

- A Toronto LOSS this week would secure a Hamilton home playoff game.

- An Ottawa WIN and a Toronto LOSS would secure an Ottawa home playoff game.

MONTREAL ALOUETTES

-  A WIN over Edmonton this Sunday would keep alive Montreal’s playoff possibilities even if BC were to defeat Toronto on Friday.

-  If BC LOSES both of their games, Montreal would require only a win or a tie to become the first East Division club to ever secure a West Division playoff berth via the “Cross-Over”.

-  A Montreal WIN or TIE this week would eliminate Winnipeg from playoff contention and ensure that the final Western playoff berth would come down to the results from the season’s final two games: Calgary at BC, and Saskatchewan at Montreal.