By Mike Hardiman
Stampeders.com

The Pregame

It’s a clash of titans as the Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Eskimos meet to decide who will represent the West in the 2015 Grey Cup game.

Calgary (14-4) dispatched the BC Lions 35-9 last week in the Western Semi-Final and, in doing so, earned a berth in a fourth straight Western Final. Edmonton (14-4) last played back in Week 19, a 40-22 win over Montreal that clinched top spot in the West, and have had a bye the last two weeks in a row. This will be the second straight Western Final between the two teams with Calgary winning big at home by a 43-18 score in 2014.

Calgary has played in 19 West finals since the CFL adopted a single game format for the Final in 1973 and has a 9-10 record overall and holds a 6-5 record against the Eskimos in the 11 West finals played between the two provincial rivals. Calgary last played Edmonton on the road in a Final back in 2001, a 34-16 win for the Red and White.

Edmonton won the season series against Calgary this year, giving the Eskimos the tie-breaker to claim first place. Calgary won Labour Day at home 16-7 but lost the rematch in Edmonton 27-16 and then again at home in Week 16 by a 15-11 score. 

Calgary was tied for the best road record in the CFL at 6-3 while the Esks were tied for the league’s best home record at 8-1. Both teams were tied at 8-2 within the West Division.

The Kickoff

When/Where: Sunday, Nov. 22 at 2:30 p.m. MST at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton
Television/Live-streaming: TSN, ESPN3, YouTube (international)
Radio: Newstalk 770, SiriusXM Channel 167
Internet: www.newstalk770.com

The Stampeders

Calgary has won four games in a row, with the Stamps’ most recent loss coming in Week 16 to Edmonton.

Running back Jerome Messam has been a key addition to the Stamps, rushing for 246 yards in his three games. Messam will be front and centre this week as the Stamps will look to test an Eskimos run defence that has given up 336 rushing yards in its past two games. Calgary averaged 75.3 yards along the ground in the season series this year against Edmonton.

Slotback Eric Rogers may play a big role in the Stamps passing attack as he has 12 catches for 239 yards and four TDs in three post-season games. Rogers and slotback Marquay McDaniel accounted for half of the Stamps’ total receiving yards this season and represented 55 per cent of the passing yards against the Eskimos.

Turnovers could be the deciding factor as Calgary had a minus-4 differential in the season series, committing a total of eight turnovers in three games.

Calgary’s defence held the Lions to nine points, the second straight game the unit has given up less than 10 points and the fifth straight under 20 points. The Stamps defence has held opponents to less than 300 yards of total offence in seven straight games.

Calgary had seven sacks against the Eskimos this season but five of those came in the Labour Day win. Defensive end Freddie Bishop III leads the team with 11 sacks while linebacker Deron Mayo leads the team in tackles with 72. Defensive back Keon Raymond leads the team in interceptions and added one more in the Semi–Final, a pick which he returned for his second TD of the season. 

Who to watch:

Jerome Messam – RB, #33
2015 stats – 163 carries, 1,006 yards, 6.2-yard average, 2 TDs – third in CFL rushing, second career 1,000-yard rushing season; Western all-star
Last game – 15 carries, 66 yards, 4.4-yard average, 1 TD; 4 receptions, 81 yards, 20.3-yard average – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 3 carries, 27 yards, 9.0-yard average; 6 receptions, 58 yards, 9.7-yard average – Week 6  at Edmonton, as member of Saskatchewan Roughriders    

Bo Levi Mitchell – QB, #19
2015 stats – 555 attempts, 364 completions, 65.6% completion rate, 4,551 yards, 26 TDs, 13 int.,  96.8 QB rating – West Division MOP, Western all-star
Last Game – 24 attempts, 15 completions, 62.5% completion rate, 199 yards, 2 TDs, 0 int., 116.5  QB rating – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 109 attempts, 66 completions, 60.5% completion rate, 775 yards, 3 TDs, 5 int. – three games

Marquay McDaniel – SB, #16
2015 stats – 86 receptions, 1,038 yards, 78.9 % reception percentage, 12.1-yard average, 4 TDs – second on team in receiving
Last game – 3 receptions, 11 receiving yards, 3.7-yard average – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 18 receptions, 201 yards, 11.2-yard average, 0 TDs – three games

Jamar Wall – DB, #29
2015 stats – 70 tackles, 2 special-teams tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 2 int., 10 pass knockdowns, 1 fumble return – second on team in tackles, led team in knockdowns
Last game – 3 tackles – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 9 tackles, 1 pass knockdowns – three games

Freddie Bishop III – DE, #95
2015 stats – 44 tackles, 2 special-teams tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, 1 pass knockdown, 1 forced fumble – led team in sacks, fourth in CFL
Last game – 4 tackles – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 9 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 pass knockdown – three games

Rene Paredes – K, #30
2015 stats – 47 FG attempts, 41 FGs, 87.2% FG accuracy, 26 converts, 4 singles, 156 points; 70 kickoffs, 4,542 yards, 64.9-yard average – second in CFL scoring; West Division Most Outstanding Special Teams Player, West all-star
Last game – 2 FG attempts, 2 FGs, 100% FG accuracy, 2 converts, 5 points; 5 kickoffs, 346 yards, 69.2-yard average – Western Semi-Final vs BC
2015 vs Edm. – 6 FG attempts, 6 FGs, 100% FG accuracy, 2 converts, 1 single, 21 points; 8 kickoffs, 528 yards, 66.0 yard average – three games        

The Eskimos  

Edmonton was the hottest team in the CFL in the second half of the season, winning its last eight games heading into the playoffs. Things turned around for the Eskimos when they got quarterback Mike Reilly back from injury and Reilly has been playing well of late with 1,017 passing yards and seven touchdowns in past three games.

His favourite target on the season has been slotback Adarius Bowman and especially over the past three games as Bowman has 25 catches for 418 yards and two major scores. Slotback Kenny Stafford (#7) had four catches for 109 yard and two touchdowns in the three games against Calgary this year and wide receiver Derel Walker hauled in 15 passes but was limited to 149 yards against the Stamps.

Edmonton’s defence is one of the league’s best and they held the Stamps to just 43 points and three touchdowns in the regular season series. Edmonton’s strength is their run defence but was torched for 199 rushing yards against the Als in Week 19.

Defensive end Odell Willis (#41) leads the team in sacks with nine while linebacker Dexter McCoil (#45) leads the team in tackles with 76. Rookie cornerback John Ojo (#26) leads the team in interceptions with five and four different Eskimos have scored on pick-sixes this season.

Mike Reilly – QB, #13
2015 stats – 329 attempts, 214 completions, 65.1% completion rate, 2,449 yards, 15 TDs, 10 int., 89.8 QB rating; 66 carries, 324 yards, 4.9-yard average, 2 TDs – nine starts, second in CFL in QB rushing
Last game – 35 attempts, 29 completions, 82.9% completion rate, 308 yards, 3 TD, 136.4 QB rating –  Week 19 vs Mtl.
2015 vs Cgy. – 92 attempts, 56 completions, 60.1% completion rate, 706 yards, 4 TDs, 2 int. – three games, two starts

Adarius Bowman – SB, #4
2015 stats – 93 receptions, 1, 304 yards, 14.0-yard average, 57.4% reception percentage, 7 TDs – led CFL in receptions, second in receiving yards; Western all-star
Last game – 2 receptions, 12 receiving yards, 6.0-yard average – Week 19 vs Mtl.
2015 vs Cgy. – 16 receptions, 263 yards, 16.4-yard average, 2 TDs – three games

J.C. Sherritt – MLB, #47
2015 stats – 71 tackles, 13 special-teams tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 2 sacks, 2 int., 4 pass knockdowns, 3 fumble returns, 2 forced fumbles – second on team in tackles
Last game – 1 tackle – Week 19 vs Mtl.
2015 vs Cgy. – 18 tackles, 3 special-teams tackles, 1 sack – three games

Stats (through regular season)

Division final Week in the CFL

Sunday, Nov. 22, 11 a.m. — Eastern Final – Hamilton at Ottawa