95th Grey Cup

Roughriders - The Riders are going to The Prairie Party in Toronto along with the Bombers. These two teams are definitely limping to the finish line and have earned every right to battle for the CFL's 95th Grey Cup.

Saskatchewan's keys to victory crystallized when Kevin Glenn went down with an unfortunate and devastating injury. They must pressure, hurry and harass Ryan Dinwiddie. You know Winnipeg is going to rely on Charles Roberts to ease Dinwiddie's workload so they must tackle well, like they did against the league's leading rusher, Joe Smith during the West Final.

Big plays will always be welcome in a Grey Cup game. The momentum created by such plays are certainly magnified and Kerry Joseph, Andy Fantuz, D.J. Flick, Michael Palmer and company had plenty of those in the West Semi-Final. Creating more of those plays will be a must for the Riders.

Play action, bubble screens, naked boots, wheels, sneaks with your Canadian fullbacks and a solid running game are all ways Saskatchewan can get it done offensively.

Defensively they must concentrate on Roberts and limit his production by mixing up coverages and looks on Dinwiddie and corralling Keith Stokes on his returns.

Jamie Boreham was brilliant punting the ball and Luca Congi was a perfect 4-4 during the West Final. They both must have similar games in the Grey Cup because field position will be critical and points are usually hard to come by.

Bottom line is to go win the game and not take the mindset to play to lose. Be aggressive and force the issue.

One of my favorite sayings is "Want some? Get some! Bad enough? Take some!" That is the mindset I'd be looking for!!!

Blue Bombers - Well, it doesn't take a football genius to predict what Winnipeg's key to the game is. Dinwiddie, Dinwiddie, Dinwiddie. Who is this guy? Can he perform well enough to give the Bombers a shot in Canada's most watched sporting event of the year?

Allow me to put it this way; unless the spirit of Ricky Ray the Rookie has somehow reincarnated himself in the form of Ryan Dinwiddie the Sophmore, no one should expect heroics from this Boise State grad. The CFL game is simply too complex for anyone (unless your name is Ricky Ray) to excel without some significant experience. Look how long it took Kevin Glenn to become the quarterback he is.

However, that is not to say the Bombers cannot win. They can as long as two things happen. One, Dinwiddie has to avoid turning the ball over. Two, the other 41 guys on the team have to forget that Glenn is not playing and simply step up like they have never stepped up before.

Losing your starter it is a demoralizing experience. There's this little voice that starts chirping away in the back of your mind saying, "you got no chance, you got no chance." The Bomber players have to banish such thoughts from their minds, subconscious or otherwise.

The Riders are a very beatable football team. Yes, they have an incredible defensive front 7 and Joseph is capable of hurting you with his running and his big play potential. But they are beatable if you can get them to turn the ball over and you beat them on special teams.

If Winnipeg can score on defence and score on special teams while limiting themselves to a single turnover, they will give themselves a chance to win. And that is all one can ask for when going into the Grey Cup without your starting QB and league nominee for Outstanding Player.

Roughriders - Saskatchewan's offence is Kerry Joseph. With all due respect to Wes Cates and D.J Flick, Joseph has done it all for the Roughriders. He threw for 24 touchdowns and rushed for 13 more, meaning he was a responsible for 37 of 53 majors or 70%. Cates ranked fourth in rushing while D.J. Flick and Andy Fantuz have stepped up in the absence of the injured Matt Dominguez. Rank: 3

Blue Bombers - Ryan Dinwiddie takes over for Most Outstanding Player finalist Kevin Glenn, who is out with a broken arm suffered in the East Final. Charles Roberts, who finished second in rushing, appears healthy again while Terrence Edwards, Derick Armstrong and Milt Stegall all reached the 1,000-yard plateau. Rank: 2

Advantage: Roughriders

Roughriders - Corey Holmes was brought in part way through the season and injected some excitement into the return game. Despite struggling early in Hamilton, he almost eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark in combined yards. In the kicking game, Luca Congi had an off-year, connecting on just 71% of his attempts. But he did connect on some long-distance kicks, boasting an average of 34.2 yards per successful field goal.

Blue Bombers - Albert Johnson III averaged almost 20 yards on kick-off returns but less than seven yards on punt returns. Kicker Troy Westwood has struggled all season but has come through when it mattered in the playoffs.

Advantage: Roughriders