The Canadian Football League on TSN continues for Week 12 beginning on Thursday with four games across four days as the race for playoff spots begins to heat up.
Week 12 begins with the league’s best Montreal Alouettes battling the winless Ottawa Redblacks on Thursday.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers then travel to Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton to take on West Division-leading Edmonton Elks for Friday Night Football.
Saturday features the Battle of the QEW as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats visit the Toronto Argonauts in a preview of the Labour Day Classic. The week then wraps up with Nathan Rourke and the surging BC Lions taking on the defending Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders on Sunday.
Redblacks vs. Alouettes
The Redblacks look to avoid going 0-10 on the season as they travel to Percival Stadium in Montreal to take on the league-leading Alouettes on Friday.
Ottawa is coming off another tough loss on Friday, losing 33-21 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a game that saw two-time CFL Most Outstanding Player Zach Collaros return to action for Winnipeg.
The Redblacks remained within a score of the Blue Bombers into the fourth quarter before Collaros was able to put the game away with 2:31 remaining, completing a 31- yard pass to Nic Demski to get into the red zone before Bryce Perkins finished the drive with a two-yard touchdown run.
Quarterback Jake Maier was strong in the loss for Ottawa, throwing for 314 yards with two touchdown passes and an interception. Receiver Keelan White also had 79 receiving yards in the loss on six receptions while Kalil Pimpleton picked up another 61 yards.
Outside of Maier’s two touchdowns, the Redblacks relied heavily on kicker Brett Lauther for offence, who went 3-for-3 on field goal attempts.
The Alouettes (8-1) were rewarded with a bye in Week 11 after defeating the Edmonton Elks 48-30 the week earlier in a battle between two of the top teams in the CFL.
Montreal maintained their reign at the top of the CFL standings thanks to a dominating performance from pivot Davis Alexander, who threw for 352 yards with four touchdowns and an interception.
Tyson Philpot dominated in the air, picking up 131 receiving yards with three touchdown catches while Tyler Snead added 146 yard with a touchdown catch.
The Alouettes also had the advantage on the ground with Travis Theis picking up 100 rushing yards to go along with 41 receiving yards.
Montreal is pulling away with the division, with a significant cushion ahead of the Toronto Argonauts (4-5) and Hamilton Tiger-Cats (4-6).
Blue Bombers vs. Elks
The West-leading Edmonton Elks host the Blue Bombers for Friday Night Football, who got Collaros back from a neck injury after a four-game absence.
Friday’s game could be crucial for both teams as the playoff picture is suddenly crowded in the West. The Elks (7-3) have a slight cushion on the second-place Roughriders (6-3), while the Blue Bombers are clinging to the last playoff spot, just ahead of the Lions (4-5) and Calgary Stampeders (4-6).
Collaros threw for 222 yards in his return during the team’s 33-21 win over the Redblacks mostly targeting Tim White and Brady Oliveira, who provided 85 and 80 receiving yards, respectively.
Winnipeg (5-4) was particularly strong on the ground with Bryce Perkins finishing up two scoring drives with a pair of rushing touchdowns while star running back Oliveira also had 74 rushing yards with a touchdown.
The Elks are coming off a 42-12 rout of the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday that saw JJ Ross dominate on the defensive end with two interceptions, including a pick-six in the fourth quarter, as well as a forced fumble.
Cody Fajardo threw for 301 yards with a touchdown while Joshua Cephus had 55 receiving yards with a touchdown catch.
Running back Justin Rankin continues to be one of the most dynamic players in the CFL, recording 61 receiving yards to go along with 47 rushing yards in the win.
Tiger-Cats vs. Argonauts
Saturday’s coverage features the Hamilton Tiger-Cats visiting BMO Field to take on the Argonauts with the two teams in a battle for home-field advantage to open the CFL playoffs.
Toronto currently holds the No. 2 seed in the East with a 4-5 record, but are only a game ahead of the Tiger-Cats who sit at 4-6.
Watch the Battle of the QEW LIVE at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on TSN4, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
The Argos are coming off a disheartening 42-12 loss to Edmonton on Saturday that saw Toronto limited to just a field goal in the second half.
Pivot Chad Kelly threw for 265 yards with an interception, which led to a Ross 85-yard pick-six late in the game. Nick Arbuckle also briefly entered the game, throwing for 12 yards with an interception and a rushing touchdown.
Receiver Jake Herslow made his season debut on Saturday, picking up 25 receiving yards while Kevin Mital led the way with 89 receiving yards.
Hamilton comes into Saturday’s matchup on a high after rallying to come back to defeat the Saskatchewan Roughriders 26-19 on Sunday night.
The Tiger-Cats were down 19-10 entering the fourth quarter before storming back with 16 straight points to pick up the victory.
Tre Ford led the way in the comeback, appearing in relief of Harrison Frost, throwing for 151 yards with a touchdown pass. Frost threw for 112 yards with a touchdown before giving way for Ford.
Keric Wheatfall had 108 receiving yards with a touchdown while Myron Mitchell also picked up 51 yards and a touchdown catch.
Roughriders vs. Lions
Week 12 wraps up on Sunday with the defending Grey Cup champion Roughriders taking on the streaking BC Lions.
Last season’s Most Outstanding Player Nathan Rourke returned from a shoulder injury on Aug. 8 and the team is rising in the West Division after winning their last three games.
Watch the Roughriders take the Lions LIVE at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on TSN3, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
The Lions (4-5) are coming off a 30-26 win over the Calgary Stampeders on Thursday that saw Rourke throw for 301 yards with two passing touchdowns, a rushing touchdown, and interception in the victory.
Running back Zander Horvath picked up 102 rushing yards with a touchdown while Jermain Jackson, Justin McInnis, and Keon Hatcher had 89, 86, and 83 receiving yards, respectively, to dominate the Stampeders defence.
The Roughriders (6-3) are coming off a hard-luck loss to the Tiger-Cats on Sunday that saw them lose a nine-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Trevor Harris struggled in the loss with 207 passing yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
KeeSean Johnson led the way for the Saskatchewan with 51 receiving yards while Johnny Johnson picked up 45 yards with a touchdown catch.
Saskatchewan’s offence was non-existent on the ground with backup quarterback Tommy Stevens picking up nine rushing yards on three carries as their only attempts.
TSN is home to every CFL game as the road to the 113th Grey Cup continues
