Morning Coffee: A FanDuel best bet for the Stampede Bowl

The stage is set for the inaugural Stampede Bowl.

Canadian country must artist Dawson Grey is set to perform in the pre-game concert, Bret Michaels will be in attendance for the halftime concert, and the CFL on TSN panel has a special event planned for the big night.

More on that in just a moment.

The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth kicks off with the first-ever Stampede Bowl to begin Week 5 in the CFL.

The Calgary Stampeders will host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Thursday Night Football with a brand-new red and silver trophy on the line.

The Stampeders, which are coming off a bye week with a 2-1 record, will face a tough test against a division rival that is undefeated through its first three games.

Winnipeg is 3-0 both straight up and against the spread.

The Bombers, which opened the year as a co-favourite to win the Grey Cup at FanDuel, are one win back of the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the CFL standings.

With Winnipeg and Saskatchewan a combined 7-0, and the BC Lions off to a 1-3 start, Calgary can take a big step towards contending for a playoff spot with an upset win.

Can the Stampeders hand the Bombers their first loss?

This is Morning Coffee for Thursday July 3rd, 2025.

A FanDuel Best Bet For The Stampede Bowl

The Stampeders offence exploded out of the gates with an average of 33.5 points per game in back-to-back wins over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Toronto Argonauts.

Then in Week 3, they struggled to get anything going in a disappointing 20-12 loss to the Ottawa Redblacks.

A big part of the problem was Calgary’s inability to stop the run, as Daniel Adeboboye, William Stanback, and Dustin Crum combined for 242 rushing yards for the Redblacks that night.

Calgary held Crum to 111 passing yards on 22 attempts, but Adeboboye and Stanback both finished with an average of over 9.0 yards per carry and that turned out to be the difference with the game on the line late.

Two weeks later, the Stampeders are coming off a bye and looking to make a statement versus Winnipeg.

Calgary is tied for the league lead with 14 pass knockdowns but will be in tough to slow down Dalton Schoen, Nic Demski and Keric Wheatfall on Thursday Night Football.

Meanwhile, Matthew Peterson has averaged 5.2 yards per carry for 237 rushing yards in three games.

Now Brady Oliveira returns to the lineup looking to give Winnipeg’s rushing attack a significant boost.

The Stampeders can’t afford to let Peterson run wild on them the way that the Redblacks running backs did a couple of weeks ago.

They also can’t afford a letdown in the secondary, with Schoen, Demski, and Wheatfall coming off a combined 14 catches for 234 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s win over the Edmonton Elks.

Zach Collaros was 25-of-30 for 334 yards and three touchdowns in that win over Edmonton.

Collaros is now the third choice to win the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award at FanDuel and he certainly has the talent and the weapons around him to do it.

The Stampeders put up a decent fight in each of their two losses to Winnipeg last season, with a combined minus-seven point differential in those games.

However, the Bombers have dominated on both sides of the football out of the gates this season, and I’m not sure the extra week of preparation will be enough for Calgary to pull off the upset win tonight.

CFL favourites are 10-6 this season.

The favourite has covered the spread in all 10 wins.

Winnipeg is 3-0 straight up and against the spread.

The Bombers are -3.5 and -178 to win outright.

While I’m tempted to lay the points with Winnipeg, I’ll take a different approach for tonight’s game.

I’ll lock in a FanDuel Same Game Parlay with the Bombers to win outright and Wheatfall to register 40+ receiving yards at -110 odds.

Wheatfall has been a major bright spot for Winnipeg early on, and one big play could be enough for him to get the 40 receiving yards I need.

Oliveira’s return complicates the situation for the Bombers backfield, but I think all three of Wheatfall, Schoen, and Demski will factor into the passing attack.

The Stampeders looked good out of the gates, but this will be the toughest defence they’ve faced, and the fact that Vernon Adams Jr. hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass yet is a concern.

Winnipeg’s defence has been excellent against the run and in the fourth quarter.

Even if Calgary makes this a competitive game, I still think the Bombers will win the inaugural Stampede Bowl.

Meanwhile, make sure you give our team a follow @TSN_EDGE on X for more details on the special event that the CFL on TSN panel has planned for tonight.

Our CFL analyst Henoc Muamba is quite the athlete.

It will be interesting to see if he is up for the challenge that Kate Beirness and the panel have presented him.

Enjoy the Stampede Bowl, everyone!