Welcome back CFL Fans! The CFL 2022 regular season is behind us, and it’s time to calculate the CFL Predictions for the Division Semi-Finals. @TheBrysh Power Rankings (PR’s) are calculated using a proprietary algorithm. @TheBrysh Power Rankings are also used to calculate weekly predictions; Week 21 predictions for @TheBrysh were 3/4, for a season total of 56/81 or 69% on straight up wins. As the weeks have progressed, the numbers have become dialed in and the predictions have become more accurate. Point spreads are courtesy of draftkings.com and are accurate at the time of writing.
CFL WEEK 21: RECAP
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS @ MONTREAL ALOUETTES
The 9-9 Montreal Alouettes are hosting the 8-10 Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium on Sunday. These teams met on 3 occasions in the regular season, with the Alouettes taking 2 wins to the ‘Cats 1 and with a differential of only 1 point between them. Aside from a home field advantage for Montreal, this is a tough game to call.
If the Al’s have an offensive edge, I have to identify an upper hand in the depth of the Tiger-Cats defensive roster. Hamilton’s Defensive Line was swallowing up RB’s all season, with DL’s like Micah Johnson, limiting opponents rushing to under 84 yards per game. The Ti-Cats LB and DB squads are loaded with talent like Jovan Santos-Knox, Adarius Pickett and the duo of Richard Leonard and Marc-Antoine DeQuoy combined for 8 interceptions.
Montreal has to be recognized as being the superior club when it comes to offensive performance, having averaged 26.4 PPG to Hamilton’s 23.4 PPG. QB Dane Evans had a great season in 2022, passing for almost 4,000 yards and 16 TD’s with a 67% completion rate. Add to that 2 RB’s in Walter Fletcher and Jeshrun Antwi, who combined for 1,086 yards rushing and 553 yards receiving, and you have firepower. @TheBrysh picks the Alouettes to beat the Tiger-Cats 24-22.
CALGARY STAMPEDERS @ BC LIONS
The 12-6 Calgary Stampeders are traveling to British Columbia to challenge the Lions at BC Place. After 3 meetings this season, the BC Lions have a 2-1 edge in wins, however the Calgary Stampeders were ahead with an 11 point advantage in scoring differential. The Stampeders finished the 2022 season on a high note with 2 big wins over the Saskatchewan Roughriders by a total of 37 points, while the BC Lions finished with a 24-9 humiliation from the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The biggest question for the BC Lions is the status and condition of Canadian star QB Nathan Rourke, following a lengthy absence due to a serious injury. If the Lions receivers, like WR Keon Hatcher and RB James Butler can break loose from coverage, Rourke could be in for a big game. Fan interest is definitely peaking, with an expected ticket sales over 30,000, which could give the Lions a big home field advantage.
The quarterback debate between these teams is obvious with BC’s Nathan Rourke and the Stampeders’ Jake Maier, but the running element is a different story. The Calgary Stampeders rushing game produces an amazing 6 yards per carry, and 1,088 of those yards are due to RB Ka’Deem Carey and his 6.63 average with 10 TD’s. Calgary also boasts a monster defense that allowed only 22 points per game, the biggest part of the “D” are DL’s Shawn Lemon, Mike Rose and Folarin Orimolade who combined for over 20 QB Sacks. @TheBrysh predicts an UPSET win for the Calgary Stampeders 34-32 over the BC Lions.
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Written by: Jack Cameron @TheBrysh
