Today is Labor Day, and as if the custom in Canadian Football every Labor Day, it's time for the Labor Day Classic! Well, there ARE two of them [The Calgary Stampeders face the Edmonton Eskimos while the Hamilton Tiger Cats take on the Toronto Argonauts...] BUT since I don't care about Ontario, let's focus on the greatest rivalry in football history...Calgary vs. Edmonton. The two cities are a two and a half hour drive apart, so it's easy to see why we have such a good rivalry. Eskimo fans drive down and fill McMahon Stadium with stupidity, and then we drive up to Commonwealth Stadium and fill it with class. Anyways, here's a brief retrospective on the Labor Day Classic:
Records: Stampeders are 3-6 [with 2 overtime losses] this year, while the Eskimos are 7-2.
Head-To Head Record: This season, the Eskimos beat the Stampeders 27-20 in Calgary. All-time, Edmonton leads the series 108-66 [with 4 ties]. All-time on Labor Day, Edmonton leads 23-15. This is the 39th Labor Day Classic.
The Prediction: While local newspaper the Calgary Sun has put their balls on the line, offering FREE NEWSPAPERS TO ALL tomorrow if the Stampeders lose...the Stamps are having a crap-tactular year. And while a bunch of recent NFL cuts are heading up north again...they won't be on the field today....which means the Stamps are going to be looking at their 7th losss of the season. Eskimos go over, 36-24.
Grey Cup Fact: The Eskimos have won 11 CFL Championships [1954-56, 1975, 1978-82, 1987, 1993], while Calgary has raised the Grey Cup five times [1948, 1971, 1992, 1998, 2001]. Of course, the Eskimos have LOST the Grey Cup Game 10 times [1921-22, 1952, 1960, 1973-74, 1977, 1986, 1990, 1996], and Calgary has lost six times {1949, 1968, 1970, 1991, 1995, 1999]. Of course, since I was born [1985], the Stampeders are 3-3 in Grey Cup Games, while Edmonton are 2-3. So...Calgary's better.
EDIT: QR77 reports that 1 out of 25 Calgarians are AT the game. Damn.
(edited by Freeway420 on 2.9.02 1213) "That's what the Internet is for, slandering others anonymously" Banky Edwards (Jason Lee), Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back
"Smile." Maguire (Jude Law), Road to Perdition
"You can't fight in here, this is the War Room!" The President (Peter Sellers), Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love the Bomb
Yeah, the Alouettes suspended Phillips for one game for walking out, then let him back in and he carried them to a rout of the Roughriders. Sad, really.
Still, CFL is cool...but it's just a minor league for the NFL. PLEASE. BELIEVE. IT.
And yes, College Football rules us all.
"That's what the Internet is for, slandering others anonymously" Banky Edwards (Jason Lee), Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back
"Smile." Maguire (Jude Law), Road to Perdition
"You can't fight in here, this is the War Room!" The President (Peter Sellers), Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love the Bomb
"Smeg off, Rimmer." Dave Lister from Red Dwarf "The Nazis had pieces of flare that they made the Jews wear." Peter Gibbons from Office Space "What's the name of the cat?" "Annoying Customer." Randel Graves from Clerks showing off his people skills