johnzo

this is a great conversation. like a lot of others, I've got my own emotional / mental health things to deal with. all best to all those who struggle.

I can feel this, I stepped back from sports in general in 1996 when Jets 1.0 packed up, the Rough Riders folded (I was in Ottawa then) and the CFL -- my original sports true love -- was just about dead. Prior to that I was a massive sports fan, really into everything. I've never really been bothered by teams winning and losing -- that's cyclical -- but the ongoing existence of the league is where my anxiety would go if I let it. So nowadays I tune out all mention of the CFL's economic health and management and just watch the games on TSN (occasionally live too). I'm thankful for every kickoff and I actually kinda can't believe the CFL still exists in the same form it did when I first fell in love with it. since it's USA thanksgiving tomorrow, ought to note I'm thankful for MBB too, this place really helps me feel the bomber love, the strange, ineffable thrill I get from watching the blue and gold kick ass. this place really keeps my fandom alive. thanks folks.

I'm not going to rewatch that **** but my takeaway from Sunday is that Toronto found ways to get pressure on Collaros that he couldn't cope with -- they dialed up some excellent pressure in the 4th quarter with delayed blitzing that got home. Normally in the 4Q our OL goes fortress mode, but the Argos found the cracks. Credit to Corey Mace and their D for that. I don't think Collaros was 100%. That missed throw to Ellingson, he's made that throw dozens of times as a Bomber. I think he was well enough to play, but not to play well. I wonder if that influenced the playcalling, if Collaros' injury shortened the Bomber playbook?

If Schoen bolts for the NFL, Lawler would be a real nice replacement. Bailey and Ellingson appear to be free agents after this year -- the signing stories I see talk about them both signing single-year deals prior to this season.

GRANT!

foodwise I am simple. my usual Grey Cup thing is a trough of poutine. I get some oven fries and some real nice curds from the fancy cheese store. maybe some chopped bacon in there, some green onions, whatever else is lying around. Assemble in baking pan, cook in oven, cover with envelope gravy and lots of good coarse pepper. delicious. If I get inspired to peel some ginger tomorrow, I might have some homemade ginger ale too. Alas I can't drink anything harder anymore, doctor's orders. my birthday falls near the Grey Cup so sometimes there is leftover cake too!

maybe a youtube tour? something of this magnitude might need video...

please does anyone have a picture of the Argos practicing in parkas? I think one could have some fun with that.

Can't find it now but I remember a photo of an awesome whiteboard in the Bomber dressing room with a game day weather forecast written on it. it went something like: Winds: 50km/h Snow: 30cm Temperature: -10 C Forecast: WE DON'T CARE wish I could find that. searched on twitter but no love, Musk probably broke their search. wind really helped us too. I think the TiCats win that game if they had a punter who could punt into the wind even a little bit. Those repeated nine yard punts he gave us were basically turnovers..

I love this whole weird league of ours and TBH if Hamilton had managed to close out last year's Grey Cup I would have been happy because the game was real competitive & dramatic. Certainly less happy than I was with the epic bomber win, but I wouldn't have been too bummed about a bomber Grey Cup loss in 2021. The only team I really hate is the maple leafs. I grew up around a lot of super dumb Leaf fans and so I will continue to celebrate Leafs Elimination Day and if I need a pick-me up I go and read about their recent playoff collapses.

Can't argue with the results. Thank you for your service!

I am not a baseball fan but I love me some freak pitchers. Dock Ellis will always be my #1 baseball hero.

oh man I thought I was the only one who did this. cheers to a happy but unproductive Monday.

my crunch of the game: BC receiver is fighting hard thru multiple tackles for an oliveira-style first down. Looks like he might make it, he's really givin er out there. Could be a great football play-- but then BA comes into the frame like a goddman thunderbolt and stops him COLD. 100% pure downhill safety play. You love to see it. my block of the game: Bailey, multiple times. Once he led B.Oli through the line like a damn fullback. Another time, he came flying in to chip a BC guy and turned a zero-yard swing pass into a five-yard Oli rumble. we crap on TSN but I really appreciate Suitor and company calling out those sweet blocks. Featured in the replay both times. Suitor does have a legit solid appreciation of hard nosed lunchpail players.

I don't think I've ever seen a team come apart like that on their final crunch-time chance, especially in the playoffs. Even the worst teams in the CFL can get lined up when they get down to crunch time, it just seems like basic football competency. and most of these players have played in front of bigger crowds than the IGF one. Bombers played down far enough to give the Lions a longshot 60-second drive to redemption and the Lions were just flat-out were not ready for the opportunity. TSN talked about the numerous second-year starters on the team, implying that's a young team by CFL standards. Some of them definitely got an opportunity to learn a lesson yesterday. A couple times during the game I noticed that Bighill was blitzing while WJ was dropping into pass coverage ... looked like they were trying to bait throws to crossers running through Biggie's space...

2021 health stuff can go to hell. Congrats on being well and enjoy your 1/30000 share of the crowd HH.

man why didn't I take up my pals on the offer of Kraken tickets today ... could've worn a bomber jersey and gotten some high fives...

HH to the Winnipeg crowd that basically closed out the game. Completely discombobulated Rourke and the Lions. TBH I'm shocked at how badly BC was prepared for noise but I'll credit our side with it and move on.

team with home field advantage gets to pick uniforms, right?

so the thing I wanna know is ... do we wear our road whites for the Grey Cup? 2-0 in Grey Cups with em...

"sh!t was awesome" -- Z. Collaros, 11/13/2022

have we learned nothing from this man?

all those Collaros / Clements parallels ... great scrambler, accurate passer, great vision ... and now the WF injury and Grey Cup week injury watch to boot...

Typical Bomber playoff win ... we play dominant but find a way to make it dramatic.

Winnipeg crowd gets the Happy Honker here, killing two plays' worth of clock in the final minute.