HAMILTON (9 - 10) at WINNIPEG (10 - 8)
Top Trends for this game.
HAMILTON is 22-9 ATS (+12.1 Units) as an underdog over the last 3 seasons.
WINNIPEG is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) as a favorite of 3.5 to 9.5 points over the last 3 seasons.
WINNIPEG is 3-13 ATS (-11.3 Units) as a favorite over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
HAMILTON is 6-4 against the spread versus WINNIPEG over the last 3 seasons
WINNIPEG is 5-5 straight up against HAMILTON over the last 3 seasons
5 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
EDMONTON (12 - 7) at BRITISH COLUMBIA (11 - 7)
Top Trends for this game.
EDMONTON is 12-27 ATS (-17.7 Units) in road games after 2 or more consecutive straight up wins since 1996.
BRITISH COLUMBIA is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record after 9 or more games over the last 2 seasons.
BRITISH COLUMBIA is 30-48 ATS (-22.8 Units) in home games versus division opponents since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
BRITISH COLUMBIA is 6-4 against the spread versus EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
BRITISH COLUMBIA is 6-4 straight up against EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
6 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
HAMILTON vs. WINNIPEG
Hamilton is 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Winnipeg
Hamilton is 5-10 SU in its last 15 games when playing Winnipeg
Winnipeg is 10-5 SU in its last 15 games when playing Hamilton
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Winnipeg's last 6 games when playing Hamilton
EDMONTON vs. BRITISH COLUMBIA
Edmonton is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against British Columbia
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Edmonton's last 7 games when playing on the road against British Columbia
British Columbia is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of British Columbia's last 14 games
CFL Betting Notes - Finals
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
The one thing we know for sure after Sunday’s semifinal round of this year’s CFL playoffs is that the league will crown a new Grey Cup Champion for the first time in three seasons. The two-time defending champion Montreal Alouettes came up on the short end of a 52-44 shootout with Hamilton in Sunday’s first game as six-point point home favorites in a game that easily went ‘over’ the 55-point line. In the other semifinal matchup, Edmonton eliminated Calgary 33-19 as a two-point home favorite. The total in this game went ‘over’ the closing 51½-point line by just half a point. The stage is now set for this Sunday’s East and West Division finals with Winnipeg hosting Hamilton and Edmonton travelling to British Columbia to tangle with the Lions. The following is a brief betting preview for both games with lines provided by The Greek.com.
Sunday, November 20
Hamilton Tiger Cats vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (-3) Over/Under (51)
Hamilton’s upset over Montreal this past Sunday raised its record on the year to 9-10 straight-up and 10-9 against the spread. It is 3-7 SU in 10 road games this season, but 5-5 SU. The total had stayed ‘under’ in its previous six outings before Sunday’s game.
Winnipeg is coming off a bye week after winning the East Division with an overall record of 10-8 SU (11-6-1 ATS). It went 5-4 SU at home this season and 4-4 ATS. The total went ‘over’ in its final two regular season games, but has stayed ‘under’ in 11 of its 18 games this season.
These two teams played one another three times this season with the Blue Bombers sweeping the season series SU and going 2-1 ATS. They covered as 8 ½-point road underdogs on opening day in a 24-16 victory. In Week 9, they squeezed-out a 30-27 win at home, but failed to cover as 3 ½-point home favorites. They completed the sweep by hammering Hamilton 33-17 as four-point road underdogs on Oct. 7. The total stayed ‘under’ in both games in Hamilton, but went ‘over’ the total in Winnipeg.
The Tiger Cats averaged 26.7 points a game and gave-up 26.6 points a game, while the Bombers averaged 24 points a game and gave-up an average of 24.
Edmonton Eskimos vs. British Columbia Lions (-7) Over/Under (49½)
Sunday’s win pushed Edmonton’s record on the year to 12-7 SU and 10-9 ATS. It was 5-4 both SU and ATS on the road this season and the total has stayed ‘under’ in 12 of its 19 games this year overall.
British Columbia was also off last week after capturing the West Division crown by virtue of winning a three-way tie breaker. It is 11-7 SU and 10-7 ATS. It went 6-3 SU (5-4 ATS) at home this season and the total has stayed ‘under’ in seven of its last nine games overall.
The Lions hold a 3-1 edge both SU and ATS in this season’s four-game series. They won both games at home and earned a split with the Eskimos on the road. In Week 14, BC upended Edmonton 33-24 as a six-point home favorite and made it three of four with a 29-20 victory as a four-point home favorite on Oct. 29. The total stayed ‘under’ in three of the four games overall and in both games played in British Columbia.
The Lions outscored the Eskimos by 84 total points in the regular season and gave-up an average of 21.4 points a game, while Edmonton gave-up an average of 22.3 points a game.
CFL Playoff Semifinals Preview and Picks
By Charles-André Marchand
Covers.com
HAMILTON TIGER CATS AT WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (-3, 51)
The Blue Bombers finished first in the East ahead of the Alouettes, who were ousted from the playoffs last week by the Tiger Cats. But neither Winnipeg nor Hamilton had a strong regular-season finish, with both teams having lost seven of their last 10 games.
While the Blue Bombers have struggled on offense, the Tiger Cats defense has proven way too generous, including in a 52-44 OT win last Sunday in Montreal. The good news for the Bombers is that Buck Pierce will be back behind center, although he has thrown more interceptions than touchdown passes in his last seven games (12 to four).
Winnipeg has arguably the league’s best group of receivers in Terrence Edwards, Clarence Denmark and Corey Watson. The team’s rushing game is not quite the same without Fred Reid, but Chris Garrett has done pretty good job with 689 yards in six games for an average of 6.2 yards per carry.
Running the ball is not a problem for Hamilton and the resilient Avon Cobourne is also excellent in pass protection. Cobourne always proves at his best in the most important games and he proved it once again with 97 rushing yards against the Alouettes and a key touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Tiger Cats will also benefit from the acquisition of receiver Terrence Jeffers-Harris on Friday, the day after he was let go by the Blue Bombers. The 23-year-old won’t be eligible for this game, but you can imagine he will be grilled by the Tiger Cats coaching staff for any information about Winnipeg’s playbook. Will it make some sort of difference? Our colleagues in Ontario certainly seem to think so, or at least wish it will.
With the return of Canadian CB Ryan Hinds, the Tiger Cats will be able to bring back into the lineup DE Stevie Baggs, who—because of the import/non-import ratio (which involves citizens and non-citizens of Canada; Baggs is not a citizen)—was left out against the Alouettes. The Bombers won their three regular-season games against Hamilton by a combined score of 87-60 and they have won five of the last six playoff showdowns between these two teams since 1988.
Winnipeg’s defense, led by Tim Burke, dominated in many statistical categories during the season and should be a difference-maker in this game.
Pick: Winnipeg
EDMONTON ESKIMOS AT B.C. LIONS (-6, 50)
The Lions had a terrible start to the season but have since been almost unbeatable, and now they are one win away of hosting the Grey Cup in front of their Vancouver fans. Wally Buono’s team had only one win in its first seven games only to go on an eight-game winning streak.
It has been the other way around for Edmonton, which boasted a perfect record before losing a few games in a row (the team has since bounced back down the stretch).
The Lions have won three of their four games against the Eskimos and have to be considered as heavy favorites in this Western final for many reasons. Travis Lulay must be considered one of the best quarterbacks in the CFL. His prime target, Geroy Simon, enjoyed his best campaign in three years with 1350 yards and eight touchdowns during the regular season.
B.C.’s defense is second best in the league, led up front by the likes of Keron Williams, Aaron Hunt, Brent Johnson and Khalif Mitchell. And let’s not forget that the front seven is anchored by MLB Solomon Elimimian, probably the best in the league at his position and a young athlete who may very well get an invitation from an NFL team next year.
Without Canadian RB Jerome Messam (knee), the Eskimos become a more predictable team on offense. Ricky Ray might still win the passing duel and once again gain more than 300 yards through the air against BC. Ray had the best QB rating in the league with a 99.3 mark during the regular season. He can count on two of the best receivers in the business with Fred Stamps and Adarius Bowman, who both caught for more than 1100 yards this year. And even if both are covered, Ray can rely on Jason Barnes.
But will that be enough? I doubt it.
Pick: B.C.
CFL Conference finals
Hamilton (10-9) @ Winnipeg (10-8) - Blue Bombers won all three games vs Hamilton this year; 24-16 (+9) in road opener, 30-27 (-2.5) at home in Week 8, then 33-17 (+3.5) on road in Week 15. Winnipeg lost three of last four at home, but did they did have bye last week, while Cats were winning slugfest 52-44 in Montreal. Both teams have struggled in second half of season. Bombers are 4-7 in last 11 games; TiCats are 6-8 in last 14. Six of last seven Hamilton games stayed under total; four of last five Winnipeg home games went over.
Edmonton (12-7) @ BCLions (11-7) - Lions started season 0-5, wound up with a bye- they covered nine of last 11 games. BC won three of four in series this year, with Eskimos winning first meeting 33-17 at home in Week 3 (-2.5), then losing next three, 36-1 at home in Week 8 (-6), 33-24 (+5.5) at BC Place in Week 14, then 29-20 (+4.5) here again three weeks ago. Streaky Edmonton won five of last six games; they won first five games, but went 2-6 in between. Lion covered four of their last five at home. Under is 11-3 in BC's last 14 games.