RWB CFL podcast #298: Fireworks on Labour Day

It all went by so fast … the Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast digs in with a look at the penultimate week of the 2025 CFL season; co-hosts Os Davis and Joe Pritchard do the usual rundown of games played and days to come, but with the Edmonton Elks’ elimination, taking stock is also in the cards. The RWB looks back on a seemingly slightly less futile bid by the Elks and the remarkable wire-to-wire run by the Saskatchewan Roughriders, both this show’s and the vogue pick for this year’s Grey Cup back in June. As for picks and predictions for week 21, welllllll, we’re saying don’t even think about betting these games. Every single game potentially leads to subsequent games in which the second string might be waved in early.  However, RWB does believe in the Elks upset this week… Also, what's up with that whole Grey Cup Team Social Pass thing? In short, it ain't pretty. The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Enjoying Canadian football while we can…  

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast this week marvels at the way the league’s standings somehow tightened up further after week 19. After the Edmonton Elks and Calgary Stampeders topped the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats, respectively, RWB co-hosts Joe Prtichard and Os Davis marvel at the possibility of a four way, 9-9 tie bottlenecking the West side of the table. And the RWB also has a requiem of sorts for the Ottawa Redblacks; of course, we’ve been pouring one out for the hapless franchise for years… All this, plus picks and predictions for week 20 with – incredibly enough – all four games still carrying significance for the 2025 playoffs. The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Who do you have?  

All right, so week 18 in the 2025 CFL season was little more than three blowouts resulting in the elimination of the Ottawa Redblacks and defending champion Toronto Argonauts – nevertheless, the Rouge White & Blue CFL podcast is here looking forward to next week because whoa, does the plot thicken… As the 2025 CFL regular season reaches its finale, RWB co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis put a moratorium on the previously mentioned teams’ seasons and, in picking and predicting for next week’s games, ultimately run through just a few of the many (many!) variations we could see in this year’s playoffs.   Plus, the RWB manages to conjure up a Hollywood movie plotline for each of the seven teams remaining in contention, from Cody Fajardo leading his Edmonton Elks through a couple of his former employers to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats ending the CFL’s longest run of futility as Bo Levi Mitchell reasserts himself as the league’s unquestionable MVP – and MOP. Check out this episode of the RWB for all the plotlines in the CFL… The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: The beginning of a beautiful friendship.  

Week 17 of the CFL season was thoroughly enjoyed by Rouge White & Blue podcast co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis – after all, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes both won, the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Hamilton Tiger-Cats lost, and the standings table just ratcheted up with excitement. So what’s not to like? Welllllllllllllllllllllllll… As fans of the Canadian game surely know, CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston this past week announced a half-dozen rule changes to befall the sport over the next two seasons – and some fans aren’t happy. In fact, the RWB wonders whether we’ll be watching an American football thtat’s Canadian in name only by 2030. This may be, concludes the RWB, all about the money. Depressing potential reality aside, the RWB nevertheless plows forward with an increasingly interesting playoff picture (and scenarios!) plus a tiny bit of fantasy football speak plus picks and predictions for week 18. The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: “Rouge” is the name, y’all…  

On this episode of Rouge White & Blue CFL podcast, co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis marvel at how much the narrative of an entire league can change in just one week. Like, for example, how this week after the BC Lions ran up 50-plus points on the Calgary Stampeders, the former suddenly look a lot more plausible to seriously compete for the Grey Cup than the latter. Not to mention the Montreal Alouettes stealing one from the similarly QB-challenged Toronto Argonauts to put the 2023 CFL champions in suddenly well stronger p;osition that the ’24 champs. And finally, there are the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who – ah, nothing’s changing with the Felines, unfortunately… This rundown plus picks and predictions for week 17 (no way, already?!!?!?) from the RWB! The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Waiting for next week when everything’s different again…  

This week, it’s episode #300 of the Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast – and as MAD magazine would put it on similar occasions: “very big deal.” Because this is football podcasting, RWB co-hosts Os Davis and Joe Pritchard aren’t so interested in the distant past when the recent past will suffice, like a week 15 in which 258 points were scored and the East division tightened. And for the Rider haters (hey, we’re sympathetic), the RWB rolls back gloomy thoughts of the 2025 CFL champion Saskatchewan Roughriders – does giving up 48 points to McLeod Bethel-Thompson’s Montreal Alouettes indicate chinks in the armor…? Per usual, RWB previews the upcoming week’s games and talks early playoff scenarios (or, rather, the lack thereof). The Rouge, White & Blue: Podcasting since Edmonton were last CFL champions…

Meanwhile in Canada… Coming into the homestretch, the Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast notes that things are turning, um, south for co-host Joe Pritchard’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers, co-host Os Davis’s Montreal Alouettes, and not-quite-everybody’s vogue pick for the 2025 Grey Cup, BC Lions. So what’s left for the RWB to do but marvel (some more) at those Saskatchewan Roughriders and Hamilton Tiger-Cats, not to mention the utterly amazing Justin Rankin? We wrap last week’s games and as usual try valiantly to put forth rational pick and predictions for week 16. The Rouge, White & Blue CFL Podcast: Just call us the Bethel-Thompson Twins…  

(Alternatively: “Two barnburners and a Calgary stampede”) In an annual tradition, Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast hosts break down the annual traditional slate of the CFL’s Labour Day Classic games. RWB co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis are wowed by the Calgary Stampeders, accepting of another Saskatchewan Roughriders win and wondering where those Toronto Argonauts and BC Lions’ll finish. The RWB also couldn’t help but to peek at the remaining schedule, what with the 2025 season entering the homestretch (well, approaching the homestretch) while attempting to pick winners against the spead an din CFL Pick ‘Em… The Rouge, White & Blue CFL Podcast: Still saying nice things about the Stamps and Riders…  

What can the Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast say about week 12 of the 2025 CFL season? Well, it’s a podcast, so you can be sure RWB co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis fins something to say. Lots of somethings, in fact. Somethings like: Wouldn’t the Winnipeg Blue Bombers really, *really* like a bye right about now? Speaking of weirded-out schedules, how about the Calgary Stampeders now sitting at 5-0 versus the Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders? Is there anything more disenheartening than watching a star-studded Montreal Alouettes defense go for naught as the offense gets completely crushed in TOP and, you know, points scored? How about those Toronto Argonauts, hanging 51 on the BC Lions and suddenly playing themselves into contention? And how about those Edmonton Elks, just a half-game out of the playoffs while helmed by the mysteriously underrated Cody Fajardo? Answers (or at least attempts thereof) to these questions and more – plus picks and predictios for the Labour Day Classics of week 13… The Rouge, White & Blue CFL Podcast: Sorry, the N-F-what?

After week 11 of the 2025 CFL season, certain things have become quite clear at the Rouge, White & Blue CFL Podcast … things Like the Saskatchewan Roughriders may be even better than advertised; the (defending champion!) Toronto Argonauts might be worse than we thought; and, of course, the seeming inevitability of the West-to-East crossover come playoff time. The realization leads to some classic CFL-based conversation by RWB co-hosts Os Davis and Joe Pritchard – the RWB questions whether the crossover is in itself fair for the no. 2 and no. 3 West seeds. And while one easy solution might just be to add a 10th team, Joe presents an intriguing case as to why adding the Atlantic Schooners, Halifax Fighting Lobsters or whomever might actually be a *bad* move for the league. But beyond the tangents, the RWB guys (attempt to) make sense of the week that was and pick/predict week 12, including an RWB Bowl matchup featuring the Winnipeg Blue Bombers vs the Montreal Alouettes (with quite possibly QB #5 going for the latter) and a marquee Riders-Calgary Stamps game. The Rouge, White & Blue CFL Podcast: No more 2014, please!