It will be an unprecedented Gray Cup on Sunday at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton. The Montreal Alouettes and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will face off in the Canadian Football League (CFL) championship game, something that has never happened before in the history of the Canadian circuit. And on Monday, the organizing committee announced that the match would take place in front of a packed house.
The Alouettes will participate in the Gray Cup game for the first time since 2010, when they defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders 21-18 at Commonwealth Stadium. It was the Birds’ second championship in a row.
The Blue Bombers are regulars
For their part, the Bombers will participate in the Gray Cup game for a fourth year in a row, and they will covet a third victory. After beating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2019 and 2021, the Bombers lost 23-24 to the Toronto Argonauts last year — after Argos defensive lineman Robbie Smith blocked the attempt 47-yard field goal from kicker Marc Liegghio with 54 seconds left on the clock.
Alouettes quarterback Cody Fajardo will play his first Gray Cup game, although he won the championship as a reserve quarterback with the Argonauts in 2017.
Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros is one of several players on the team who will participate in the CFL championship game for a fourth straight year. He will take part in the final for the fifth time in his career since he also triumphed with the Argonauts in 2012.
On Sunday, however, Collaros will become the first CFL quarterback to start four consecutive Gray Cup games.
The two head coaches are equally seasoned.
Montreal head coach Jason Maas was the Argos’ quarterback coach in 2012 and played in three Gray Cup games as a quarterback — winning with Edmonton in 2003 and 2005. However, this will be his first participation as head coach.
For his part, Mike O’Shea will covet a third title in four appearances as head coach of the Blue Bombers. He also won the precious trophy three times as an Argos player (1996, 1997 and 2004), as well as in 2012 as special teams coordinator for the Toronto squad.
Despite their recent Gray Cup success, the Blue Bombers are 12-15 in the CFL championship game. The Alouettes have triumphed 7 times in 18 appearances.
The Blue Bombers (14-4) won the two games played this season against the Alouettes (11-7), en route to winning the title in the West section. The Birds finished second in the East Division, and they had not recorded 11 victories in the same season since 2012.