While Sunday's win over the BC Lions at Taylor Field may have been exciting as the Riders defense prevented a game winning Lions drive after Chris Milo kicked one of his clutch field goals in the bitter Regina cold to put the Riders up four points in the fourth quarter, you couldn't help but notice that excitement was more about relief than it was about winning the West Division Semifinal.
With a clear goal at the start of the season set out by the organization, head coach Corey Chamblin and the Riders players to bring the Saskatchewan fans a home Grey Cup game when Taylor Field hosts the big game for potentially the last time in less than two weeks, the win over the Lions very quickly turned to focusing on the Calgary Stampeders. A team that, with apologies to the pathetic Winnipeg Blue Bombers, are the Riders most hated foes.
We could talk about the history forever. The Henry Burris trade, the running battle between Kory Sheets and Jon Cornish, the countless recent battles in the West playoffs and the pages full of bulletin board material handed out by players of both teams. It isn't needed. This rivalry is now simply about one thing: Being the best and getting to the Grey Cup.
That path will run through Calgary's McMahon Stadium as the regular season West Division leaders will play host to the Riders in a stadium that will almost surely be at least one-third Green on Sunday.
Calgary to their credit has one both games at McMahon Stadium this year, including a late season nail-biter to clinch homefield advantage. Calgary also conquered their demons against the Riders at McMahon in the postseason in 2012, winning on an infamous last second touchdown after the Riders appeared to have pulled out the upset. Calgary ended up upsetting BC in the West Final and playing in the Grey Cup, Saskatchewan loaded up on talent in the offseason to ensure that they would be back and here they are.
Outside of trash talking and narratives this is a match up between two very even football teams, which shouldn't be surprising given the clear talent gap in the CFL this season, one that Saskatchewan and Calgary sat atop of during the summer and fall. Blessed with solid defenses and the league's best running backs in Cornish and Sheets the winner of Sunday's contest will surely be favoured the following week in the Grey Cup, but you can guarantee that two teams that hate each other aren't thinking about anything other than getting their hands on their rivals.
If the Riders have an edge in this game it will be the fact that they have the momentum of playing an extra game while the Stampeders have been sitting at home, something that will have them acclimated to the cold that will be hitting them on Sunday. The Riders also may have the edge at quarterback with Kevin Glenn starting for Calgary going up against Darian Durant.
Durant was red hot on Sunday, throwing for two touchdowns and running for 97 yards on Sunday. It was a vintage Durant performance and one that has been rare over the past two seasons, but it was a promising one for the often maligned quarterback who has been missing his top target in Chris Getzlaf who has said he will likely play through the pain in the West Final. If the Riders want to go to the Grey Cup they will need more magic.
Sunday is the biggest day in the recent storied history of the Roughriders, the hopes and dreams of a football crazy province rest on four quarters. Who will be going to the 2013 Grey Cup? That question rests on four quarters at McMahon.
