Welcome to the 2023 CFL playoffs! Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis again experience the paradoxical simultaneous feeling that this Canadian football season started eons again, yet is ending far too quickly.

The beginning of the end of said 2023 CFL season kicks off on Saturday with the semifinal round of the playoffs, with the no.2-seeded home teams each favourites: the Montreal Alouettes are giving 3 points versus the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, while the Calgary Stampeders get (a possibly too meager) 6½ points at BC Lions.

RWB makes the case for each of the four teams, what will be required for an upset in either game and, for what it’s worth, suggestions on betting the two games. Chalk or ‘dogs? The RWB’s got answers. OK, educated guesses, anyway.

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Playoffs?!?!??!

With one more week to play in the 2023 CFL season, the week 20 results in and shakeups already gone down in Roughriders land, the Rouge White & Blue Podcast assesses some final trends going into the playoffs.

For example, the suddenly much clearer path for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to come out of the West, the reasons why BC Lions are ripe for an upset at the hands of the Calgary Stampeders in round one, the Toronto Argonauts on the verge of football history and whether there’s hope for the future of the Ottawa Redblacks.

And as piqued as RWB co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis are for the playoffs, damned if they’re not gonna miss this Canadian football thing in a few weeks…

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: On Canadian football past, present and future

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast certainly hopes those football fans who love high-scoring wild rides were tuned into the Canadian game in week 19 because the points mostly came in bunches and no lead was safe.

With the 2023 CFL playoffs just about concretized into shape, RWB co-hosts Joe Pritchard and Os Davis consider if maybe the season isn’t a tad too long (heresy, we know) but nevertheless find some intrigue remaining in the season. As we all await some potentially dandy matchups in those playoffs, the RWB wonders about what’s happening with those Saskatchewan Roughriders and their baffling 6-game losing streak, in what historical context we should be viewing the Toronto Argonauts and whether the Montreal Alouettes can give the Argos a game in the postseason.

RWB then goes on to pick ‘n’ predict the week 20 games and try to provide the waning of attention a few reasons to tune into a lighter slate of games – aside from rubbernecking the Regina trainwreck, that is…

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Drawing a historical season to a close…

Despite the season winding to a close with most playoff spots settled, the Rouge White & Blue Podcast remains fascinated. RWB co-hosts were knocked out this week by the dominance of the historically (in both sense of the word) mind-blowing Toronto Argonauts, the edge-of-seat thrills in week 18’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers vs. BC Lions game and the surprisingly slick play of both the Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Week 18 may have solidified the CFL playoff picture even further, but the RWB still has lots of enthusiasm and lots of reasons to watch the 2023 season’s three remaining weeks of play – which is not to say we’re not looking forward to what should be some dandy playoff games. The RWB analyzes week 18, looks to the future of a hapless Canadian franchise or two, and picks the week 19 games with an eye on the still-evolving playoff picture.

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Talking playoffs?!?!?!

The Rouge White & Blue Podcast finds itself, along with the rest of CFL fandom, in a very strange bit of the season indeed.

In general, co-hosts Os Davis and Joe Pritchard look back on a week 17 in which the Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats clinched playoff spots while the Ottawa Redblacks and Calgary Stampeders juuuuuuuust about got eliminated after losses – thereby leaving us all with five of six spots taken (and the Saskatchewan Roughriders barely able to avoid snagging the last available slot.

So where does this leave the league and its fans for four more weeks of football? The RWB takes a look forward at what to look forward to in those remaining games while wondering what we should take from week 17, particularly a somewhat lackluster win for Joe’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers over essentially the Toronto Argonauts second string.

What’s left to the 2023 season? The RWB’ll tell ya!

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Wishing everyone a happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast retains both co-hosts, i.e. Joe Pritchard and Os Davis, yet still manage to host a guest as well – and not just any guest but already-legendary CFL-themed video maestro Coach Phil.

Phil joins the RWB for a few biographical notes, but mostly to talk the 2023 CFL season, speculate on the 2023 CFL postseason, plus break down the games of week past and attempt to pick ‘em for the next in the RWB style.

 But hey, have we mentioned Coach Phil is our guest? He brings plenty of what’s made him a name in CFL-centric social media: Optimism for Tre Ford and his Elks, contagious enthusiasm for this year’s final weeks of games, his concern for the fate of his Saskatchewan Roughriders and one most excellent rant about the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and their … uh … you’ll just have to hear it for yourselves.

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: Wondering how good this 2023 Grey Cup’ll be…

To no one’s great surprise, the Rouge White & Blue Podcast loves CFL football – but after a particularly intriguing week which saw the unquestionable return of “No Lead Is Safe” gameplay (hopefully permanently), even co-host Joe Pritchard after a stunning loss by his Winnipeg Blue Bombers has to dig on the Canadian league.

Along with the raves come the rants – well, one rant at least. Specifically, co-host Os Davis venting about his Montreal Alouettes’ pitiable play on the offensive line which cost the Als another win and handed the East division’s top seed to the mighty Toronto Argonauts.

The RWB also runs down all the week 15 games and attempts to forecast week 16 in this seemingly increasingly unpredictable league (we thought this was supposed to get *easier* as the season grinds down), but mercifully no betting angles from the ever-colder Os – but hey, it’s not about the money; it’s about the fun, right? Right?!?!!?

The Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast: We love *this* game.

As that professional football league south of the border kicks off this week, the Canadian Football League heads into the homestretch, with 70% of the 2023 season in the books – just in time for the return of co-host Os Davis back into the Rouge White & Blue CFL Podcast booth.

Meanwhile, co-host Joe Pritchard comes to us live from Winnipeg, where his beloved Blue Bombers scorched the Saskatchewan Roughriders for the fourth consecutive year in the Banjo Bowl game. Joe’s ventures to Winnipeg are already a set tradition for the game; could a Bombers blowout become the new tradition?

Joe and Os take stock of the 2023 season to the seven-tenths point, wonder how hot the Edmonton Els (no, really) can get with Tre Ford at the helm, consider the sparse playoff scenarios, and probably futilely attempt to pick and predict next week’s games.

The Rouge White & Blue Podcast: Always attempting to avoid the trap game…

Once again, you're stuck with Joe Pritchard running the show (don't worry, with Sunday games being off the schedule going forward, it'll be easier to get Os Davis back in the game), and Josh Smith joined him to discuss the Labour Day weekend games, this week's rematch games, and Joe's travel plans for this weekend and beyond. 

Andrew Bucholtz from Awful Announcing and The Comeback is Os Davis's fill in this week, and beyond the usual reviews and previews, the conversation drifted towards quarterback development at all levels of football, of course, with an emphasis on how it affects the Canadian game.