The 2024 Grey Cup is now set as the Toronto Argonauts and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are set to clash for the eighth time in their modern franchise history for the sport’s ultimate prize.
The two squads will vie for the Grey Cup at BC Place on Sunday, November 17th in a rematch of the 2022 Grey Cup which was a 24-23 thriller won by the Argos. Only this time, both teams enter the contest in decidedly different fashion from 2 years prior.
The most glaring difference is that Toronto will need to play without starting quarterback Chad Kelly who suffered a severe broken ankle in his team’s East Final victory over the Montreal Alouettes. Kelly took off for a 9 yard gain, before being tackled awkwardly resulting in an injury which left him in visible pain on the field.
Toronto was quick to rule the 30 year old out of the game, and subsequently the Grey Cup, with coaching staff confirming that Nick Arbuckle would be the team’s starting QB moving forward. According to CFL reporter Dave Naylor, Kelly was set to undergo surgery on Saturday in Montreal and is expected to miss six to nine months while rehabilitating.
Arbuckle is no slouch himself having had 84 games worth of CFL appearances throughout his career. However, the 31 year old has never started a Grey Cup game prior to this year, marking some new territory for the well travelled veteran.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, Winnipeg makes it 5 Grey Cup appearances (COVID cancelled season not-withstanding) in a row. However how they got her this year was far from the wire-to-wire dominance we’ve seen out of this roster in years past.
The club began the season 0-4 before finally righting the ship against the RedBlacks in Week 5. To their credit, no one from the coaches, to players, or management panicked after the team face planted out of the gates. Instead, they relied on the systems and strategies that got them to the promised land 4 times prior to become the hottest team in the league heading into the postseason.
That resiliency culminated in a 38-22 thrashing of Saskatchewan in the Western Final where QB Zach Collaros had a near perfect day going 19 for 26 for 4 TDs, 301 yards, no interceptions, and 10 yards on the ground. That was complimented by RB Brady Oliveira’s 6 yards per carry on the ground as he gashed the Rough Riders for 119 yards on 20 carries plus a rushing TD.
Toronto mostly treaded water while Kelly was sidelined earlier this season due to a CFL imposed suspension, but looked like a completely different team with the former Most Outstanding Player back under centre. Without Kelly, the Blue Bombers are suddenly opening up as a touchdown + favourite at most sports books around the country.
Will Arbuckle be able to capture lightning in a bottle for one game and help the Argos capture their 19th Grey Cup? That remains to be seen. However, history shows that when Toronto reaches the final game of the season, they tend to fare well. They sport an 18-6 all-time record in the Grey Cup (.692 win percentage) and have won the last 7 championship games in which they’ve appeared in dating back to 1991. A stretch that also includes 2022 when the Blue Bombers were the heavy favourites as well.
Or will Winnipeg cap off a miraculous mid season turn around by proving once again why they’re the gold standard organization in the CFL with a dominant victory? Whatever the outcome, there will be no shortage of storylines heading into the 111th Grey Cup this year.
Photo: Winnipeg Blue Bombers This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.