Alouettes vs. Tiger-Cats Prediction: CFL Week 9 Point Spread, Odds
Hamilton sits at the bottom of the East Division with a 2-5 record, but they didn’t look like a bottom feeder team in last week’s 44-28 blowout victory over Edmonton. Montreal faced the West Division-leading Roughriders in Week 8, winning 20-16 to improve to a CFL-best 6-1 record.
The Alouettes opened as 4.5-point favourites to win on the CFL odds, with the total set at 50.5.
CFL Odds and Betting
This head-to-head series has been pure Montreal domination over the last few years, with the Als winning seven straight games and eight of the last 10. In the last meeting, Montreal won 27-12 in last year’s East Division semifinals en route to their eighth Grey Cup victory in franchise history.
The Alouettes are 4-3 against the spread this season and 7-1-1 ATS in their last nine games against East Division opponents. They have generally played lower scoring road games over the last couple of years, with the total going Under in six of their last eight games outside of Montreal.
The Ti-Cats began their year with a brutal 0-5 record ATS, but they’ve covered in their last two games. They’ve played the Under in five straight games against East Division opponents, but they’ve hit the Over in five of seven games this season.
Montreal has the second-shortest Grey Cup odds on the CFL futures board at +250, while Hamilton has the second-longest odds at +8000.
Montreal Alouettes
The Alouettes made a crucial quarterback change at the half last week and it paid off. Trailing by 13 points after two quarters, Montreal replaced backup QB Caleb Evans with third-stringer Davis Alexander, who helped the Als outscore Saskatchewan 17-0 in the second half. Alexander completed 15 of 18 pass attempts for 178 yards and two TDs in his first game action this season.
The question right now is who will start in Week 9? Normally it would be a no-brainer that Alexander would get the nod, but regular starter Cody Fajardo was removed from the six-game injured list and practiced Tuesday after missing just one game with a hamstring injury.
Regardless of who starts at QB, Montreal will continue to rely on their CFL-best defence. The Als’ defence ranks first in the CFL in average total yards (333.6), passing yards (223.1), QBR (80.4) and points per game (21.7). The one area of weakness is rushing defence, which allows the second-most opponent rushing yards per game (110.4) and the second-most rushing yards per play (5.3).
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Bo Levi Mitchell had his best game of the season last week, throwing for 316 yards with a career-high five TDs and just one interception. After injuries derailed the last few years for Mitchell, he is having a resurgent year in 2024. Mitchell is second in the CFL in passing yards (2,257) and first in passing TDs (17).
James Butler also had a strong game last week, leading all players with 98 rushing yards on 21 carries. Tim White caught two TD passes, while Luther Hakunavanhu, Kiondre Smith and Jevoni Robinson also hauled in TD passes.
Despite Hamilton ranking near league-average in most defensive categories, they allow the most points per game in the CFL (31.6). On the other side of the ball, most of the Ti-Cats offensive success has come in the air. Hamilton is second in the CFL in total yards (393.0) and passing yards (324.1) per game and they are third in both QBR (104.1) and points per game (27.9).