Steeped in CFL tradition and a long-standing football rivalry between neighbouring provinces, the Banjo Bowl is the rematch of the Labour Day Classic between the Blue Bombers and Roughriders. Its name was birthed by Winnipeg kicker Troy Westwood in 2003 when he had less than savoury ways to describe the fine people of Regina, Saskatchewan. This year it’s the Roughriders who seek revenge after the Bombers downed them 35-33 on Sunday evening in a game not lacking in controversy.

Check out our CFL odds, which peg the host Bombers as slight -2.5 favourites.

CFL Odds and Betting

There’s been consistent flip-flopping between these old rivals since the 2023 regular season. Last year Winnipeg won the first match, then Saskatchewan took a game, only for the Bombers to trounce the Riders in their season finale 51-6. This season it was the Regina-based ensemble that started in earnest by winning the Week 7 clash, with the Manitoban side escaping Mosaic Stadium last Sunday with a hard-earned victory. Zach Collaros got rocked in the first half on an uncouth hit which injured his neck. That said, as recently as Wednesday he was a full participant at practice.

The defeat dropped Cory Mace’s Riders ensemble to 7-5 against the spread on the season. More critically, it has been a rough ride lately for Saskatchewan, no pun intended. They’ve only covered three of their last eight opportunities. Worse, they haven’t outright won in seven weeks, having lost five and drawn once.

Conversely, things are looking up for Mike O’Shea’s Bombers. Not only have they clawed their way back to a .500 straight-up record (6-6) and first place in the West Division, but they’ve handled three consecutive spreads. It’s only improved their ATS tally to 4-8, but perhaps betters have more reason to put their faith in Winnipeg these days.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

The 2024 season is slipping away from the Roughriders. It’s increasingly difficult to remember that this team was 4-0 to start the season.

The latest setback encapsulated what works and what doesn’t with this group. The 35-33 home loss to hated Winnipeg on Sunday featured some awful football, followed by a brilliant comeback attempt, only for the day to be stamped with a big fat “L.” It isn’t often that a 14-7, second-quarter lead devolves into a 29-14 deficit at halftime. But the home crowd spurred the Riders on in the third and fourth periods. The hosts tallied 30 first downs to Winnipeg’s 20 and the air attack outgained their opponents 368 to 264, but that’ll happen when a team needs to storm for a comeback. Trevor Harris’s second half produced a solid 30-for-49, 368, 3 TD, 0 INT day. Both WRs Dohnte Meyers and KeeSean Johnson had over 80 yards receiving and a major score each.

Head coach Mase has a lot of work to do. He’s a smart football mind, but one wonders if his youth and relative inexperience (38 years old) are showing themselves in these troubled days.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

The Blue Bombers are making everyone who wrote them off look foolish. It’s often argued that the CFL season gets more intense after Labour Day. If that’s the case, Winnipeg looks willing to fight to the death.

A cloud hangs over the locker room given the Collaros injury and will until Saturday. Backup Chris Streveler filled in for the remainder of Week 13 but was asked to do about as little as possible (4-for-6, 46 yards). Maybe that was one of the reasons why Winnipeg struggled to hold on to their advantage. The defence needed to make a crucial stop on a two-point conversion with less than a minute remaining to seal the deal. It was abnormal to see the defence wither in the second half given the brilliant season it has had thus far.

WRs Nic Demski and Ontaria Wilson didn’t get the ball much (three catches each) but often went deep, with longs of 45 and 44 yards, respectively.

Who Will Win Roughriders vs. Blue Bombers?