Today, in Toronto, the
Grey Cup will be awarded for the 100th time, to the
CFL champion. What is it? What is the history? Who is playing? Why was someone riding a horse in the best hotel in town?
The History
In 1909, Albert Henry George Grey, the 4th Earl Grey and grandson of the
second Earl (and UK Prime Minister) Charles Grey, bought a silver cup for $48. Grey, who was the Governor General of Canada at the time, intended to give it for the amateur senior hockey championship. Beaten to the punch by Sir Montagu
Allan, he decided to
give the trophy to the Canadian football champion instead.
In the intervening years, the Grey Cup has been won
in the mud, in
thrilling last-second victories, unbelievable comebacks, and in
-17ºC (1ºF) temperatures. Along the way, the trophy
has been broken, burned in a fire and attacked by the Taliban in Kandahar (twice).
The Game
Canadian football
originated in the mid 1860s, out of an early versions of rugby; this "Rugby-football"
spread to the US in 1874 and became American football. The two sports are very similar; perhaps the most noticeable of
the differences is that Canadian football has 3 downs rather than 4; along with the wider (and longer field) and unlimited backfield motion, this leads to a more open, faster game with more passing.
The 100th team to be engraved on the Grey Cup will be either the
Toronto Argonauts or the
Calgary Stampeders. Toronto had previously been selected as the host city, with the game being played in the Rogers Centre (formerly called
the SkyDome).
The Toronto Argonauts hosted the Edmonton Eskimos in the Eastern semifinal before heading to Montreal
for a win against Anthony Calvillo (the
all-time passing leader - CFL or NFL) and the Montreal Alouettes. The Argos went 9-9 in the regular season, with newly acquired quarterback
Ricky Ray. One player to look out for is receiver/kick returner
Chad Owens, who set the league record for single season yardage (3,863) and was awarded the Most Outstanding Player award, the CFL's highest. (Historical note; the Argonauts name comes from the rowing club that founded the team in 1873 -- they are the oldest professional team in North America still playing under the same name.)
The Calgary Stampeders made it to the big game by beating the rival Saskatchewan Roughriders, before upsetting the defending champion BC Lions in Vancouver
last weekend. The team finished the regular season 12-6 with some uncertainty at quarterback; that has been settled with young Drew Tate
breaking his arm in the semi-final against Saskatchewan, clearing the way for recently acquired 12-year veteran
Kevin Glenn. The Stamps also have a strong running game, led by 2012 Most Outstanding Canadian
Jon Cornish, who
thanked his two moms from the podium.
This year's game could be a close-fought match; the Stampeders have the momentum, but the Argos have beaten them in the last five meetings. The two best-known mayors in the country, Toronto's
conservative,
football-loving,
streetcar-hating Rob Ford and Calgary's
liberal,
policy wonk,
former professor Naheed Nenshi
agreed to a bet over Twitter -- the losing mayor will donate their weight in food to the other city's food bank. The provincial
premiers have followed, with
even the zookeepers in the respective cities getting in on the action. People betting actual money give Calgary
a slight advantage, a spread of about
1.5 points.
The Festival
The Grey Cup can be compared to the Superbowl, but it is in many ways a more inclusive event. A festival is held in the host city before the game. Every
team in the league -- as well as the
Atlantic Schooners, a hypothetical team
at best -- has a party night (or two) hosted by a
contingent of their fans. Many dedicated followers
attend every year, regardless of their team's performance. (
Or even their
existence.) In addition to the parties, concerts and street festival, the Canadian university football championship (the Vanier Cup) was played on Friday night. The Laval Rouge et Or
pounded the defending champion McMaster Marauders, 37-14, in front of a record crowd in the Rogers Centre.
The festival as a national phenomenon
first began in 1948, when host city Toronto was hit with an invasion of rowdy Calgary fans; the Stampeders finished the only perfect season in CFL history, but two other traditions were born. The Calgary Grey Cup committee provided a free pancake breakfast on the steps of City Hall to all comers, which
has become an annual tradition. A reveller also rode into legend by riding a horse through the lobby of the prestigious Royal York Hotel. This has also become a Stampeder fan tradition, with horses being ridden in hotel lobbies
around the country. A return to the Royal York ride wasattempted again this year -- the
hotel refused at first, but the
horse rode again this year.
Of course, there's also a halftime show during the game itself. The good news is that instead of the
usual over-the-hill rock act, they've managed to hire the two Canadian music stars who have had the most global popularity in 2012. The bad(?) news is that they happen to be
Justin Bieber and
Carly Rae Jepsen. (Not that it
couldn't be worse.) Gordon Lightfoot will also be on hand.
The 100th Grey Cup will kick off at 6PM Argonaut (EST) / 4PM Stampeder (MST) on
TSN. Over 50
Cineplex Theatres nationwide are showing the game on the movie screen. In the United States, the
NBC Sports Network will show the game live.
Previously on Metafilter: The 89th Grey Cup. The 1963 Grey Cup (and the hard feelings that linger.)
To help our American friends: in some ways the Superbowl is to the Grey Cup as this is to that.
In other, perhaps more important ways, it's nothing like that at all.
Anyhoop, great post! Happy #100 Grey Cup! Joyeux anniversaire!
posted by mazola at 7:38 AM on November 25, 2012 [11 favorites]