The Montreal Alouettes and the Saskatchewan Roughriders face off against one another this Saturday in a rematch of last season’s Grey Cup Championship. Kick off from Mosaic Stadium in Regina, SK is set for 4 p.m. (ET).

Montreal knows all too well how close these two teams are to one another after beating the Roughriders in the past two CFL title games by a combined four points. They also met twice in the regular season last year, with Saskatchewan pulling out a 54-51 overtime victory as a 3.5-point home underdog on opening day. The total went way ‘over’ the 54-point totals line. The Alouettes evened the score five weeks later with a 30-26 victory as a seven-point home favorite. The total stayed ‘under’ the 60-point line this time.

Last week’s 30-26 victory over British Columbia as a five-point home favorite was also a bit too close for comfort as Montreal almost blew this game after opening up a 17-point lead at the half. The big story in this game was long-time CFL veteran quarterback Anthony Calvillo’s remarkable performance; completing 22-of-33 attempts for 312 yards, while showing no ill-effects from offseason surgery to remove a cancerous lesion from his thyroid. Jamel Richardson was his primary target with nine receptions for 162 yards and two touchdowns.

The Montreal’s defense appeared to wear down a bit in the second half, but even more concerning is the loss of CB Jerald Brown, who may be done for the season with a broken ankle. De’Audra Dix will take his place in the lineup for this game and will most likely be immediately tested by the Roughriders’ passing attack.

Saskatchewan is still trying to figure out what happened in its shocking 42-28 loss to Edmonton as a six-point home favorite this past Sunday night. The total went way ‘over’ the 51.5-point line as these were the most points that the Roughriders surrendered since giving up 51 in last season’s opener.

They trailed 27-20 at the half, but could not get any closer than that on their way to the 14-point loss. Roughrider QB Darian Durant put up some decent numbers with 27 completions on 37 attempts for 339 yards and two TD’s, but his three interceptions ended any chance for his team to get back into the game.

The Saskatchewan defense stood tall on the first Eskimo drive of the game, but allowed the visitors to score on their next five possessions of the first half. The Roughriders had no answer for Edmonton QB Ricky Ray, who torched their secondary for 294 yards and three TDs,

Alouettes at Roughriders Betting Odds and Line Movement

The betting line on this game has moved slightly in Montreal’s favor as BetOnline has expanded the Alouettes to a 2.5-point road favorite after they opened favored by two. The ‘over/under’ line opened at 55.5 points but is currently set by BetOnline at 54.5.

Alouettes at Roughriders Betting Trends

Montreal is 6-1 straight-up in the last seven games of this series, but just 2-5 against the spread overall and 1-3-1 ATS in the last five games on the road. The total has gone ‘over’ in seven of the last eight meetings at Mosaic Stadium, but has stayed ‘under’ in five of the last seven meetings overall.

CFL Picks: Alouettes at Roughriders

The Alouettes have had their way in this series SU over the course of the past few seasons, but have struggled to cover as a favorite. Saskatchewan has been the underdog in the last five meetings, and while it only won one of those games, it covered the spread in all five. Bet on this trend continuing as the Roughriders find a way to keep this game close enough to cover with the 2.5 points. This game becomes a ‘best bet’ if the line moves over the three point mark between now and kickoff.

Indian Cowboy will be offering free CFL picks all season long for FREE. He will release his picks on his daily video on his Insider’s page and you can see his picks for CFL Week 1 action by clicking HERE.