Stampeders thump Eskimos in Labour Day Classic, are now alone at top of West Division

The second Labour Day Classic game on Monday wasn't anywhere as close as the first one, but it saw one dominant performance. That came from the Calgary Stampeders, who laid a 28-13 thumping on the Edmonton Eskimos and moved to 8-1 in the process, leaving them alone at the top of the West. This wasn't against easy pickings, either; the Eskimos were also 7-1 heading into Monday's clash. The Stampeders were thoroughly dominant Monday, though, and if they can keep playing like this, they'll be one of the CFL's most feared teams.

Calgary's biggest star on the day was Canadian running back Jon Cornish. Cornish was more solid than spectacular in his return from a concussion last week against Ottawa, but he hit full spectacular status Monday, rushing for 163 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. That's an amazing average of 9.6 yards per carry. Cornish wasn't the only offensive star for the Stampeders, though; quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw for 252 yards and a touchdown without an interception (impressive against the most pick-happy team in the CFL), and nine different receivers caught passes. All in all, Calgary made one of the league's best defences to this point look incredibly average, particularly on the ground.

Part of that might be thanks to familiarity. It's worth noting that while Edmonton head coach Chris Jones was most recently the Toronto Argonauts' defensive coordinator, he spent four years in that role with Calgary before that, working under head coach and offensive coordinator John Hufnagel. They obviously both know what the other likes to run, and while that's worked out in Jones' favour before (particularly in the 2012 Grey Cup), the tables turned for Hufnagel this time. The most important difference between those games? In 2012, Jones' defence was able to stop Cornish and make Calgary air the ball out, and that didn't work out all that well with Kevin Glenn under centre. On Monday, Cornish was unstoppable, and that paved the way for Mitchell to have a much easier time in the passing game.

Of course, a big part of this was about Edmonton's offensive struggles too. With quarterback Mike Reilly injured and unavailable, they were forced to turn to backup Matt Nichols, and he showed some rust, completing just 18 of 30 passes (60 per cent) for 202 yards. The ground game was relatively solid, with running back Kendial Lawrence collecting 65 yards on just 11 carries (an average of 5.9 yards per carry), but the Eskimos abandoned it once they fell behind. They trailed 15-10 at halftime and were never able to close the gap. Edmonton could use some more receiving depth, too; Adarius Bowman, Shamawd Chambers and Nathan Coehoorn all looked good Monday, but the team appears to need a few more weapons offensively.  The Stampeders' defence should get a lot of credit itself, though. They held Edmonton in check nicely all day, sacking Nichols three times, pressuring him frequently and forcing some bad throws.

It's too early to make definitive proclamations about the Stampeders being irrevocably destined for greatness. Yes, they're now 8-1, and they've been the league's best team consistently to this point, but the tightness of the West Division (Edmonton and Saskatchewan each have seven wins, while Winnipeg and B.C. have six) means that lead could evaporate quickly. There's a lot that can still happen in this season, and even if they do stay on top, that might not mean a Grey Cup; after all, they went 14-4 last year, but lost in the West Final. Still, this is a very good Calgary team right now, and they're playing like it. If they can keep this up, no one's going to want to face them.