If nothing else, Jon Gott will have a great view of the action.
In front and to his immediate left, will be Aaron Hunt, the B.C. Lions veteran defensive tackle who happens to lead his team in quarterback sacks (seven). To Gott's front right will be Khalif Mitchell, 315 pounds of perseverance who was named the CFL defensive player of the week after recording three sacks in a single outing.
Directly behind Hunt and Mitchell will be Solomon Elimimian, not only the league's leading tackler but a guy who can knock the horns off a bull. Gott's job is to anchor the Calgary Stampeders offensive line at centre, open holes for running back Joffrey Reynolds and protect quarterback Henry Burris while facing a defensive unit so dominant it hasn't allowed a touchdown in three games.
That's 12 quarters and 180 minutes of playing time without giving up an offensive six-pointer.
As commanding as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers defence was at the start of this season, the B.C. unit has caught up and won its share of acclaim. That's why the Stampeders are counting on their offensive line to set the tone for Saturday's game against the surging Lions, and why Gott insist there's only one way to do that.
"You look at any offensive line and they want to run the ball. Why? Because you just want to hit someone," he said. "That's what we want to do [to the Lions] Hopefully, we can."
The Stampeders were quick to rework their offensive line in the after-burn of their one-sided Labour Day loss to the Edmonton Eskimos. In that debacle, Burris was harassed into two fumbles and two interceptions, while the running game produced only 83 yards.
Despite a short week of preparation – the rematch with Edmonton was held four days later – head coach John Hufnagel dropped starters Tim O'Neill and Tony Washington and replaced them with Gott and import offensive tackle Edwin Harrison. The results were conclusive: the Stamps rushed 25 times for 182 yards and scored a touchdown. It helped transform a 28-point loss in Week 10 into a 10-point win in Week 11.
Now, come the Lions and the thundering Elimimian and the degree of difficulty is about to go up.
"I thought we took a step forward last week," Hufnagel said of the win in Edmonton. "We need to continue that momentum, especially against B.C. It's going to be a physical game at the line of scrimmage. It's going to be a severe test."
Reynolds, coming off an 80-yard showing against Edmonton, said the changes to the offensive line succeeded in snapping the team from its doldrums. The message was clear: play better or look for work elsewhere. And there was another reason behind Calgary's successful running game.
"What happened was we increased the amount of times we ran the ball," explained Reynolds, who has just 89 carries through 10 games this season. "Sometimes, the running game scares an offensive co-ordinator. He doesn't see enough yards on first down and stops calling running plays. It's a learning process for Dave [Dickenson, the offensive co-ordinator] He's getting more and more comfortable."
What won't be so comfortable is the mood between these two foes. Going back decades, B.C. and Calgary have been in each other's face, saying and doing things not for the tender hearted.
"They're definitely a chippy group," Reynolds said. "Korey Banks and Nik [Lewis]have their own little war. For some of us – Hank [Burris] Nik, myself, Ken-Yon Rambo – [the Lions]were the measuring stick in the CFL. They'd beat our butts. Now, we've taken over that. There's no love lost."
Only hits to be made. For the Stampeders, they hope it all starts with their offensive line and ends with a decisive effort over a domineering defence.