Eskimos plan to key on Calvillo in East final

If the Edmonton Eskimos hope to ruin the Montreal Alouettes' Grey Cup party, they need to figure a way to put quarterback Anthony Calvillo on his back in Saturday's East Division Final.

Or at least hurry him up.

Good luck, says Eskimos head coach Danny Maciocia.

"You can bring as much pressure as you like, the ball's getting out," Maciocia said Wednesday after his players wrapped up their final practice in the Alberta capital.

With a victory Saturday at Olympic Stadium (1 p.m. ET, TSN), the Eskimos earn a berth in the Grey Cup — to be played Nov. 23 in Montreal — against either the British Columbia Lions or Calgary Stampeders.

But first, they have to get under the skin of a quarterback and an offence that's made a hash of defences en route to an 11-7 record and a first-place finish in the East.

The Alouettes were tops in points per game (32.5), total offensive yards (429 a game), touchdowns (63), passes attempted (712) and were second only to the Eskimos in passing yards with 324 a game.

Yet they have also allowed just five interceptions and only 22 sacks with Calvillo, the master of taking the snap and firing the ball in under two seconds.

"They love throwing the quick routes. They use it almost like a running game," Eskimos defensive back Jason Goss said. "They get five yards, and they know they can get another five more yards again [after making the catch].

"We've got to push them for second-and-long for us to have a chance."

Maciocia said the pressure is squarely on the defensive backs to knock the errant passes down, step in front of the underthrows and make clean tackles when Calvillo's toss is on the money.

Eskimo linebacker Agustin Barrenechea says each play will be won before the ball is snapped. They need to show Calvillo different looks and make him check down to his second and third receivers, he said.

"The biggest thing is getting a little bit of pressure on him," Barrenechea said. "If we can shake him up early and get the momentum, we can have success."

Eskimos defensive lineman Brandon Guillory said even making Calvillo hurry his throw will pay dividends.

"A hit is a hit, and Anthony Calvillo is one of those type of quarterbacks that if you hit him, he'll get rattled," Guillory said. "If we can make him hold that first checkdown, all we need is that extra half a second."

Betting lines have the Alouettes favoured by almost a touchdown, though it's difficult to draw conclusions from the head-to-head meetings this season.

Back in September, the Alouettes trounced 40-4 an Eskimo team that had a makeshift offensive line decimated by injury.

The Eskimos returned the favour on Halloween, stomping 37-14 over an Alouettes team that was resting six starters, including Calvillo.

The Eskimos, who missed the playoffs the previous two years, are coming off a 10-8 regular season and a 29-21 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the East Division semifinal.

They were practising Wednesday like a team playing with the house's money.

They laughed and razzed each other as they stretched in the shadow of Commonwealth Stadium in the morning sunshine, shouting opinions back and forth about U.S. president-elect Barack Obama. On the sidelines, kicker Noel Prefontaine tossed snowballs at unsuspecting teammates.

"We're a confident group, and we've been a confident group since Day One in training camp," said Barrenechea. "There's really no point right now in playing tight."