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Surging Eskimos look to avoid playoff crossover vs. Argos

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The Edmonton Eskimos are playing their best football at the right time of year, winning four of the last five games heading into the postseason, and they'll face a team trending in the opposite direction this weekend.

The Eskimos require a win against the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday and an Ottawa win over Winnipeg to stay in the West division for the playoffs and avoid the crossover with Hamilton. But while Edmonton prepares for the postseason, the Argonauts will be playing for their jobs.

Toronto will try to avoid a seventh straight loss without quarterback Drew Willy, who's out with a shoulder injury. Ricky Ray, who returned to the lineup in Week 18 versus Calgary and threw for 311 yards and a touchdown, but also mixed in two interceptions, will get his second straight start.

Ray, who played for Edmonton from 2003-11, will see his Eskimos season passing yards record broken by Mike Reilly should the latter throw for 110 yards against Toronto. Reilly's two main targets, Adarius Bowman and Derel Walker, have combined for nearly 3,400 yards and 19 touchdowns, but he can also depend on running back John White. White has tallied 457 yards and five touchdowns over the last four games - three of which were 100-plus-yard performances - after not hitting the century mark in any games prior.

The game gets underway at 4 p.m. ET Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium.

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