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MONTREAL — It’s not every year a team that makes a head coaching change less than a week before their home opener ends up hosting a home playoff game.

But that’s exactly how the 2019 Canadian Football League season has been bookended for a Montreal Alouettes organization that was purchased by the league in May in anticipation of new ownership that has yet to develop.

Offensive co-ordinator Khari Jones took over for the ousted Mike Sherman ahead of a 32-25 loss to the Edmonton Eskimos to kick things off.

But on Sunday, a vastly improved Alouettes squad is hosting the crossover Eskimos in the East Division semifinal at Percival Molson Stadium (11 a.m., TSN, 630 CHED).

So, how do you connect the dots in between to account for such a meteoric rise by a crew that looks more like a phoenix from the ashes than the lark that is its translation?

“I think they’ve obviously improved a tremendous amount, they’re playing good football,” said Eskimos left guard Jacob Ruby, a former first-round selection by Montreal. “They’re not the pushover that Montreal has been for the past few seasons, so they’re a good football team and we’ve obviously got some experience with them this year.