The 2013 edition of the Labour Day Classic is in jeopardy.

Scheduling conflicts with the Ticats’ temporary home at the University of Guelph and another possible venue, the Rogers Centre, have left the club without a place to play their iconic contest.

“It’s our hope that we will be playing on Labour Day but, as of today, I don’t know,” team president Scott Mitchell said Tuesday. “There are a lot of issues around the schedule that are pending so I can’t really talk about it because frankly, we don’t know right now.”

When the team announced it would playing a nomadic season in 2013 due the construction of a new stadium on the existing Ivor Wynne site, it was suggested that the Labour Day game — traditionally played between the Ticats and archrival Toronto Argonauts — would be played at Rogers Centre.

The date is open but the facility’s main tenant, the Toronto Blue Jays, play the day before and Kelly Keyes, vice-president of building services for the Rogers Centre and the baseball club, says they can’t make the transition from baseball to football in time.

“It typically takes us between 36 and 40 hours to convert the stadium from baseball to football,” Keyes said. “The Ticats called right after the baseball schedule came out and then the (CFL) commissioner (Mark Cohon) called to see if he could make it happen. But we couldn’t do it.”

Keyes says an unusually busy September at the Rogers Centre means the Argos have just a single home date available in the month of September — the Tuesday after Labour Day. Thirteen Jays home games and other events — including the Weekend to Conquer Women’s Cancers — have filled the calendar.

“It’s very difficult to schedule everything. It’s not ideal for the Argos and some years are better than others,” said Keyes. “It’s in my best interest to put in as many shows as possible so we do our best to get everybody in.”

Given that the Double Blue will likely be forced to take that singular September date, it seems unlikely that they’ll face the Ticats on Labour Day, even if the Hamilton club can find another location to host a game on the holiday Monday.

One possibility would see the University of Guelph Gryphons — who are scheduled to host the Windsor Lancers on Labour Day — move their game to the Sunday to make way for the Ticats. Athletic director Tom Kendall says the team has yet to make that request, however.

“When we met with the Ticats, everything was on the table but we weren’t sure what the schedule was and we’re still not sure,” Kendall said. “They haven’t approached us about Labour Day and I don’t know what the implications of that would be.”

Kendall says that they would be at least open to the idea, however, given the nature of the university’s partnership with the team.

“There are going to be issues that come up and I’m sure there are going to be a number situations that arise throughout the year that we’re going to have to stickhandle around,” Kendall said. “As far as we were concerned, we didn’t think Labour Day was going to be an issue. But we’ve got a really good relationship with them and I’m sure we can find ways to get things done.”

The Argos and Ticats have faced each other on Labour Day 45 times since 1948, including 23 of the past 25 seasons in what’s become one of the team’s — and the city’s — most important traditions. Hamilton has a 29-15-1 record vs. Toronto in the series.

With the 2013 CFL schedule slated to be released in mid-to-late February, Mitchell is still hopeful that a solution can be reached that would allow a traditional Labour Day — Argos vs. Ticats on the holiday Monday.

“We’re in the midst of scheduling the season and it is a complicated process. We have to work through a number of different venues and the biggest issue is dates at the Rogers Centre,” Mitchell said. “That throws a wrench into a lot of potential opportunities. We’re trying to work around those things.”