Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself and no professional team wants to be pinned with such a label.

In Steeltown mediocrity has become the norm over the past three Canadian Football League campaigns. Evidenced by the Ticats 26-28 record over their last 54 regular season games, not to mention going 1-3 in the playoffs over that same span.

Yes, Hamilton has come a long way since owning the CFL’s worst record for four straight years from 2005-2008. And no one knows what those trying seasons were like better then offensive lineman Marwan Hage.

“It took a while to change the atmosphere here towards winning a Grey Cup,” Hage, a nine-year Tiger-Cat veteran, said. “We had some pretty good years to turn it around.”

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» Burris sharp heading into Tiger-Cats regular season
After a tough 2011 campaign in Calgary, Henry Burris seems to have re-discovered his
game throughout the pre-season as he tries to take the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to
the next level in 2012.

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With that change in mentality - paired with an upgraded roster - the 2012 edition of the Tiger-Cats have already received a lot of praise from many who cover the league around the country.  Of course, to those of which much is given, much is expected. The organization will not be satisfied with another mediocre showing in the 85th and final season of Ivor Wynne Stadium.

On paper, the talent of players assembled in the Hammer rivals any other team in the league and nothing less than the first Grey Cup since 1999 for the franchise will suffice.

However, it remains to be game-tested whether or not Hamilton can ward off the plague of mediocrity and become a legitimate championship contender.

Inconsistency has been a roadblock for the Black and Gold in the way of taking the next step, to become one of the elite, in recent years. No better example can be found than looking at their playoff run in 2011.

Hamilton’s offence carried the team to a 52-44 upset win in the Eastern Semi-Finals over Montreal. One week later in Winnipeg, the defence held the Blue Bombers attack in check, for the most part, but had no support from the offence. The scoring unit mustered just three points in a 16-point season-ending loss in the Eastern Final.

“Last year our team was inconsistent and our record showed that, linebacker Jamall Johnson said. “We want to correct the inconsistencies and be more critical of ourselves.”

A large part of the Ticats sub-five hundred mark over the past three seasons has been the lack of bite shown away from the Ticats’ lair at Ivor Wynne Stadium. Hamilton has managed just nine wins in their last 27 road games. Last season was a three-year low for the Ticats posting a 2-7 mark in opposing stadiums.

“We have to treat the road games like home games. Once the whistle is blown it’s just a football field with lines, a game that can be played in any park,” Hage said. “If we’re playing in Hamilton, London or Vancouver, it’s just another football game.”
 
If the Ticats have visions of capturing the East Division regular season crown, improved play on the road and versus their Eastern rivals is a must.

Every division winner, East or West, has had a winning record within their division since the BC Lions won the West with a 5-5 mark in 2005.

Over the past three years, in which the Ticats have risen back to a middling level of respectability, Hamilton has compiled a mediocre 15-15 record against inter-division opponents.

Middle to top-of-the-class is the pounce the Ticats are eyeing in 2012. If the Tabbies cap this season off with a championship celebration, a winning record within the division would certainly make that jump seem more attainable.

Ultimately, Hamilton`s fate will be decided by their performance away from historic Ivor Wynne. Albeit a short trip down the QEW, if the Ticats are to capture the 100th Grey Cup, it will have to be done on the road.