CFL.ca Staff
#CGYvsTOR
TORONTO — Kevin Glenn completed 14 of his 20 passes for 228 yards and a pair of touchdowns before being knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter with a head injury, as the Calgary Stampeders beat the Toronto Argonauts 35-14 in a rematch of the 100th Grey Cup.
Glenn wasn’t the only starting QB to succumb to injury on Friday night, as Argos pivot Ricky Ray exited the clash in the first quarter with a shoulder injury and did not return.
In their place, the Stamps inserted Bo Levi Mitchell into the game, while the Boatmen countered with Zach Collaros.
Tonight’s game saw the Argos pay homage to their past, as they swapped their current double blue duds for a more vintage look, donning the ‘boat logo’ jerseys of the 1983 Grey Cup championship team.
With receiver Nik Lewis and tailback Jon Cornish sidelined with injuries, the Stampeders offence took to the field for the game’s opening possession, looking to erase any doubt that they would stumble without their two marquee players.
Toronto’s defence, however, had other plans.
On the first play from scrimmage, Glenn found Marquay McDaniel, who turned the strong side corner for what looked like a sure-fire 29-yard gain. But McDaniel fumbled and the ball was recovered by Argos DE Cleyon Lain.
From there, Ray and the then red-hot Argos offence picked up right where they left off last week against the Eskimos.
The veteran pivot led the Boatmen on a 10-play, 63-yard drive that was capped off by a 19-yard touchdown pass to Jason Barnes.
On the drive, Ray completed all five of his passes, while Collaros used his legs to garner an additional 9 yards on three carries.
But disaster would strike on Toronto’s next offensive possession.
While being flushed out of the pocket, Ray heaved a pass towards the sidelines and was hit as he threw by Stamps rush end Charleston Hughes.
Ray went down on the play and was forced to the sidelines favouring his shoulder. Collaros took over under centre and Ray did not return.
Before leaving the game, Ray was good on five of his six passes for 56 yards and one touchdown.
From there, Toronto’s offence had trouble finding their legs, as they were forced to conceded a pair of safety’s on consecutive possessions, decreasing their lead to just a field goal.
While their offence was busy trying to regain their footing, Toronto’s defence was giving them as much time as they needed.
Pinned deep in their own end as a result of a Jamie Robinson pass interference penalty, the unit was able to maintain their composure and stuff Calgary’s attack twice from in close, forcing the visitors to settle for an 11-yard Rene Paredes field goal.
With Cornish sidelined, the Stamps turned to youngsters Matt Walter and Jonathan Williams to carry the load on the ground. And while it would take some time before they would get their feet wet, it would be some hard running by Williams that led the Stamps downfield to set up what would be their first touchdown of the game.
| Ray Injures Shoulder |
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Ricky Ray was forced out of Friday’s game against Calgary after being driven into the turf by Stampeders DE Charleston Hughes, injuring his shoulder. |
The 25-year-old busted two-straight runs of six and 19 yards to give the Stamps a fresh set of downs just inside Toronto’s red zone.
One play later, Glenn found McDaniel in the endzone to give Calgary a 14-7 lead.
Toronto’s offensive slumber was only temporary, however.
Collaros – who has been solid in his limited time under centre this season, including a win over BC in his only start in Week 5 – used his diverse array of options to his advantage en-route to what would be a five-play, 70-yard scoring drive.
The Cincinnati product hooked up with Barnes for a 39-yard completion and followed that up with a 17-yard strike to upstart rookie receiver John Chiles.
After earning a first down thanks to a 7-yard run of his own and a 4-yard pass to Chad Owens, tailback Curtis Steele would cross the plane on a 2-yard run to even the score at 14 apiece.
With the half winding down, Glenn and the dangerous Calgary offence would strike once more. First, the veteran completed a 32-yard pass to Anthony Parker and then found Tim Hawthorne in the endzone two plays later to restore their seven-point lead.
The half would come to an end shortly after, but not before Collaros threw the Argos’ first interception of the season, as Jamar Wall picked off his errant pass.
Glenn was solid in the first half, completing nine of his 14 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns. Last week against BC, he had thrown for just 199 yards total, adding one touchdown in the process.
The second half saw little action offensively until Khalif Mitchell laid hit on Glenn that ultimately knocked the pivot out of the game.
On the same drive as Glenn’s injury, Paredes saw his record field goal streak come to an end, as his 22-yard attempt sailed wide.
After being given some time to settle down, Mitchell would extend Calgary’s lead, as he hung onto the ball on a QB draw for an 11-yard touchdown scamper.
The Stamps started their scoring drive with excellent field positon, thanks a fumble by Owens that was returned 37 yards by Jonathan Hefney.
Shortly after, the Argos tried to swing the momentum pendulum in their favour, attempting a fake punt that saw Noel Prefontaine’s pass get intercepted by Juwan Simpson.
With the game coming to a close,, the Stamps would squash an hope of an Argos comeback, as Paredes connected on a pair of field to increase their lead to 21.
In hist post-game media availability, Stamps head coach John Hufnagel said that Glenn was going through concussion protocol.
Without Cornish, Calgary’s run game didn’t suffer in the slightest bit, as both Walter and Williams combined for 138 yards, with Williams earning 82 on 18 carries, while Walter ran for 56 on 10.
The Argos, meanwhile, had trouble for the second game on the defensive side of the ball. Allowing at least 30 points for the second-straight game, the Boatment didn’t have an answer for Calgary’s balanced attack.
Next week, the Stamps head home to face the Eskimos on Labour Day Sunday, while the Boatmen close out their three-game home-stand in a Tuesday night matchup with the Montreal Alouettes.
