Esks, Ticats set for Semi-Final rematch

HAMILTON — The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will be out for vengeance when the Edmonton Eskimos roll into Steeltown on Thursday night for a rematch of last year’s Eastern Semi-Final.

Edmonton narrowly defeated the Ticats 24-21 after a Hamilton comeback fell just short in that game, while the Tabbies outscored the Esks 12-3 in the final quarter to pull within three points but the effort was too little to late.

The Esks are the only undefeated team in the league heading into Week 5 after squeaking past the Ottawa REDBLACKS 23-21 in Week 4. The REDBLACKS were just one throw away from forcing overtime, but a two-point convert attempt after a late scoring drive was unsuccessful with less than 30 seconds left on the clock.

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Edmonton’s offence continued to find a way to win as pivot Mike Reilly completed 27-of-39 passes for 265 yards and one touchdown while sophomore Brandon Zylstra had game-high 108 yards in the air on 10 catches. Travon Van has not disappointed in place of the injured John White after racking up 103 yards on 18 carries.

The Eskimos have not posted astonishing number in any offensive or defensive category. However, they continue to win the turnover battle with a league-low two turnovers through three games.

Simply put, the Esks find a way to win each and every night they step onto the field.

“I’ve always preached that it doesn’t matter how we win football games as long as we get the ‘W’,” Mike Reilly told Esks.com after the team’s victory over Ottawa. “We’ve had some hard fought games. There’s no doubt about it… it was far from a perfect game, but for the third game of the season for us, we’re definitely pleased with how our guys are fighting and playing and finding a way to win football games.”

The Esks will be without the services of Adarius Bowman in Week 5. The slotback is sidelined with a hamstring injury and was placed on the one-game injured list. Receiver Bryant Mitchell will get the start in Bowman’s absence.

The Ticats are still looking for their first win of the season after a disappointing 0-3 start. Their most recent loss came at the hands of BC in Week 4 as the Lions cruised to a 41-26 win to spoil Hamilton’s home opener.

The Ticats got off to a promising start after Jeremiah Masoli powered into the end zone for a one-yard rushing touchdown to open the scoring on Hamilton’s second drive of the game. The Ticats led midway through the second quarter, but the Lions began to pull away with two late first half majors to leave the Ticats playing catch up for the remainder of the game.

Jalen Saunders posted an impressive 147 receiving yards and a touchdown on just five catches in the loss while Collaros threw a season-best 361 yards on 30-of-48 passing with one touchdown and one interception. Collaros managed an impressive second-half scoring drive that was capped off by a 25-yard touchdown toss to Saunders, but it was not enough to keep up with the Lions’ rapid scoring pace.

Austin says he has no worries about his pivot’s consistency heading into Week 5.

“I’m not concerned,” Austin told Ticats.ca. “A quarterback is not going to play a perfect game. He played pretty well. He had to. Did he miss some throws? Of course he did, but so did their guy … There wasn’t a game that I ever played where I didn’t want a bunch of throws back and got mad at myself for not completing more passes. Every quarterback that I know that’s worth his salt wants to complete every single pass he attempts.

“Zach’s no different that way.”

BC pivot Travis Lulay torched the Ticats defence for a career-high 436 passing yards, completing 29 of 36 attempts for three touchdowns, a rushing major and one interception. Lulay also set a CFL record for most passing yards off the bench after he replaced an injured Jonathon Jennings on the Lions’ first drive of the night.

The Ticats have given up a league worst 512 yards per game on defence but will have to keep weathering the storm without a couple of their top defensive stars. Hamilton will be without halfback Abdul Kanneh once again in the lineup as the all-star off-season acquisition is still nursing an injury and has yet to make his regular season debut.

However, the Tabbies’ defence will receive a boost as strong side linebacker Will Hill returns to action after serving his one-game suspension.

The last time the Ticats started the season 0-4 was back in 2007 and for Kent Austin’s team, avoiding that mark will be critical, especially considering who’s next on the schedule: back to back road visits to Calgary and Edmonton.

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The undefeated Esks will be without slotback Adarius Bowman in Week 5, who is sidelined with a hamstring injury (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)

By The Numbers

2 – Interceptions for Richard Leonard heading into Week 5, ranking second in the league behind Winnipeg’s T.J. Heath.

5 – Consecutive regular season victories for Edmonton dating back to last regular season.

27 – Passing yards Mike Reilly needs to pass Esks head coach Jason Mass for 38th all-time in CFL history.

424 – Season high-net offence Hamilton recorded against the Lions in last week’s loss. The Ticats averaged just 208 yards through their first two games.

The Skinny

The Esks and Ticats are two teams that appear to be trending in opposite direction. While Hamilton is still looking for its first win of the season, Edmonton remains the only undefeated team in the league.

History favours the Esks in this matchup. Edmonton has won nine of its last 10 meetings against the Ticats. There have been a number of close games between the two teams, with four of those Ticat losses decided by three points or less.

Six of the last seven meetings between Hamilton and Edmonton have gone down to the last three minutes with 13 lead changes. All six of those games had final results decided by fewer than eight points.

Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET and can be followed live via CFL.ca Game Tracker or seen on TSN and ESPN3.

– With files from Esk.com/Ticats.ca

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