Candice Ward/CFL.ca
CALGARY – When the calendar flips to July, the cowboy hats come out in Calgary. They were out in full force at McMahon Stadium for the inaugural Stampede Bowl, where the Calgary Stampeders took down the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 37-16 on Thursday.
The Stampeders could not have asked for a better performance to kick off the new tradition, as they controlled nearly every facet of the game over a Bombers squad that entered Week 5 with an unblemished record.
Through a mix of big plays in the passing game, stable production on the ground, and a suffocating defence that added two scores on its own, the Stamps led the Bombers from their first possession to improve to 3-1 in the competitive West.
CFL.ca brings you three key stats from the Calgary Stampeders’ win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
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2 – STAMPEDERS PICK SIXES
Zach Collaros entered the Stampede Bowl leading the CFL with an impressive 78.2 per cent completion rate. But on Thursday, the Stamps’ defence got to the veteran early and often. With a chance to stop the bleeding at the end of the second quarter, Damon Webb popped in front of Collaros’ bullet throw to Nic Demski, outmuscled the Canadian pass-catcher, and took it the other way for a huge half-closing swing. Later, with the Bombers in desperation mode, it was Derrick Moncrief‘s turn to take a Collaros pass the distance, running back a sideline lob intended for Brady Oliveira 70 yards to the house.
When they weren’t scoring touchdowns, Calgary’s defence was blanketing Bombers receivers all game. Every Collaros completion was hard earned, including his late touchdown pass to Jerreth Sterns, which the Western Kentucky alum had to fight through step-for-step coverage from Webb to secure.
2 – VERNON ADAMS JR. PASSING TOUCHDOWNS
‘Big-Play V.A.’ lived up to his nickname on Thursday night, finally crossing ‘first touchdown pass as a Stampeder’ off his list. Coming off the bye, Vernon Adams Jr. wasted no time in getting the monkey off his back, launching a 43-yard bomb to Clark Barnes on the Stamps’ opening drive. The 24-year-old Barnes did his quarterback a favour by shedding two would-be tacklers to stretch past the goal line.
Adams Jr. doubled down in the first half with an 11-yard strike to 2025 first-overall pick Damien Alford – the rookie’s first CFL score. Aside from his two successful trips to the Bombers’ end zone, the Stamps pivot posted a hyper-efficient 13-of-18 line for 222 yards, good for 12.3 yards per attempt.
29 – STAMPEDERS FIRST-HALF POINTS
The Stamps did not need to wait for Bret Michaels’ electrifying halftime show to bring the rock-and-roll to the Stampede Bowl. From the very first drive, Calgary was in a hurry to pile on points on the CFL’s No. 1-ranked defence through four weeks. Before Collaros could even take a step on the field, his side trailed 8-0. The early lead, which ballooned throughout the first half, prevented the returning Oliveira from getting a foothold in the game plan. Winnipeg was forced to rely on the aerial attack with Collaros attempting 48 passes, his highest tally since Week 4 of 2017.
