Make that six straight wins in the Edmonton Eskimos.
The Green and Gold remained perfect on the season by taking down the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 33-28 at The Brick Field at Commonwealth Stadium in the second match of a Friday night double header.
The game came down to a final pass attempt by Zach Collaros with zeros left on the clock. A roughing the passer call gave the Ticats one last chance at capturing their first win of the season, setting the Tabbies up just outside of the red zone. The pass attempt was knocked down in the end zone, solidifying the win for the Esks.
Ticats head coach Kent Austin attempted to challenge the final play, but was unable to do so because he was told he was out of timeouts.
Edmonton pivot Mike Reilly led the charge, throwing for 317 yards with two passing touchdowns and two rushing majors.
Reilly’s favourite target of the night was Bryant Mitchell, who led all receivers with 121 yards and one touchdown on eight catches.
The Eskimos didn’t waste anytime getting on the board, making the most of their first drive.
The CFL announced earlier this week that coaches will only be allowed to challenge one play per game effective immediately. However, that didn’t stop Eskimos head coach Jason Maas from challenging pass interference in the end zone just midway through the first quarter. The call appeared to pay off as the challenge was successful. Reilly made the short one-yard plunge into the end zone to give the Esks an early lead. The convert sailed wide, keeping the score at 6-0.
The Ticats responded on the ensuing drive when Collaros connected with Damarr Aultman. The newcomer brought down the ball in tight coverage and found his way into the end zone for a 44-yard major in his first CFL game. Collaros then found Luke Tasker for the successful two-point convert to pull ahead 8-6.
The first quarter scoring wasn’t done there.
Reilly found a wide open Mitchell, who managed to get behind the Ticats secondary, for a 33-yard touchdown to retake the lead.
Hamilton attempted to cut into the deficit with a 47-yard field goal attempt on their first drive of the second quarter. Sergio Castillo’s kick sailed wide left, ending his streak of nine-straight successful attempts.
Castillo made no mistake on his next kick, splitting the uprights from 27 yards out to cut the Esks’ lead to 13-11.
Edmonton continued to prove why they have not dropped a game yet this season as Reilly led a steady charge down the field beginning at Edmonton’s 35-yard line. The drive was caped off by his second rushing touchdown of the night. The Eskimos pivot juked into the end zone for the five-yard major to pull Edmonton ahead 20-11.
The Esks finished off the quarter with a 25-yard field goal to carry a 12-point lead into halftime.
Hugh O’Neil notched another field goal on the opening drive of the second half, this time from 35 yards out, to extend Edmonton’s lead to 26-11.
The Black and Gold strung together long gains on back-to-back plays to put themselves in the red zone when they got the ball back. Collaros found Jalen Saunders, who had to tightrope on the sidelines to stay in bounds, for a 36-yard catch. On the next play, Collaros found a streaming Brian Tyms for a 20-yard gain. Brandon Banks put the finishing touches on the drive by snagging the ball in the end zone to cut the deficit to 26-18 midway through the third quarter.
The Ticats continued to stick around and close in the Esks lead as the game progressed. The Tabbies defence game up with a big play when defensive end John Chick locked in on Reilly and stripped the ball from the pivot. The Esks regained possession, but the ball bounced and pinned Edmonton deep in their own zone, giving the Ticats favourable field position when the Esks were forced to punt on the next play. The forced fumble led to a long 47-yard Ticats field goal to pull the Black and Gold within five points.
It was all Esks at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
Chris Edwards returned a Hamilton punt 51 yards to put the Esks deep in Ticats territory. Two plays later, Reilly found Vidal Hazelton for his second passing major of the game to pull the Esks ahead 33-21.
The Ticats came close to narrowing the gap when Collaros and company decided to gamble on third and goal on the Esks’ three-yard line. The risk went unrewarded as Kenny Ladler picked off the pass in the end zone to hold the Ticats scoreless.
The Black and Gold remained persistent until the end, forcing a turnover deep in Eskimos territory with less than three minutes left in the game when Simoni Lawrence recovered a fumble forced by Larry Dean. Collaros spotted an open Saunders in the end zone to make it a one score game with just over two minutes to go.
The Ticats late heroics fell just short as they remained winless on the season.
The Esks may have won, but it came at a price as sophomore receiver Brandon Zylstra left in the first half with an injury and did not return.
The Eskimos travel to Ottawa to take on the RedBlacks next week.