On Friday night at Tim Hortons Field, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats took on the Ottawa Redblacks for the second time this year. Back in Week 6, Hamilton beat the Redblacks in a close game, 25-23.
For these two teams, a lot was at stake. A Hamilton win would put them one step closer to clinching a playoff spot and eliminate Ottawa from contention. However, a Redblacks win would keep them alive for a playoff spot for another week.
In the first quarter, Hamilton kicker Seth Small made a 37-yard field goal to put the Ticats up 3-0 with 7:05 left. Then, on Hamilton’s next possession, quarterback Dane Evans threw three passes for 50 yards, leading the offense down to Ottawa’s one-yard line before Evans scored a touchdown with a quarterback sneak, making it 10-0 with 1:45 left.
Ottawa had the ball for the rest of the first quarter and made it to Hamilton’s 50-yard line to begin the second quarter down 10-0. On the fourth Ottawa play in the second quarter, running back Jackson Bennett fought off a couple of Hamilton defenders for a 21-yard gain to the Ticats three-yard line. Two plays later, backup quarterback Caleb Evans scored a touchdown with a quarterback sneak, cutting Hamilton’s lead 10-7 with 12:16 left.
Then, Ottawa’s defense came up with a big play. Ottawa defensive back Brandin Dandridge stripped the ball out of Hamilton wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr.’s hands and took it for a 51-yard touchdown, giving Ottawa a 14-10 lead with 11:22 left.
History was made on Ottawa’s next drive. First, quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw six passes for 66 yards. Then, backup quarterback Caleb Evans scored his second touchdown of the night with another quarterback sneak for a 21-10 lead with 4:35 left. Evans set the CFL record with 15 touchdowns, the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, passing Doug Flutie and James Franklin.
Late in the second quarter, Hamilton kicker Seth Small made his second field goal for 23 yards, cutting Ottawa’s lead to 21-13 with 2:19 left. Hamilton had one more opportunity to get more points on the board but ran out of time as the Redblacks led the Ticats 21-13 at halftime.
Ottawa quarterback Nick Arbuckle was 13/17 for 122 yards, and running back Jackson Bennett had six carries for 49 yards as part of Ottawa’s 182 yards on offense. Meanwhile, Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans was 8/14 for 102 yards, two carries for two yards, and one touchdown as part of Hamilton’s 199 yards on offense.
In the third quarter, Hamilton kicker Seth Small made his third field goal of the night for 38 yards, cutting Ottawa’s lead to 21-16 with 1:57 left. On Ottawa’s next drive, Hamilton defensive lineman Cedric Wilcots stripped quarterback Nick Arbuckle and recovered it on Ottawa’s 29-yard line. On the second Hamilton play, quarterback Dane Evans threw a 27-yard pass to Anthony Johnson to set themselves up on Ottawa’s two-yard line to begin the fourth quarter.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans scored a touchdown with a quarterback sneak. Then, they went for a two-point conversion and got it, making it 24-21 with 14:38 left.
However, Ottawa fought back. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw three passes for 24 yards, plus Ottawa got a pass interference penalty on Hamilton to reach the Ticats 28-yard line before Lewis Ward made a 36-yard field goal, tying the game 24-24 with 11:23 left.
For the rest of the game, it was the kickers that did the scoring. Hamilton kicker Seth Small put Hamilton back in the lead 27-24 on a 27-yard field goal with 6:30 left. Not long after the field goal on Hamilton’s next drive, the Ticats lost quarterback Dane Evans to an injury, and Matthew Shiltz took over the rest of the game. Then, Ottawa kicker Lewis Ward made a 51-yard field goal, tying the game again 27-27 with 1:47 left.
Hamilton quarterback Matthew Shiltz found an opening and took off for a 25-yard run at the Redblacks’ 43-yard line. Two plays later, Shiltz threw a 20-yard pass to Tim White. Hamilton kicker Seth Small kicked the game-winning 30-yard field goal for a 30-27 win over the Ottawa Redblacks. The win puts Hamilton at 7-10, and with a Saskatchewan loss on Saturday, will clinch them the last playoff spot. Meanwhile, Ottawa is eliminated from the playoff contention.
Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans was 16/29 for 220 yards, one interception, five carries for 21 yards, and two touchdowns. Running back Sean Thomas-Erlington had 13 carries for 104 yards, while wide receiver Tim White had seven catches for 11 yards.
Hamilton’s defense allowed 240 yards, 41 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble, five pass breakups, and one fumble recovery.
Ottawa quarterback Nick Arbuckle was 19/27 for 166 yards and one carry for four yards. Running back Jackson Bennett had 11 carries for 63 yards, while wide receiver RJ Harris had seven catches for 62 yards.
Ottawa’s defense allowed 440 yards, with 52 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, four pass breakups, one interception, and two fumble recoveries. Both teams will go at it again in the season finale next Saturday at 5 pm on ESPN+.
