The Calgary Stampeders (1-1) visited TD Place on Thursday night to take on the Ottawa Redblacks (0-2). Both teams were coming off ugly losses and looking to turn the page.
For the second straight week, Nick Arbuckle started for Ottawa as Jeremiah Masoli remains out with a knee injury sustained last season. Meanwhile, the Stampeders did not have their star running Ka’Deem Carey who is out with a toe injury. Dedrick Mills took his place.
In the first quarter, the Redblacks’ offense reached the Stampeders’ four-yard line on their first series. After two failed attempts at the endzone, they went for it on third down but Arbuckle’s pass to Nate Behr was incomplete and Calgary took over with 9:06 left.
Later in the first quarter, Ottawa had another chance on offense but Nick Arbuckle threw two straight incomplete passes. However, Ottawa’s special teams put them up 1-0 when punter Richie Leone punted the ball 59 yards into the endzone where Payton Logan took a knee for a single point.
On the first play for Calgary’s next series, Jake Maier threw to Malik Henry for a 72-yard touchdown but it was called back on a pass interference penalty on Henry. The two would connect again for 18 yards on the next play.
Calgary made it to Ottawa’s three-yard line where Dedrick Mills broke a tackle and scored a touchdown. Calgary went for a two-point conversion as Maier found Tre Odoms-Dukes to convert the two-point play and an 8-1 lead with no time left in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Calgary’s defense created a turnover. Ottawa backup quarterback Tyrie Adams was brought in on second and short. Micha Awe forced a turnover as Branden Dozier scooped the ball up and scored a 31-yard touchdown, for a 15-1 lead with 9:31 left.
When Calgary’s defense went back out on the next series, they stopped Ottawa. Ottawa caught a major break when Peyton Logan fumbled the ball on a punt return and it was recovered by Adam Auclair on the Stampeders’ 11-yard line. Ottawa could not punch it in the endzone and settled for a 13-yard field goal by Lewis Ward, making it 15-4 Calgary with 6:50 left.
On Calgary’s next possession, Jake Maier threw a high pass to Reggie Begelton and it was intercepted by Abdul Kanneh. However, on the next Ottawa play, they gave it right back to Calgary as Nick Arbuckle’s pass to Jaelen Acklin was intercepted by Micah Awe.
Calgary could not move the ball and punted it back to Ottawa which turned out to be huge for the Redblacks when Brandin Dandridge found an opening and took off for a 79-yard touchdown. Ottawa went for a two-point conversion and got it, making it 15-12 with 44 seconds left. Calgary led 15-12 at halftime.
Calgary quarterback Jake Maier completed 7 of 12 passes (58%) for 105 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and one carry for three yards. Running back Dedrick Mills had six carries for 30 yards, and one touchdown, and wide receiver Reggie Begelton had four catches for 86 yards as part of the Stampeders 149 yards on offense.
It was a different tone for Ottawa. Nick Arbuckle was benched after his last interception and did not play the rest of the game. He finished the night completing 13 of 21 passes 62%) for 72 yards and one interception. Running back Savon Scarver had one carry for 16 yards and wide receiver Justin Hardy had six catches for 54 yards as part of Ottawa’s 67 yards on offense.
The other bad news that Ottawa got was punt returner DeVonte Dedmon was out for the game after injuring his arm on a punt return in the first quarter when Jordan Herdman-Reed stripped the ball away from him and Calgary recovered leaving Dedmon in pain after the play.
In the third quarter, Calgary struck again with 6:17 left on a one-yard quarterback sneak by Jake Maier that made it 22-12. Late in the third quarter, Ottawa had a chance to add three points but Lewis Ward missed a 45-yard field goal as Peyton Logan returned it out of the endzone for a 24-yard gain as time expired for the third quarter.
Ottawa had no answers in the second half. In the fourth quarter, Ottawa stopped Calgary’s offense forcing third down. Calgary punter Cody Grace punted the ball 77 yards into the Redblacks’ endzone for a single point. It was now 23-12.
Late in the fourth quarter, the two teams traded field goals. Ottawa kicker Lewis Ward made a 21-yard field goal that made it 23-15 with 4:16 left, and Rene Paredes kicked a 14-yard field goal for a 26-15 lead with 2:30 left. Ottawa quarterback Tyrie Adams’s pass was intercepted by Tre Robinson and the Stampeders ran out the rest of the clock to win the game 26-15.
The takeaway in this game is Nick Arbuckle’s days are numbered in Ottawa. He made a lot of inconsistent plays and Ottawa could not get anything going at all. He threw too many low passes that were uncatchable and did not give his receivers a chance to make a play.
Ottawa’s offense did hold Calgary for a bit, allowing him time to find an open player and he could not pull the trigger. It’s going to be a long season until Masoli returns. In addition, the Redblacks have not won a home game since September 2021.
Ottawa quarterback Tyrie Adams finished the game completing 9 of 16 passes (56%) for 104 yards, one interception, and four carries for 19 yards. Running back De’Montre Tuggle led the rushers with four carries for 20 yards, and four catches for 30 yards, and wide receiver Quan Bray led the receivers with four catches for 95 yards. Ottawa’s defense allowed 394 yards, with three sacks, three forced fumbles, and one interception.
For Calgary, Jake Maier was not bad. He finished the night completing 22 of 33 passes (67%) for 272 yards, one touchdown, one interception, two carries for five yards, and one touchdown. Running back Dedrick Mills did a good job filling in for Carey with ten carries for 98 yards, and one touchdown.
Maier’s receiving core made plays out there led by Reggie Begelton with eight catches for 106 yards, and Malik Henry and Tre Odoms-Dukes combined with ten catches for 137 yards and one touchdown. Calgary’s defense finished the night allowing 208 yards, with one sack, one forced fumble, and two interceptions. The only issue for Calgary in this game was penalties. They committed ten of them for 83 yards and need to do a better job next week.
Next week, the Calgary Stampeders visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders next Saturday at 7 pm on CFL+, while the Ottawa Redblacks are on a bye week. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2023 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub and Viagogo.
