The Hamilton Tiger-Cats (8-8) visited Mosaic Stadium on Saturday night against the Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-10) in Bo Levi Mitchell’s return. This was the first and only meeting of the season between these two teams.
On one side, the Roughriders needed to win this game to prevent a crossover by the Ottawa Redblacks. They came into this game on a four-game losing streak. For Hamilton, they had won four of the last six games. A win would keep them in the race for second place. Hamilton made a statement in this game.
In the first quarter, Hamilton did not get off to a good start when running back James Butler fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Saskatchewan’s Micah Johnson. However, the Ticats’ defense only allowed 37 yards before Saskatchewan punter Adam Korsak punted the ball 41 yards to Tyreik McAllister. McAllister ran for six yards before getting tackled on their 10-yard line.
Two plays later, Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw an 88-yard pass to Tim White before he was brought down on the Roughriders’ 10-yard line. On the next play, Mitchell threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Omar Bayless for a 7-0 lead with 7:49 left of the first quarter.
Later in the first quarter, Saskatchewan punter Adam Korsak punted the ball 44 yards to the Ticats’ six-yard line. Two plays later, Saskatchewan’s defense put pressure on Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell and he threw the ball away with no one near him. An intentional grounding penalty was called on Mitchell which resulted in a safety. It was now 7-2 Ticats with 2:49 left.
On the final play of the first quarter, Saskatchewan quarterback Jake Dolegala threw a short pass to Kian Schaffer-Baker for a gain of 17 yards before getting tackled on the Ticats’ 41-yard line. The Roughriders trailed 7-2 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Roughriders punted the ball to Hamilton. Matthew Shiltz was the new quarterback for Hamilton. On the sixth play, Shiltz threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Omar Bayless which made it 14-2 with 10:30 left.
On the kickoff, Hamilton kicker Marc Liegghio kicked the ball 65 yards into the endzone for a single point. It was now 15-2 with 10:29 left of the second quarter. Later in the second quarter, Hamilton quarterback Matthew Shiltz threw a short pass to Terry Godwin for a gain of 41 yards. Three plays later, Shiltz threw a short pass to Sean Thomas-Erlington for an 8-yard touchdown. It was now 22-2 with 5:17 left of the second quarter.
On the kickoff, Saskatchewan returner Thomas Bertrand-Hudon fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Hamilton. However, Saskatchewan’s defense got the ball back when Larry Dean intercepted Shiltz’s pass. Saskatchewan was unable to capitalize on the turnover.
Late in the second quarter, Hamilton kicker Marc Liegghio kicked a 23-yard field goal for a 25-2 lead with 1:17 left. With 35 seconds left, Saskatchewan running back Jamal Morrow made a nice juke move before scoring a 32-yard touchdown. It was now 25-9 Hamilton at halftime.
Hamilton had 345 yards on offense. Quarterback Matthew Shiltz completed 8 of 10 passes (80%) for 147 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Bo Levi Mitchell completed 4 of 6 passes (66%) for 129 yards, and one touchdown.
Running back James Butler had 11 carries for 54 yards, and wide receivers Tim White and Omar Bayless combined with five catches logging 160 yards, and two touchdowns. Hamilton’s defense made one sack and forced two turnovers.
Saskatchewan had 136 yards on offense. Quarterback Jake Dolegala completed 11 of 17 passes (65%) for 100 yards. Running back Jamal Morrow had 11 carries for 43 yards, and one touchdown, and wide receiver Samuel Emilus made three catches for 30 yards. Saskatchewan’s defense forced one turnover.
In the third quarter, Saskatchewan punter Adam Korsak punted the ball 49 yards into the endzone for a single point. It was 25-10 with 12:47 left. For the rest of the third quarter, the two exchanged field goals. Hamilton kicker Marc Liegghio converted a 14-yard field goal for a 28-10 lead with 7:31 left. Then, Saskatchewan kicker Brett Lauther made a 42-yard field goal which made it 28-13 with 3:07 left of the third quarter.
On the last play of the third quarter, Hamilton running back James Butler rushed for a one-yard gain getting tackled on the Roughriders’ 29-yard line up 28-13 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Hamilton kicker Marc Liegghio made a 37-yard field goal for a 31-13 lead with 14:01 left. Later in the fourth quarter, Stavros Katsantonis intercepted Mason Fine’s pass returning it for 22 yards. The Ticats capitalized on the turnover when Kai Locksley scored a one-yard touchdown for a 38-13 lead with 25 seconds left.
Saskatchewan had running back Thomas Bertrand-Hudon carried the ball twice for 20 yards to end the game. Hamilton defeated Saskatchewan by the final score of 38-13. The win keeps them in the hunt for second place behind the Montreal Alouettes. They have now won five of their last seven games.
Hamilton’s offense had 546 yards. Quarterback Matthew Shiltz continues to tear it up completing 16 of 19 passes (84%) for 271 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and four carries for 38 yards. Running back James Butler had a nice game with 25 carries for 107 yards and five catches for 77 yards.
Wide receiver Tim White had three catches for 129 yards. Hamilton’s defense made 48 tackles, three sacks, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Saskatchewan has now lost five straight games. Their loss leaves the playoff crossover in play if Ottawa can beat Montreal on Monday. Saskatchewan had 307 yards on offense.
Quarterback Jake Dolegala completed 16 of 25 passes (64%) for 154 yards. Running back Jamal Morrow had a good game with 18 carries for 120 yards, one touchdown, and two catches for 26 yards, and wide receiver Samuel Emilus made four catches for 43 yards. Saskatchewan’s defense made 46 tackles, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Next Friday, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats battle the B.C. Lions at 7 pm on CFL+, while the Saskatchewan Roughriders visit the Calgary Stampeders at 9:30 pm on CFL+. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2023 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub and Viagogo.
