The Ottawa Redblacks (4-2) and the Edmonton Elks (0-6) met on Friday night at TD Place Stadium in a rematch from last Sunday. The big story coming into this game was the Elks firing Chris Jones on Monday and naming Jarious Jackson the interim head coach.
The Elks were hoping that a coaching change would help get this team moving in the right direction. Meanwhile, the Redblacks looked to continue their momentum from last week.
First Quarter:
In the first quarter, Ottawa went on a seven-play drive for 76 yards ending with running back Ryquell Armstead rushing up the middle to score a three-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead with 11:08 left. After the touchdown, a cart was brought out for Edmonton defensive lineman Sam Acheampong, who got rolled up on his leg during Armstead’s touchdown.
On Edmonton’s second possession of the game, they went on a three-play drive for 16 yards ending when kicker Boris Bede made a 34-yard field goal and the score was now 7-3 Ottawa with 6:06 left of the first quarter.
Edmonton defensive lineman Noah Taylor sacked Dru Brown on Ottawa’s second play from scrimmage. Kicker Lewis Ward attempted a 47-yard field goal but the wind carried it wide right. However, Loucheiz Purifoy conceded a single point and it was now 8-3 Redblacks with 3:08 left of the first quarter.
Edmonton suffered another major injury as Scott Hutter injured his knee in a non-contact play during a punt return. Edmonton’s defense made a nice play when Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown attempted to throw the ball to Kalil Pimpleton but Kai Gray was there for the interception. Edmonton went on a two-play drive for seven yards before Boris Bede made a 39-yard field goal and the Elks trailed the Redblacks 7-6 at the end of the first quarter. Ottawa had 88 yards on offense (86 yards passing, 7 yards rushing, 5 yards lost). Quarterback Dru Brown completed 6 of 10 passes for 86 yards, and one interception.
Edmonton had 31 yards on offense (16 yards passing, 15 yards rushing). Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 2 of 3 passes for 12 yards. Backup quarterback Tre Ford got some playing time completing 1 of 2 passes for four yards, and one carry for three yards. Ford did not appear for the rest of the game.
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, Ottawa went on a five-play drive for 28 yards before kicker Lewis Ward made a 48-yard field goal extending the Redblacks lead to 11-6 with 11:18 left. Then, Edmonton marched down to the Redblacks’ 38-yard line before kicker Boris Bede missed a 45-yard field goal with Tobias Harris returning the ball for 51 yards. A penalty by Edmonton moved the ball up to the Elks’ 54-yard line.
On the second play for Ottawa, quarterback Dru Brown tried to force a throw to Jaelon Acklin but it was intercepted by Darrius Bratton on the Elks’ 14-yard line. Had Brown looked around the field, he had a wide receiver wide open to his left side. Despite the turnover, Edmonton could not take advantage.
Ottawa went on a six-play drive for 63 yards before kicker Lewis Ward made an 11-yard field goal making it 14-6 with 1:41 left before halftime. Edmonton had the ball for the final 1:39 left of the second quarter. They went on a five-play drive for 28 yards before kicker Boris Bede made a 42-yard field goal and the Elks trailed the Redblacks 14-9 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Ottawa had 179 yards on offense (157 yards passing, 27 yards rushing, 5 yards lost). Quarterback Dru Brown completed 14 of 22 passes (63%) for 157 yards, two interceptions, and one carry for 13 yards. Running back Ryquell Armstead had four carries for 10 yards, one touchdown, and made one catch for 13 yards.
Wide receiver Justin Hardy made three catches for 38 yards, and Dominique Rhymes made one catch for 36 yards. Ottawa’s defense had five tackles for loss. The Redblacks were penalized two times for 30 yards.
Edmonton had 136 yards on offense (116 yards passing, 20 yards rushing). Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 14 of 17 passes (82.3%) for 112 yards. Running back Kevin Brown had five carries for 19 yards and made two catches for 24 yards.
Wide receiver Eugene Lewis made four catches for 36 yards, while Arkell Smith made two catches for 23 yards. Edmonton’s defense made one sack, two interceptions, and one tackle for loss. They were penalized five times for 57 yards.
Third Quarter:
In the third quarter, it was a defensive battle with not a lot of offense and lots of two-and-outs. Edmonton kicker Boris Bede missed a 42-yard field goal but Ottawa returner Tobias Harris conceded the single point. The score was now 14-10 Ottawa with 9:34 left.
On the third series for Edmonton, they went two-and-out before punter Jake Julien punted the ball 59 yards into the endzone and out of bounds for a single point. The Elks trailed the Redblacks 14-11 with 5:34 left of the third quarter.
Ottawa responded by going on a six-play drive for 54 yards before kicker Lewis Ward made a 27-yard field goal for a 17-11 lead with 46 seconds left of the third quarter. Edmonton had the ball at the Redblacks’ 17-yard line to begin the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, the Elks moved the ball up to the Redblacks’ 31-yard line but kicker Boris Bede missed a 43-yard field goal. Ottawa returner Tobias Harris returned the ball for 29 yards but suffered a lower-body injury on their 19-yard line with 13:02 left in the game.
On Edmonton’s next series, quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson attempted to throw a pass to Eugene Lewis but Ottawa defensive back Deandre Lamont made a nice diving interception on their 26-yard line with 10:57 left in the game. Ottawa’s offense did move the ball a bit before punting it back to Edmonton with 7:50 left in the game.
On Ottawa’s next series, they went on a four-play drive for 7 yards before Lewis Ward made a 45-yard field goal for a 20-11 lead with 4:15 left in the game. When Edmonton got the ball back, they marched down the field for nine plays for 58 yards ending with kicker Boris Bede making a 19-yard field goal and the Elks trailed the Redblacks 20-14 with 2:13 left of the fourth quarter.
Ottawa’s offense killed the clock to leave Edmonton with nine seconds left. Edmonton was unable to move the ball down the field as time expired to end the game. The Redblacks defeated the Elks 20-14 for their fourth win of the season. They match the win total from last season.
Final Stats:
Ottawa had 304 yards on offense (257 yards passing, 75 yards rushing, 28 yards lost). Quarterback Dru Brown completed 22 of 33 passes (66%) for 257 yards, two interceptions, and one carry for seven yards. Running back Ryquell Armstead had 12 carries for 53 yards, one touchdown, and made one catch for 13 yards.
Wide receiver Justin Hardy made five catches for 61 yards, while Kalil Pimpleton made five catches for 56 yards. Kicker Lewis Ward made 4 of 5 field goals with a long of 48 yards. Ottawa’s defense made 42 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, six tackles on special teams, two sacks, one interception, and one forced fumble.
Edmonton had 243 yards on offense. Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 27 of 39 passes (69%) for 206 yards, and one interception. Running back Kevin Brown had 9 carries for 26 yards and made four catches for 30 yards.
Wide receiver Eugene Lewis made 7 catches for 74 yards, while Arkell Smith made three catches for 40 yards. Edmonton kicker Boris Bede made 4 of 7 field goals with a long of 42 yards. Edmonton’s defense made 44 tackles, one tackle for loss, eight tackles for loss, four sacks, two interceptions, and one fumble recovery.
Final Thoughts:
The coaching change Edmonton made this week did not make a difference. The Elks’ offense struggled to reach the red zone and Boris Bede is continuing to score all the points.
Putting Tre Ford in for a couple of plays was not a good look for Jarious Jackson. If Jackson is so high on him, why didn’t he let him play more snaps? Looking at Ford’s facial expressions, I think he is done with Edmonton and ready to move on.
For Jackson, he needs to turn this franchise around especially with a new owner coming in for Edmonton. For all we know, the new owner(s) could move on from everyone and start fresh next season.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown still needs a lot of work. He forced a couple of throws that led to two interceptions. He needs to be better at seeing the entire field. Had he taken a look around the field, he would’ve found several wide-open players, and the Redblacks might have had more touchdowns. For Ottawa to reach its total win of last season is an improvement but they have a lot of work to do if they are going to contend for a playoff spot.
Next Friday, the Ottawa Redblacks host the Calgary Stampeders at 7:30 pm on TSN and CFL+, while the Edmonton Elks host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday at 7 pm on TSN and CBS Sports Network. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2024 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub and Viagogo.
