The Edmonton Elks (5-8) hosted the Calgary Stampeders (4-8) on Saturday night from Commonwealth Stadium in round two of the Battle of Alberta. Logan Bonner made his first career CFL start for the Calgary Stampeders in hopes the team would turn things around.
First Quarter:
Edmonton got the ball to start the first quarter on their 32-yard line. Running back Jevon Leake rushed for a gain of five yards to reach their 37-yard line before the drive stalled. Punter Jake Julien punted the ball 85 yards into the end zone where Calgary returner Peyton Logan conceded the single point. It was 1-0 Edmonton with 13:08 left.
On Calgary’s first possession of the game, quarterback Logan Bonner threw an 11-yard pass to Clark Barnes. Two plays later, he completed a 24-yard pass to Reggie Begelton, and running back Dedrick Mills had three carries for 10 yards before the drive stalled. Kicker Rene Paredes made a 32-yard field goal for a 3-1 lead with 9:35 left of the first quarter.
Edmonton running back Jevon Leake started the next drive with three carries for 11 yards to reach their 51-yard line before the drive stalled. Punter Jake Julien punted the ball 76 yards into the end zone where Calgary returner Peyton Logan conceded a single point. The Elks trailed the Stampeders 3-2 with 6:45 left of the first quarter.
On Calgary’s next drive, they marched down to the Elks’ 22-yard line. On the next play, quarterback Logan Bonner made a bad throw in the end zone as Loucheiz Purifoy intercepted it with no Calgary receiver near him. Edmonton went two-and-out on their next drive. Calgary had the ball on their 29-yard line to begin their next drive.
Running back Dedrick Mills had two carries for 16 yards before the drive stalled and Edmonton got the ball on their 23-yard line with 22 seconds left. Edmonton running back Kevin Brown had two carries for 27 yards to reach their 50-yard line to end the first quarter down 3-2.
Calgary had 90 yards on offense (60 yards passing, 28 yards rushing), 7 first downs, and 0 for 1 in the red zone. Quarterback Logan Bonner completed 4 of 7 passes for 60 yards, and one interception. Edmonton had 49 yards on offense (6 yards passing, 43 yards rushing) two first downs, and no red zone opportunities. Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 1 of 4 passes for 6 yards.
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, Edmonton quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw a 60-yard touchdown pass to Hergy Mayala. They went for a two-point conversion where Thompson threw to Eugene Lewis to get the two points and the Elks took a 10-3 lead with 14:23 left capping off a three-play drive for 87 yards.
On Calgary’s next drive, quarterback Logan Bonner completed two passes for 21 yards, wide receiver Jaleon Philpot had a carry for 11 yards, and Dedrick Mills had three carries for 16 yards before the drive stalled. Kicker Rene Paredes made a 42-yard field goal but the Stampeders trailed the Elks 10-6 with 10:14 left before halftime.
Edmonton had the ball on their 40-yard line to begin their next drive. Running back Jevon Leake started the drive with a gain of 10 yards. Next, quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed a three-yard pass to Jevon Leake and they got an extra 15 yards on a face mask penalty by Micah Awe.
Then, running backs Jevon Leake and Kevin Brown combined with three carries logging 29 yards. Edmonton finished the drive when wide receiver Tevin Jones scored a 13-yard touchdown extending Edmonton’s lead 17-6 with 6:24 left of the second quarter capping off a six-play drive for 70 yards.
In the next three series, both teams went two-and-out. During Edmonton’s drive, Calgary defensive lineman Charles Wiley sacked McLeod Bethel-Thompson for a four-yard loss with 4:51 left. Edmonton’s offense was back out with 2:18 left before halftime. They went on a five-play drive for 27 yards before kicker Boris Bede made a 41-yard field goal for a 20-6 lead with 1:01 left of the second quarter.
On the second play for Calgary, quarterback Logan Bonner attempted to complete a pass to Reggie Begelton but Edmonton defensive lineman Shawn Oakman got his hand up to deflect the ball and Nick Anderson made the interception for a six-yard return to reach the Stampeders’ 45-yard line.
Edmonton quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed three straight passes for 32 yards to reach the Stampeders’ 32-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Boris Bede made a 20-yard field goal and the Elks took a 20-6 lead at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Edmonton had 222 yards on offense (116 yards passing, 113 yards rushing, 7 yards lost), 10 first downs, 1 for 2 in the red zone, and was penalized three times for 57 yards. Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 9 of 14 passes (64.3%) for 116 yards, one touchdown, and one carry for 16 yards. Running backs Kevin Brown and Jevon Leake combined with 11 carries logging 84 yards and four catches logging 19 yards.
Wide receiver Hergy Mayla made two catches for 71 yards, and one touchdown, and Kurleigh Gittens Jr. made one catch for 18 yards. Edmonton’s defense made one tackle for loss and two interceptions.
Calgary had 151 yards on offense (87 yards passing, 62 yards rushing), 10 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and was penalized five times for 60 yards. Quarterback Logan Bonner completed 8 of 16 passes (50%) for 87 yards, and two interceptions. Running back Dedrick Mills had nine carries for 49 yards.
Wide receiver Reggie Begelton made two catches for 33 yards, while Clark Barnes made three catches for 29 yards, and Jalen Philpot made one catch for 19 yards. Calgary’s defense made 21 tackles and one sack.
Third Quarter:
Calgary got the ball to start the third quarter from their 43-yard line. Quarterback Logan Bonner completed two passes for 40 yards and running back Peyton Logan rushed for a gain of four yards to reach the Elks’ 33-yard line.
On the next play, Bonner’s pass intended for Marken Michel was intercepted by Kai Gray on the Elks’ 9-yard line after Michel slipped on the field. Edmonton picked up one first down before the drive stalled and punted the ball back to Calgary with 10:08 left.
For the next two series, both teams went two-and-out. Calgary had the ball on their 20-yard line to begin the next drive. On the second play, quarterback Logan Bonner completed a 26-yard pass to Reggie Begelton to reach their 46-yard line.
Then, running backs Peyton Logan and Dedrick Mills combined with three carries logging 25 yards before kicker Rene Paredes made a 46-yard field goal and the Stampeders trailed the Elks 23-9 with 3:27 left of the third quarter capping off a six-play drive for 51 yards.
Edmonton had the ball for the final 3:27 of the third quarter. Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed three passes for 32 yards, and running backs Kevin Brown and Jevon Leake combined with five carries for 19 yards to reach the Stampeders’ 19-yard line to end the third quarter up 23-9 to end the third quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, Edmonton quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw a 19-yard touchdown pass up the middle to Eugene Lewis for a 30-9 lead with 14:01 left of the game capping off a 10-yard drive for 70 yards in over minutes.
Calgary started its next drive from their 47-yard line. Quarterback Logan Bonner completed two passes for 13 yards to reach the Elks’ 50-yard line. Bonner would throw two more passes for 29 yards and running backs Peyton Logan and Dedrick Mills combined with two carries logging four yards plus an illegal block penalty on Edmonton moved the ball to the Elks’ 22-yard line.
Two plays later, quarterback Logan Bonner’s pass intended for Reggie Begelton was intercepted by Nick Anderson at the Elks’ four-yard line. It was Anderson’s second interception of the game. On Edmonton’s next drive, running back Justin Rankin had two carries for 28 yards before Bethel-Thompson threw a 46-yard pass to Eugene Lewis to reach the Stampeders’ 23-yard line.
Next, running back Jevon Leake carried the ball for four yards but wide receiver Kurleigh Gittens Jr. was called for holding. This backed them up 10 yards to the Stampeders’ 24-yard line. Two plays later, Bethel-Thompson’s pass intended for Justin Rankin was intercepted by Micah Awe for a pick-six 83-yard touchdown and the Stampeders trailed the Elks 30-16 with 5:59 left of the game.
Edmonton’s offense started their next drive from their 35-yard line. They went two-and-out and Calgary got the ball on their 13-yard line. On the first play, Calgary quarterback Logan Bonner was sacked by Noah Curtis for an 8-yard loss backing them up to their five-yard line. Then, Logan Bonner completed two passes for 16 yards but was well short of the first down and turned the ball over.
Edmonton took over on downs from the Stampeders’ 21-yard line. Running back Justin Rankin started the drive with a one-yard run. Next, quarterback Tre Ford’s pass intended for Dillon Mitchell was incomplete. However, Edmonton head coach Jarious Jackson challenged the play for defensive pass interference and won.
The ball was placed on the Stampeders’ 5-yard line. Then, running back Justin Rankin finished the drive with a five-yard touchdown run for a 37-16 lead with 2:14 left of the game capping off a three-play drive for 21 yards.
Calgary started their next drive from their 48-yard line after an objectional conduct penalty on Les Mauro. Calgary moved the ball 23 yards to reach the Elks’ 39-yard line before quarterback Logan Bonner’s pass intended for Jalen Philpot was intercepted by Devodric Bynum, who made a nice leaping interception. Edmonton went two-and-out on their next drive.
Calgary had the ball for the final 39 seconds. Quarterback Logan Bonner completed three passes for 43 yards to reach the Elks’ 27-yard line. On the final play of the game, Bonner’s pass intended for Jalen Philpot was intercepted by Devodric Bynum, and the game was over. The Edmonton Elks defeated the Calgary Stampeders 37-16. They have now won five of their last six games.
Final Stats:
Edmonton had 425 yards on offense (219 yards passing, 213 yards rushing, 7 yards lost), 22 first downs, 3 for 4 in the red zone, and was penalized nine times for 122 yards. Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson completed 15 of 25 passes (60%) for 219 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and one carry for 16 yards.
Running back Kevin Brown had 12 carries for 91 yards, and one catch for six yards, Jevon Leake had 10 carries for 55 yards, and 5 catches for 27 yards, and Justin Rankin had four carries for 34 yards, and one touchdown.
Wide receiver Eugene Lewis made 6 catches for 97 yards, and one touchdown, and Hergy Mayala made two catches for 71 yards and one touchdown. Kicker Boris Bede made 2 of 2 field goals with a long of 41 yards. Edmonton’s defense made 42 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, five interceptions, and eight tackles on special teams.
Calgary had 379 yards on offense (284 yards passing, 103 yards rushing, 8 yards lost), 22 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and was penalized 11 times for 137 yards. Quarterback Logan Bonner had a rough debut completing 21 of 36 passes (58.3%) for 284 yards, and 5 interceptions. Running back Dedrick Mills had 14 carries for 65 yards and two catches for 30 yards.
Wide receiver Reggie Begelton made 8 catches for 123 yards, and Jalen Philpot made four catches for 57 yards. Kicker Rene Paredes made 3 of 3 field goals with a long of 46 yards. Calgary’s defense made 43 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, one interception, one touchdown, and five tackles on special teams.
Next week, the Edmonton Elks are on a bye week and the Calgary Stampeders host the Montreal Alouettes next Saturday at 7 pm on TSN and CFL+. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2024 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub and Viagogo.
