The Edmonton Elks (7-11) hosted the Toronto Argonauts (10-8) on Friday night to conclude the regular season at Commonwealth Stadium. Toronto did not play their starters in this game as Cameron Dukes was the starting quarterback. For the Edmonton fans, it was their last chance to see this team and the Elks gave those in attendance something to remember.
First Quarter:
Toronto got the ball to start the game from their 43-yard line. Quarterback Cameron Dukes completed four passes for 30 yards, and running back Daniel Adeboboye rushed for four yards to reach the Elks’ 33-yard line then the drive stalled.
Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu missed a 40-yard field goal wide left and Edmonton returner Javon Leake returned it for 29 yards to reach their 14-yard line. However, an illegal block penalty on Edmonton moved the ball back to their five-yard line with 10:54 left.
Edmonton running back Justin Rankin began the drive by running for four yards. He would get an additional two carries for 12 yards, while quarterback Tre Ford completed three passes for 34 yards to reach the Argonauts’ 37-yard line then the drive stalled. Toronto got the ball back with 4:50 left of the first quarter.
Toronto quarterback Cameron Dukes was sacked two times for 12 yards both by Eddie Brown. He was limping after taking a couple of big hits but stayed in the game. Toronto’s offense moved the ball up to the Elks’ 17-yard line before kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 24-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead with 1:05 left of the first quarter.
Edmonton quarterback Tre Ford completed a short pass to Zach Mathis reaching their 43-yard line. On the last play of the first quarter, Ford threw a short pass to Javon Leake, who was not covered and he took off for a 67-yard touchdown. Kicker Vincent Blanchard missed the extra point and Edmonton led 6-3 capping off a two-play drive for 70 yards.
Edmonton had 138 yards on offense (112 yards passing, 26 yards rushing), 5 first downs, no red zone opportunities, and the team was penalized three times for 35 yards. Quarterback Tre Ford completed 6 of 8 passes for 112 yards, one touchdown, and two carries for 16 yards.
Toronto had 60 yards on offense (40 yards passing, 26 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 4 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team had no penalties. Quarterback Cameron Dukes completed 5 of 7 passes for 40 yards and two carries for 22 yards.
Second Quarter:
Nick Arbuckle was the new quarterback for Toronto to begin the second quarter. Arbuckle completed two passes for 19 yards to reach the Elks’ 33-yard line. Next, running back Daniel Adeboboye rushed for four yards to the Elks’ 29-yard line. Then, Arbuckle threw a 29-yard touchdown pass right on the hands of Jake Herslow putting Toronto up 10-6 with 12:03 left capping off a four-play drive for 52 yards.
Jared Doege was the new quarterback for Edmonton. The Elks went two-and-out giving Toronto the ball back with 10:11 left from their 35-yard line. Running back Deonta McMahon had two carries for 10 yards to reach their 45-yard line.
Two plays later, quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed a short pass to Tommy Nield for 20 yards before Kordell Jackson stripped the ball and recovered it on the Elks’ 40-yard line with 8:33 left.
Despite the turnover, Edmonton gained 15 yards then the drive stalled. Toronto’s offense was back out on the field to start their next drive from their 21-yard line with 6:04 left. On the fourth play, Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed a 41-yard pass to Makai Polk to reach the Elks’ 26-yard line. The drive stalled afterward then kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 31-yard field goal for a 13-6 lead with 3:04 left before halftime.
For the rest of the second quarter, Edmonton’s offense gained 34 yards on two possessions while Toronto’s offense had 58 yards. With 41 seconds left, Edmonton defensive back Darrius Bratton intercepted Nick Arbuckle’s pass and Edmonton trailed Toronto 13-6 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Toronto had 280 yards on offense (243 yards passing, 43 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 12 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized two times for 25 yards.
Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 11 of 13 passes (84.6%) for 203 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Running back Daniel Adeboboye had five carries for 11 yards and one catch for 13 yards. Wide receiver Makai Polk made six catches for 122 yards, and Damonte Coxie made three catches for 33 yards. Toronto’s defense made one tackle for loss and one sack.
Edmonton had 187 yards on offense (118 yards passing, 74 yards rushing, 5 yards lost), 8 first downs, no red zone opportunities, and the team was penalized 9 times for 90 yards. Quarterback Jarret Doege completed 1 of 3 passes (33%) for six yards, and one carry for five yards.
Running back Javon Leake had four carries for 28 yards, one catches for 67 yards, and one touchdown, while Justin Rankin had six carries for 25 yards. Wide receiver Eugene Lewis made three catches for 34 yards, and Zach Mathis made two catches for 9 yards. Edmonton’s defense made one tackle for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one interception.
Third Quarter:
Edmonton got the ball to start the second half from their 10-yard line. Tre Ford was back as Edmonton’s quarterback. Running back Javon Leake started the drive by speeding through an open hole for an 88-yard run reaching the Argonauts’ 12-yard line. Edmonton gained two more yards before kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 19-yard field goal and Edmonton trailed Toronto 13-9 with 11:55 left.
Toronto started on their 40-yard line. Running back Deonta McMahon started the drive with a two-yard run, followed by quarterback Nick Arbuckle’s 8-yard pass to Kevin Mital. Toronto’s offense continued to march down the field reaching the Elk’s three-yard line. Then, running back Deonta McMahon avoided getting tackled twice to score a three-yard touchdown extending Toronto’s lead 20-9 with 5:49 left of the third quarter capping off a 10-play drive for 70 yards.
For the rest of the third quarter, Edmonton had 16 yards on offense on two possessions and Toronto had seven yards. On the last play of the third quarter, quarterback Nick Arbuckle’s pass intended for Kevin Mital was incomplete. Toronto led 20-9 facing third down to begin the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
Toronto punter John Haggerty began the fourth quarter by punting the ball 53 yards to Edmonton returner Dillon Mitchell. He returned it for 9 yards but an illegal block penalty on Edmonton placed the ball on their 14-yard line.
Edmonton running back Javon Leake began the drive with two carries for three yards, and quarterback Tre Ford rushed for 22 yards to reach their 39-yard line. Next, Tre Ford threw two straight passes for 20 yards moving the ball to the Argonauts’ 51-yard line.
Tre Ford and Javon Leake led the Edmonton offense down to the four-yard line. Then, Tre Ford threw a four-yard touchdown pass to Eugene Lewis. They attempted a two-point conversion but did not get it and they trailed Toronto 20-15 with 7:44 left of the game capping off an 11-play drive for 96 yards.
Toronto went two-and-out on their next drive giving the ball back to Edmonton with 5:46 left of the game from the Elks’ 12-yard line. Edmonton running back Justin Rankin rushed for three yards, followed by Tre Ford completing a short pass to Jerminic Smith for a gain of 71 yards to reach the Argonauts’ 24-yard line.
Next, Tre Ford could not find anyone open and ran for 14 yards reaching the Argonauts’ 10-yard line. Then, Ford handed the ball off to Justin Rankin, who ran to his left side breaking a couple of tackles to score a 10-yard touchdown. They successfully converted a two-point play for a 23-20 with 3:14 left of the game capping off a four-play drive for 98 yards.
Toronto’s offense returned to the field with 2:52 left from their 37-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed two passes for 50 yards to reach the Elks’ 23-yard line. An offsides penalty on Edmonton gave Toronto five yards.
Next, running back Daniel Adeboboye rushed for a gain of nine yards reaching the Elks’ 9-yard line. Then, Nick Arbuckle quickly threw the ball to Daniel Adeboboye, who had green in front of him to score a 9-yard touchdown giving Toronto a 27-23 lead with 1:50 left of the game capping off a six-play drive for 68 yards.
For the next two possessions, Edmonton went three-and-out, and Toronto went two-and-out giving the ball back to Edmonton with 49 seconds left. Edmonton quarterback Tre Ford completed a 50-yard pass to Eugene Lewis to reach the Argonauts’ 40-yard line. Then, Ford threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Zach Mathis taking a 30-27 lead with 34 seconds left.
Toronto returner Deonta McMahon returned the kickoff for 27 yards to reach their 38-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed three passes for 48 yards plus a roughing the passer penalty on Edmonton placed the ball on the Elks’ 9-yard line with four seconds left. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 16-yard field goal and the game was tied 30-30 heading to overtime.
Overtime:
In overtime, Edmonton was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty, followed by quarterback Nick Arbuckle completing an 8-yard pass to Tommy Nield setting up third down. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu missed a 49-yard field goal wide left and Javon Leake returned it out of the end zone preventing the single point.
Edmonton running back Justin Rankin rushed for one yard reaching the Argonauts’ 34-yard line. They did not get the first down forcing third down. Edmonton punter Jake Julien punted the ball 54 yards into the end zone and out of bounds for a single point and the Edmonton Elks defeated the Toronto Argonauts 31-30.
Final Stats:
Edmonton had 581 yards on offense (331 yards passing, 260 yards rushing, 10 yards lost), 21 first downs, 2 for 3 in the red zone, and the team was penalized 14 times for 135 yards.
Quarterback Tre Ford completed 16 of 25 passes (64%) for 325 yards, three touchdowns, and six carries for 81 yards. Running back Javon Leake had 8 carries for 128 yards, two catches for 80 yards, and one touchdown, while Justin Rankin had 12 carries for 48 yards, and one touchdown.
Wide receiver Jerminic Smith made four catches for 98 yards, and Eugene Lewis made five catches for 88 yards and one touchdown. Edmonton’s defense made 45 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and six tackles on special teams.
Toronto had 488 yards on offense (418 yards passing, 76 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 24 first downs, 2 for 4 in the red zone, and the team was penalized four times for 50 yards. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 23 of 32 passes (72%) for 378 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and one carry for one yard. Running back Deonta McMahon had 10 carries for 35 yards, one touchdown, three catches for 32 yards, and one touchdown.
Wide receiver Makai Polk made six catches for 122 yards, and Tommy Nield made five catches for 64 yards. Toronto’s defense made 42 tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and made six tackles on special teams.
Next Saturday, the Toronto Argonauts play the Ottawa Redblacks in the Eastern Semi-Final at 3 pm on CTV and CFL+. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2024 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub.
