The Ottawa Redblacks (9-8-1) hosted the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (7-11) on Friday night in the regular season finale. The season series was tied heading into this game. Ottawa had their starters play the game looking to build momentum heading into the playoffs next week.
They were also coming into this game on a five-game losing streak. On the other side, Hamilton was looking to extend Ottawa’s losing streak. They put up a fight and made this game exciting to close out the season.
First Quarter:
On the opening kickoff, Ottawa returner DeVonte Dedmon returned the ball for 55 yards to reach the Ticats’ 47-yard line but an illegal block penalty placed the ball back on their 14-yard line.
Quarterback Dru Brown completed two passes for 36 yards, and wide receiver Braylon Addison rushed for nine yards to reach the Ticats’ 51-yard line. On the next play, Ottawa fullback Anthony Gosselin rushed up the middle for three yards before Hamilton linebacker Ray Wilborn forced it out and it was recovered by Kyle Wilson on their 48-yard line with 12:09 left of the first quarter.
For the next two possessions, both teams went two-and-out. Hamilton got the ball back with 10:21 left from the Redblacks’ 54-yard line. Running back Greg Bell began the drive by rushing for 11 yards, followed by quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completing a 22-yard pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. to reach the Redblacks’ 21-yard line.
Running backs Greg Bell and Ante Milanovic-Litre combined with three carries logging 11 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 11-yard line. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw the ball toward wide receiver Dezmon Patmon but he could not complete the catch. Kicker Marc Liegghio kicked a 17-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead with 6:39 left of the first quarter.
Ottawa got the ball back on their 40-yard line to begin the next drive. Quarterback Dru Brown completed a 22-yard pass to Jaelon Acklin to reach the Ticats’ 48-yard line. Brown threw three more passes for 34 yards plus a two-yard run by Bralon Addison moved the ball up to the Ticats’ 12-yard line. On the next play, Brown completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Bralon Addison putting Ottawa up 7-3 with 2:52 left of the first quarter to cap off a seven-play drive for 70 yards in three minutes and thirty-five seconds.
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell began the next drive by throwing a 33-yard pass to Kiondre Smith to reach the Redblacks’ 46-yard line. Next, running back Greg Bell rushed for a gain of 11 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 35-yard line.
On the next play, Mitchell attempted to throw the ball in the direction of Kiondre Smith but his throw was under Smith and Damon Webb was there for the interception inside the red zone with 1:07 left of the first quarter. It was Webb’s fifth interception of the season.
Ottawa wide receiver Bralon Addison had two carries for seven yards short of the first down. On the last play of the first quarter, Ottawa punter Richie Leon punted the ball 57 yards to Lawrence Woods III, who returned it for 13 yards to reach their 29-yard line down 7-3.
Ottawa had 125 yards on offense (104 yards passing, 21 yards rushing), 6 first downs, 1 for 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized one time for 10 yards. Quarterback Dru Brown completed 7 of 10 passes for 104 yards, and one touchdown.
Hamilton had 88 yards on offense (55 yards passing, 33 yards rushing), 5 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team had no penalties. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed 2 of 6 passes for 55 yards, and one touchdown.
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, Hamilton went two-and-out. Ottawa got the ball on their 43-yard line. Quarterback Dru Brown completed a 51-yard pass to Kalil Pimpleton and that was all they got. Kicker Lewis Ward made a 23-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead with 12:28 left of the second quarter.
Hamilton running back Greg Bell rushed for a one-yard gain then the team went two-and-out. Ottawa’s offense had the ball on their 46-yard line. Quarterback Dru Brown completed a 30-yard pass to Kalil Pimpleton to reach the Ticats’ 34-yard line. Two plays later, Brown overthrew Jaelon Acklin leading to an interception by Destin Talbert. He returned the interception for 38 yards before running out of bounds on the Redblacks’ 52-yard line with 9:38 left.
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed two passes for 30 yards, followed by three running plays by Greg Bell and Ante Milanovic-Litre logging 10 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 12-yard line. Then, Mitchell threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Kiondre Smith, and the game was tied 10-10 with 5:40 left before halftime.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown did not waste any time by completing two passes for 46 yards, and Bralon Addison had two carries for 11 yards to reach the Ticats’ 23-yard line. The drive stalled and kicker Lewis Ward made a 31-yard field goal giving Ottawa a 13-10 lead with 2:38 left before halftime.
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed five passes for 41 yards and running back Ante Milanovic-Litre rushed for five yards to reach the Redblacks’ 29-yard line. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 37-yard field goal and the game was tied again 13-13 with 1:16 left of the second quarter.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown’s pass intended for Jaelon Acklin was incomplete but an illegal contact penalty on Jonathan Moxey gave Ottawa a first down from their 50-yard line. Brown completed two passes for 14 yards and backup quarterback Dustin Crum rushed for 42 yards to reach the Ticats’ four-yard line.
On the next play, Brown completed a four-yard touchdown pass to Jaelon Acklin for a 20-13 lead with 15 seconds left capping off a five-play drive for 70 yards. Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was sacked by Lorenzon Mauldin IV to end the first half as Ottawa led Hamilton 20-13.
First Half Stats:
Ottawa had 306 yards on offense (233 yards passing, 73 yards rushing), 13 first downs, 2 for 3 in the red zone, and the team was penalized one time for 10 yards. Quarterback Dru Brown completed 14 of 22 passes (64%) for 249 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
Running back Anthony Gosselin had one carry for three yards. Wide receiver Bralon Addison made five catches for 41 yards, one touchdown, and six carries for 29 yards, while Kalil Pimpleton made two catches for 81 yards. Ottawa’s defense made one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception.
Hamilton had 171 yards on offense (133 yards passing, 49 yards rushing, 11 yards lost), 12 first downs, 1 for 2 in the red zone, and the team was penalized two times for 25 yards. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed 9 of 17 passes (53%) for 133 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
Running back Greg Bell had six carries for 40 yards. Wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr. made four catches for 59 yards, while Kiondre Smith made two catches for 45 yards and one touchdown. Hamilton’s defense made one tackle for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one interception.
Third Quarter:
Hamilton got the ball to start the second half on their 50-yard line. After a procedure penalty on Hamilton offensive lineman Jordan Murray, quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed two passes for 25 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 40-yard line. Next, running back Ante Milanovic-Litre rushed for a gain of 11 yards, followed by Mitchell throwing a 12-yard pass to Dezmon Patmon reaching the Redblacks’ 11-yard line.
Hamilton’s offense stalled which included a time-count violation on Mitchell. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 23-yard field goal and Hamilton trailed Ottawa 20-16 with 10:43 left of the third quarter.
On second down, Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown completed a four-yard pass to Dominique Rhymes short of the first down. Hamilton got the ball back with 9:19 left from their 31-yard line. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw three straight passes for 47 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 32-yard line.
Running back Greg Bell rushed for a gain of 11 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 21-yard line. On the next play, Mitchell tossed the ball to Bell, who got a couple of good blocks in front of him on the left side to score a 21-yard touchdown and Hamilton took a 22-20 lead with 6:02 left of the third quarter.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown completed two passes for 14 yards then the drive stalled. Hamilton got the ball back with 3:09 left. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed a 53-yard pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. before Ottawa defensive back Brandin Dandridge forced a fumble and it was recovered by Money Hunter on their 40-yard line.
Quarterback Dru Brown completed two passes for 29 yards to reach their 49-yard line. On the next play, Hamilton got called for a defensive pass interference penalty, and Kalil Pimpleton rushed for two yards to reach the Ticats’ 26-yard line. Kicker Lewis Ward made a 33-yard field goal for a 23-22 lead with 37 seconds left. On the last play of the third quarter, quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw a 37-yard pass to Tim White to reach the Redblacks’ 30-yard line down 23-22.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed a short pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. for a gain of 26 yards to reach the Redblacks’ two-yard line. Running Ante Milanovic-Litre pushed his way into the endzone for a two-yard touchdown. Hamilton did not get the two-point conversion but did take a 28-23 lead with 13:29 left to cap off a four-play drive for 70 yards.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown completed a 27-yard pass to Dominique Rhymes to start the next drive. However, Hamilton defensive lineman Casey Sayles sacked him on the next play for a loss of 7 yards. Then, Brown completed an 8-yard pass to Nick Mardner to reach the Ticats’ 40-yard line before kicker Lewis Ward made a 47-yard field goal and Ottawa trailed Hamilton 28-26 with 10:56 left of the game.
Hamilton’s offense gained 13 yards then the drive stalled giving the ball back to Ottawa with 8:06 left of the game. Wide receiver Bralon Addison rushed for a gain of 11 yards then quarterback Dru Brown completed three straight passes for 62 yards to reach the Ticats’ 19-yard line. The drive stalled afterward and kicker Lewis Ward made a 21-yard field goal for a 29-28 lead with 4:28 left of the game.
Hamilton’s offense was back out on their 40-yard line. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed two passes for 30 yards to reach the Redblacks’ 40-yard line. Then, running back Ante Milanovic-Litre rushed for one yard before kicker Marc Liegghio made a 46-yard field goal for a 31-29 lead with 2:20 left of the game.
Ottawa quarterback Dru Brown began the next drive by running for 11 yards to reach their 45-yard line. On the next play, Brown threw a deep pass to Kalil Pimpleton for a 65-yard touchdown. Then, Brown threw to Bralon Addison to get two points and Ottawa took a 37-31 lead with 1:40 left of the game capping off a two-play drive for 76 yards in 31 seconds.
Hamilton’s offense had the ball for the final 1:33 of the game. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed three straight passes for 57 yards, including a 44-yard pass to Brendan O’Leary-Orange at the Redblacks’ 1-yard line.
Ottawa’s defense stopped Ante Milanovic-Litre twice forcing third down with one second left. On third down, Ottawa’s defense stopped Milanovic-Litre again and Ottawa snapped a five-game losing streak defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 37-31 to win the season series.
Final Stats:
Ottawa had 534 yards on offense (445 yards passing, 96 yards rushing, 7 yards lost), 24 first downs, 2 for 4 in the red zone, and the team was penalized two times for 10 yards. Quarterback Dru Brown completed 26 of 38 passes (68.4%) for 445 yards, three touchdowns, one interception, and one carry for 11 yards. Running back Anthony Gosselin had one carry for three yards.
Wide receiver Bralon Addison made six catches for 44 yards, one touchdown, and eight carries for 38 yards, while Kalil Pimpleton made six catches for 167 yards and one touchdown. Kicker Lewis Ward made 5 of 5 field goals with a long of 47 yards. Ottawa’s defense made 45 tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one interception, and seven tackles on special teams.
Hamilton had 533 yards on offense (425 yards passing, 119 yards rushing, 11 yards lost), 26 first downs, 2 for 5 in the red zone, and the team was penalized 7 times for 83 yards. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed 25 of 36 passes (69.4%) for 425 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He finishes the season setting the Ticats’ single-season passing record (5,451 yards). Running back Greg Bell had 11 carries for 91 yards and one touchdown.
Wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr. made nine catches for 180 yards, while Kiondre Smith made three catches for 52 yards and one touchdown. Kicker Marc Liegghio made 4 of 4 field goals with a long of 46 yards. Hamilton’s defense made 36 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one interception, and made six tackles on special teams.
Next Saturday, the Ottawa Redblacks visit the Toronto Argonauts 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.
