Pre-Game Breakdown: Ticats vs. Argos

The atmosphere at Tim Hortons Field will be electric on Monday night, as the East Division rival Toronto Argonauts come to town. The Argos will enter a packed house in Hamilton, facing the hometown Tiger-Cats in a sold out stadium in their home opener.
The Ticats evened up their record at 2-2 last week, edging out the Riders by a score of 31-21. Hamilton scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to cap off their victory, in a game where CJ Gable made headlines in his return to the field. Gable seemed to add another dimension to the Ticats offence, rushing for 37% of the team’s offensive output, way up from the team’s rushing share in the first three games (12%, 14%, 22%). The Ticats defence slowed down the high-powered Riders offence in Saskatchewan, heavily limiting the league’s top rushing duo, and shutting down the pass down the stretch. After a long four-week road trip to begin the season, the Ticats have returned home for their long-awaited home opener at Tim Hortons Field, facing off against their biggest rival.
The Argonauts (3-1) enter the game off of a big come-from-behind win against the BC Lions in Vancouver. The Lions jumped out to a 21-point advantage early, but the Argos clawed back into the game and triumphed in a 30-27 final. Trevor Harris got off to a shaky start against the Lions, throwing two first-half interceptions, but he kicked the offence into gear, leading the charge in the win. The Argonauts enter the game with one of the most efficient offensive units in the league, averaging 8.4 yards per passing play and 5.4 yards per rush. On top of that, Harris has shown lights-out accuracy through four games, completing 74.3% of his passes. That efficient offence will come face-to-face with the best statistical defence in the league in Hamilton on Monday night.
The last three battles between these two teams have been decided by two points or less, while eight of the last 10 have been decided in the last three minutes. It would surprise nobody if this was the best game in the CFL through six weeks.
The long-awaited home opener will kick off with special Opening Ceremonies at 6:55, and fans are encouraged to arrive in their seats at 6:50 to see Tiger-Cats Alumni Less Browne, Rob Hitchcock, Earl Winfield and more introduce your 2015 Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Along with the alumni, the Tim Hortons Field Steamwhistle will sound for the first time pre-game, an event that fans will not want to miss.

The Week Six matchup, and Ticats home opener will kick off tonight at Tim Hortons Field at 7:00 p.m. ET (TSN / 1150 CKOC).

TIGER-CATS HISTORY AGAINST TORONTO

KEYS TO THE GAME:

Shut down Argos’ receivers: Along with the well-known threat that Chad Owens poses, the Argos boast a three-headed monster of young, talented receivers on their roster. Kevin Elliott, Tori Gurley and Vidal Hazelton have each made at least 15 receptions through four games, while each amassing approximately 200 yards in receiving. The three targets have expanded the Argonauts’ pass game, giving quarterback Trevor Harris an abundance of quality options when he drops back. The Ticats’ secondary has allowed just 62.4% of passes to be completed against them, and their success in this game will be vital to the team’s overall success.
Take advantage of home field advantage: Tim Hortons Field has been a safe haven for the Ticats since they moved into the new stadium. The team is undefeated on home turf at the field, winning their first eight games there, including their first six regular season contests. The atmosphere at the sold out home opener should be absolutely electric, after a long road trip for the team. The Ticats must capitalize on this energy and transfer that into on-field success.

Win the turnover battle: The Ticats and Argos are the two league leaders in points per game at 29.8 and 29.5 respectively, while also sharing the CFL lead in turnover ratio (+4). Where the teams differ is their ability to turn turnovers into points. The Ticats have scored 36 points off of takeaways, while allowing opponents to capitalize on turnovers for just 11 points, a +25 ratio. The Argos, meanwhile, have scored just 21 points off of their 13 takeaways, while allowing opponents to cash in for 34 points on their turnovers (-13 ratio). In order to secure a win against their divisional rival, the Ticats must win the turnover battle, and subsequently the points scored off of turnovers, in their first home game of 2015.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

CJ Gable: Gable exploded back onto the CFL scene with a huge game in his return to the lineup last week. The third-year back rushed for a career-high 135 yards in the game against the Riders, and he’ll look to continue that success into his second game of the season. The Argos run defence is in the middle of the pack, allowing 89 yards per game this season, but a similar dual-threat back to Gable, Andrew Harris (BC Lions), had considerable success against the defence last week.

Eric Norwood: The Tiger-Cats number one pass-rusher from 2014 is back in the lineup against the Argos, making his 2015 season debut. Norwood had 13 sacks in 2014, including three in one game against the Argos. He’s been flying around the field at practice, causing havoc in the backfield, and now he’ll get the chance to do so in an important game; watch for the Ticats defensive end to have a big game on Monday night.

Luke Tasker: Zach Collaros gets his top target from 2014 back in the lineup on Monday, as Luke Tasker rejoins the team for his first game of 2015. Tasker provides Collaros with a consistent target who’s willing and able to make catches at all levels of the field. This will mark the second straight week the Ticats receive a major boost to their offensive personnel, and they should be poised for another strong game.

MATCHUP OF THE GAME:

Zach Collaros vs. Trevor Harris
Once backups under Ricky Ray, these two pivots have each taken a step forward in 2015, guiding their respective offences to strong starts.
Now in their fifth game of the season, the two friends and former teammates will go head to head for the first time in their careers.
Collaros started the 2014 season for the Tiger-Cats, a season in which Harris made just one start for the Argos; however, both Ray understudies are at the helm of their respectful ships now.
Collaros, who’s begun his career with a 15-10 record (7-3 at home) in 25 starts, is second in the CFL this season in points per drive, behind just Kevin Glenn. Harris, who has jumped out to a 5-1 start to his career, currently leads the league in completion percentage and touchdown passes (11).
The battle of Ontario could very well come down to how well each quarterback performs on Monday night, as these two Ohio natives go head to head at Tim Hortons Field.

TEAM CONNECTIONS:

A handful of players on the Tiger-Cats roster have spent time with the double blue. Zach Collaros and Justin Medlock each spent multiple seasons with the Argos. Anthony Woodson, Terrell Sinkfield and Donald Washington each also spent time in Toronto, prior to joining the Ticats.

On the other side of the field, there are three former Ticats on the opposition’s roster. Hamilton’s very own, receiver Dave Stala (2009-13) spent five seasons on the team’s roster, while offensive lineman Wayne Smith (2004-06, 2011) and linebacker Brandon Isaac (2013) have also spent time in the Black and Gold.

QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

CJ Gable on the Tiger-Cats week-by-week opponents:

“I think every game’s the same, I don’t care who we’re playing, I’m just going to do what I gotta do, just go out there and have fun basically.”

Anthony Woodson on facing his former Argonauts teammates:

“I’ve got a lot of close buddies on that team, and we had a great locker room when I was over there. I’m looking forward to going against all of them, but I’m not going to be going friendly with any of them, though, it’s going to be some hard-hitting stuff.”

Luke Tasker on his return to the Ticats lineup:

“It’s real exciting. The last week or two of being out, when you really start the process of feeling game-ready, you start building up a bit of angst, every practice hurts that you’re missing. Now that I’m back and I’m full go, there’s a little bit of relief, I can finally just concentrate on playing instead of getting healthy.”

Donald Washington, on what it’s like to play at Tim Hortons Field:

“It was an advantage for the home team, coming in here and playing as a visitor. This place was crazy, it didn’t feel like every other regular season game, it was a little different. The energy in here is gonna be electric, you’re gonna feel it coming out here, and we’re going to be ready.”