Week 1 @ Calgary Stampeders – Ron McMahon Stadium, June 26
Result: 23-24 (Loss)
Top Performers:
Collaros (HAM): 27/38, 281 yards, 1 INT
Cornish (CGY): 13 att, 70 yards
Fuller (CGY): 9 rec, 148 yards
Sears (HAM): 3 tackles, 2 INTs, 1 sack
The Tiger-Cats kicked off their 2015 season with a road re-match of the 102nd Grey Cup, visiting the Calgary Stampeders for the first Friday night game of the CFL league schedule.
Hamilton got off to a strong start at McMahon Stadium, scoring a quick touchdown on a Johnny Sears Jr. interception of Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. The 76-yard pick six halted the Stamps’ first drive of the game and gave the Ticats their first points of 2015. The Stamps fought back on the very next drive, as Mitchell and receiver Eric Rogers connected for the first of the receiver’s 10 touchdowns in 2015.
Brandon Banks found the end zone in the first half, giving the Ticats a 14-7 lead on a 67-yard punt return, his first of a season-high four in 2015. Hamilton would extend their halftime lead to 18-10 on Justin Medlock’s first field goal and punt single of the season, while Calgary added three points on a safety and a punt single of their own.
The teams exchanged red zone interceptions in the third quarter, with Craig Butler intercepting an end zone-bound pass to set up an 80-yard Ticats drive, only to have Keon Raymond make a diving interception of his own in the Stampeders red zone. Raymond returned the ball 98 yards to the house, setting Jon Cornish up for a two-point convert attempt that would tie the game at 18-18.
Medlock’s second field goal of the game—this one from 30 yards out— gave the Ticats a 21-18 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Hamilton would add another two points to their lead on punt singles, while holding the Stamps to just a field goal until the final minute of the game. A massive three-down goal-line stand with just over five minutes remaining was instrumental in holding onto the lead.
A narrowly-missed pass from Zach Collaros to a diving Bakari Grant set the Calgary offence up with one final chance to win the game. The Stamps drove the ball 32 yards from their own 35-yard line, setting up a Rene Paredes 50-yard field goal attempt with the final seconds ticking off the clock. Paredes connected on the 50-yard attempt, giving the Stampeders a 24-23 victory and handing the Ticats their first loss of the 2015 season.
Turning Point: A near-impossible 28-yard connection between Bo Levi Mitchell and Jeff Fuller on 3rd-and-18 extended the Stampeders final drive and pushed them into field-goal range for Rene Paredes. The seven-yard loss created by a Ted Laurent sack on the previous play looked like a knockout blow for Hamilton, but the subsequent completion kept Calgary in the game and ultimately led to their narrow victory.
Week 2 @ Winnipeg Blue Bombers – Investor’s Group Field, July 2
Result: 52-26 (Win)
Top Performers:
Collaros (HAM): 26/33, 354 yards, 2 TDs
Cotton (WPG): 9 att, 46 yards, 1 TD
Grant (HAM): 5 rec, 117 yards, 1 TD
Davis (HAM): 4 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD
In the second of their season-opening four-game road trip, the Tiger-Cats visited the 1-0 Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Investor’s Group Field.
After going down 7-3 on a first-quarter Paris Cotton rushing touchdown, the Ticats racked up 35 straight points, leading the Bombers by a score of 35-13 at the conclusion of the first half. Mike Daly and Emanuel Davis each recorded interceptions, the second of which was a pick six by the international defensive back. Davis scored his first career touchdown in the half, as did Jeff Mathews (1-yard run) and Terrence Toliver (3-yard reception). Brandon Banks weaved his way to the end zone for his second punt return touchdown of 65+ yards in as many games. Bombers quarterback Drew Willy exited the game with a concussion in the second quarter, after which the Ticats outscored Winnipeg by a score 42-9.
The Tiger-Cats racked up another 14 points in the second half, outscoring the Bombers 14-13 in the final two quarters. Brandon Stewart found the end zone on the second of two pick sixes for the Black and Gold defence, while Justin Medlock continued his perfect kicking record through two games by hitting two second-half field goal attempts. The Ticats finished the game with a 52-26 advantage and their first win of the 2015 campaign.
Turning Point: Already trailing 7-3 early on, the Ticats were stripped of the ball after just crossing into Bombers territory. Mike Daly’s interception shortly thereafter put the Ticats in scoring position immediately, field position which they were able to capitalize on to claim a 10-7 lead. From there on, the Black and Gold never looked back, scoring another 25 straight points to take a commanding lead.
Week 3 @ Montreal Alouettes – Percival-Molson Memorial Stadium, July 16
Result: 13-17 (Loss)
Top Performers:
Cato (MTL): 23/34, 264 yards, 1 TD
Holley (HAM): 6 att, 47 yards, 5 rec, 35 yards, 1 TD
Toliver (HAM): 7 rec, 106 yards
Hefney (MTL): 7 tackles, 1 INT
After a Week 3 bye, the Ticats headed to Montreal to face the 1-2 Alouettes in the third game of their four-game road trip to begin the season.
The two teams combined for five straight drives resulting in punts to begin the game, with both offences struggling to gain any momentum. Zach Collaros got off to a slow start, throwing an interception over the middle of the field on the sixth offensive drive of the game, which led to the game’s first field goal for Montreal.
The Ticats exited the tight, defensive battle in the first half with a narrow 10-7 lead, as Ray Holley found the end zone for his first career CFL touchdown on a five-yard pitch and Justin Medlock connected on his sixth straight successful field goal (53 yards) to begin the campaign. Hamilton’s defence was rock-solid in the first half, holding the Als to just two field goals and a punt single. The Black and Gold overwhelmed short-yardage quarterback Brandon Bridge and the Alouettes offensive line on three consecutive goal-line plays, barring Montreal’s offence from finding the end zone in the half.
Hamilton managed 227 yards of offence, but just three points in the second half of the game. The Als struck midway through the third quarter as a scrambling Rakeem Cato found SJ Green for an acrobatic toe-tapping catch in the front of the end zone. The Cats clawed back to within one point on a fourth-quarter 36-yard field goal from Medlock, but that was the extent of their scoring in the final 15 minutes.
Trailing 17-13 with less than a minute (0:40) to go and the ball at their own 23-yard line, the Ticats offence made it close, driving the ball down to the Als’ 20-yard line with less than 20 seconds remaining before turning the ball over on a fumble. Terrence Toliver made two receptions for 67 yards on the final drive before having the ball stripped by Kyler Elsworth to effectively end the game.
Turning Point: Hamilton hung in until the final plays of the game; their final drive was the most successful of the day, but it ultimately fell short with the Toliver fumble. There were multiple opportunities to get back into the game earlier than this, so the blame cannot fall on Toliver, who was simply trying to extend the play and keep the team’s hopes alive; however, there’s no telling what could have been if he could have held onto the ball and given the Ticats at least two more shots from inside the Als’ 20-yard line.
Week 5 @ Saskatchewan Roughriders – Mosaic Stadium, July 26
Result: 31-21 (Win)
Top Performers:
Collaros (HAM): 19/28, 284 yards, 1 TD
Gable (HAM): 20 att, 135 yards, 3 rec, 29 yards
Collins (HAM): 3 rec, 73 yards, 1 TD
Murray (HAM): 5 tackles, 1 INT
After a tough defeat in Montreal, the Ticats traveled 2,850 kilometres West to face the 0-4 Saskatchewan Roughriders in front of their raucous fan-base at Mosaic Stadium.
Justin Medlock missed his first field goal of the season after connecting on his first seven of the year, kicking just wide left from 58 yards out. Riders kicker Paul McCallum successfully connected on a 29-yard attempt to kick off the game’s scoring. Hamilton answered back with a 42-yard strike from Zach Collaros to Junior Collins, who took his first career CFL catch all the way to the Riders end zone for six.
The Cats and Riders traded field goals, Medlock going 2/3 and McCallum hitting his lone attempt before Saskatchewan found the end zone in the final minute of the first half. Kevin Glenn— who took a significant pounding in the first half— and receiver Rob Bagg hooked up for a 19-yard touchdown and the ensuing two-point conversion to square up the game at 14-14 heading into the break.
The Tiger-Cats fell behind 21-14 on an early second-half touchdown run by Brett Smith, but rallied for 17 consecutive points following the score. Three Justin Medlock field goals— one of which was set up by a key Rico Murray interception—a Jeff Mathews touchdown run and a Collaros-to-Grant two-point conversion were unanswered by the Riders offence, who managed just 150 yards of offence in the half.
CJ Gable played a huge part in the victory, amassing 154 total yards from scrimmage in his first start of the season. Ticats quarterback Zach Collaros was 5/7 for 66 yards on second down in the second half, converting for first downs on five of eight drop backs, including three of 11+ yards.
Turning Point: With the team trailing 21-17, defensive back Rico Murray came through with a big interception of Kevin Glenn, setting the Ticats up with first-and-goal deep in Riders territory. The offence was unable to turn the pick into six points, settling for a field goal, but the takeaway was one that lit a fire in the Ticats. After already recording three points on a field goal, the team responded with another 14 straight points to bury the Riders 31-21 with a massive second-half performance.
Week 6 vs. Toronto Argonauts – Tim Hortons Field, September 3
Result: 34-18 (Win)
Top Performers:
Collaros (HAM): 21/29, 229 yards, 3 TDs
Woodson (HAM): 10 att, 54 yards
Grant (HAM): 3 rec, 47 yards, 2 TDs
Norwood (HAM): 9 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble
In their home opener at Tim Hortons Field, the Ticats (2-2) played host to the East Division rival Argonauts (2-2).
The Ticats kicked things off at home with a bang, scoring their first home points on an onside punt recovery. Brandon Stewart lined up onside with punter Hugh O’Neill, racing downfield, scooping up the ball and taking it to the house for an early 7-0 lead.
Zach Collaros threw second-quarter touchdown passes to both Bakari Grant and Terrence Toliver, while the Argos added nine points of their own on a Tori Gurley receiving score and a Ticats safety. Collaros was near-perfect in the half, completing 11-of-13 pass attempts for 131 passing yards and two touchdowns to lead the Ticats to a 21-9 halftime advantage.
The second half was nearly identical to the first, as Collaros and Grant connected for their second touchdown of the day. Collaros replicated his first-half level of performance with 10-of-14 passing for 98 yards and a touchdown in the final 30 minutes. Justin Medlock added two field goals in the half and the Ticats forced two turnovers on downs in their own red zone to hold the Argos to just nine points down the stretch.
CJ Gable and Andy Fantuz each suffered elbow injuries in the first and second half respectively, sidelining both of them for a significant chunk of the season.
Turning Point: Although it was only 2:10 into the game, Brandon Stewart’s onside punt recovery touchdown gave the Ticats a jump-start to begin the game and they never looked back. The surprise touchdown set the tone for a dominant game from the Ticats, who took hold of the game and remained in control for the remaining 58 minutes of game-time.
