Two East Division foes will collide on Friday night when the Hamilton Tiger-Cats pay a visit to Molson Percival Stadium for a matchup against the Montreal Alouettes.
The Als and the Ticats are each on the hunt for a second tally in the win column heading into Week 4. Both teams started strong and emerged victorious from their season openers but experienced setbacks in the following weeks.
The Black and Gold are hoping for better luck on the road as they kickoff the first of four straight road games on Friday. Travel has been kind to CFL teams early in the season as away squads are currently 9-3-1.
In Week 3 action, Hamilton lost a close 28-24 contest at Tim Hortons Field to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Bombers carried a comfortable 12-point lead into halftime, but the Ticats came out with a vengeance in the second half and scored a touchdown on their first drive to narrow the deficit. Another touchdown in the third quarter saw the Ticats trailing by just one point, but that was as close as the team would get to a comeback. A Bombers’ field goal in the dying seconds of the third put them up by four and neither team was able to put any points on the board in the final 15 minutes.
The game was never out of reach for the Tabbies despite turning the ball over six times.
Slow starting seasons have become routine for Kent Austin and company since he took over head coaching duties three years ago. The Ticats started 1-4 in Austin’s first year in 2013 and1-6 the following season. They made it to the Grey Cup both years.
“For whatever reason, we like to make it hard on ourselves coming out of the gate,” Ticats pivot Jeremiah Masoli said after the loss to Winnipeg. “We’re 1-2 after three games. We’re looking forward to next week and hopefully get back on track and get it rolling.”
Hamilton received a morale boost this week when Zach Collaros was taken off of the six-game injured list and returned to practice on Monday. Collaros will not suit up against the Alouettes and does not yet have a definite return date, but being back on the field is a step in the right direction according to the recovering quarterback.
“I feel like for the past 20-days I’ve pretty much been full-go,” Collaros said after Monday’s practice. “No holding back in terms of the cuts, reactive things and non-reactive things. I’m doing everything right… I feel great.”
Jeremiah Masoli will once again take the reigns of the offence when the Ticats face a well-rested but injury riddled Alouettes team that is coming off a bye week.
The Alouettes picked up a Week 1 win against the Bombers, but fell 28-13 to a strong Ottawa Redblacks squad the following week. The Als trailed by only four points heading into the final fifteen minutes, but the Redblacks pulled away with two fourth quarter touchdowns to secure the victory.
The loss could be seen on the Alouettes record and roster as two of the team’s top receivers as well as their all-star running back sustained serious injuries during the game. S.J. Green is out for the season with a shredded knee while Kenny Stafford is on the six-game injured list with a fractured toe. Tyrell Sutton, who led the league in rushing last year, is also on the six-game injured list with a sprained medial collateral ligament (MCL). Starting quarterback Kevin Glenn is also currently sidelined with eye inflammation and Rakeem Cato will get the start under centre for the Als.
The mounding injuries are a huge blow to the offence, but Montreal remains optimistic heading into their home turf.
“It’s going to be a great game,” Montreal wide receiver B.J. Cunningham told MontrealAlouettes.com. “It’s going to be a fun and exciting game, big plays made, maybe some ups and downs, but at the end of the day, we’re going to come out with it. We’re going to play hard, do our best, and come out with that ‘W.’”
The last time the Tabbies and Alouettes faced off in the regular season was on Oct. 18, 2015. Luke Tasker had 107 yards on eight catches while the Ticats defence recorded three interceptions en route to a 23-11 win.
Quick Facts:
- Thus far Hamilton has allowed by far the lowest average yards per play of any team. Their opponents are averaging just 5.2 yards per play and the Tiger-cats rank #2 in defence at just 303 yards per game allowed. Opponents have scored only five times on offence against them, second-lowest of any CFL club.
- The Als have gone just 3-6 in games where they have been coming off a previous loss since July 2015.
- In their last 8 games against Hamilton, the Als have started five different QBs. For Hamilton, this will be three different starters in three games vs. the Als (Collaros, Mathews & Masoli).
