First place in the East will be within grasp of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats when they take on the surging Calgary Stampeders on the road in Week 10 at McMahon Stadium.
An Ottawa Redblacks loss on Thursday to the BC Lions has opened the door for the Ticats to leapfrog over the reigning division champions and take sole possession of top spot.
Hamilton is riding into Week 10 on a high after picking up a convincing 53-7 win on home turf last week against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Zach Collaros completed 23-of-31 passes for 381 yards and threw a career high five touchdowns. Collaros distributed the ball evenly to his targets and connected with four different receivers for majors. Terrence Toliver racked up 139 yards and a touchdown on five catches while Chad Owens found the end zone twice on four receptions for 58 yards.
Collaros was recognized as one of the Shaw CFL Performers of the Week after his impressive display against the Riders, but still feels there is room for improvement.
“The numbers looked good last week,” said Collaros. “There’s some things and some throws that I wish I could have made and have back…. there’s always things to improve on and I need to do better.”
Heading into Week 10, the Ticats had the most points for in the East Division (239 pts for) while the Stamps led the West Division (248 pts for), setting the stage for an offensive shoot out featuring two of the best pivots in the league.
Collaros says that the Stampeders’ steadfast approach makes them a tough opponent each year.
“Calgary is always a good challenge,” said Collaros. “There kind of, at least since I’ve been in the league, the standard of what you want you’re organization to be… Bo [Levi Mitchell] has done a great job for them at quarterback for a long time now. They have tons of continuity and they’re just consistent.”
The Stampeders are also coming off of a win after taming the Lions last week in a 37-9 victory. Bo Levi Mitchell connected on 28-of-38 of his passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns. Anthony Parker led all receivers with a 97 yard performance on five catches for the Stamps.
Calgary’s defence has allowed a league low 161 points through nine weeks and have only given up 37 points through their past three games.
The Stamps have proven through the first half of the season that they are more than just a one trick offensive pony.
“Something’s clicking,” Calgary head coach Dave Dickenson told Stampeders.com. “They’re [the defence] doing a good job. We’ve played good teams too. I do think this will be their biggest challenge.”
The Stamps have yet to drop a game at home this year and have not lost since their Week 1 matchup to the BC Lions. They boast a league best 6-1-1 record.
Dickenson knows the offensive threat that Collaros possesses, but recognizes the weapons around the Ticats quarterback make the team more dangerous.
“I think he’s a dynamic player,” Dickenson said about Collaros. “They do what they do with him. I do know that’s a good team though and they’ve got a lot of good talent in all positions. No quarterback can be successful without a good team around him.”
This will be the first meeting between the Ticats and Stamps this season. The two squads last faced each other on Oct 2, 2015 and the Stampeders emerged with a narrow 23-20 victory.
Mitchell, Collaros, Dickenson and Ticats head coach Kent Austin will all be wearing microphones during Sunday’s game as part of the first ever TSN Live Mic Broadcast of a regular season CFL game (#CFLWired). Fans will be able to hear sounds from the sidelines and huddles for an enhanced game experience from home.
Quick Facts:
- The Stampeders have a 7-game unbeaten streak on the line this week, their first since a 7-0 run in mid-2010. They have not reached 8 games in a row unbeaten since August 1995 (10 games across 1994-95), and in the same season since July 16 to September 5, 1994 (8 wins in a row).
- Hamilton’s John Chick (99) and Calgary’s Rob Maver (99) will reach 100 career games this week while Maver’s teammates Jerome Messam (98) and Rene Paredes (97) can get to within one and two games of the century mark respectively. Chad Owens is just two games short 100 heading into Week #10.