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Dane Evans tossed for 379 yards and four touchdowns while completing 80 percent of his passes.
Banks had a game-high 201 yards and a trio of touchdown receptions on 11 catches. Bralon Addison also had 53 yards receiving and added an 18-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.
Vernon Adams Jr. played the majority of the first half for the Als. He threw for 142 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 78 percent of his passes. Matthew Shiltz came into the game in the second quarter and tossed for 120 yards and a touchdown.
The Hamilton defence had a pair of sacks and interceptions in the victory. Justin Tuggle led the way with seven tackles and a sack.
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Following an opening drive by Hamilton that yielded just one first down, Montreal’s opening play of the game involved some trickery. Adams hit Jake Wieneke with a pass in the flat close to the right sideline, the receiver then chucked a ball down the middle and found Quan Bray. The play went for 27 yards. However, just three plays later, a screen pass intended for Johnson was anticipated and intercepted by Simoni Lawrence.
The Hamilton defence nearly came up with a second interception on their next drive, as Cariel Brooks read the play and jumped a wheel route by Johnson and had the ball bounce off his hands. On the next play, Brooks took a 15-yard roughness penalty for a hit after the whistle on Lewis.
Johnson would rumble for 18 yards on the next play before Adams hit Bray over the middle for a 17-yard pickup, setting up the Als up inside the 10. The pair capped off the 12-play, 80-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown reception, as Bray hauled in a pass over the middle once again while being draped by Tunde Adeleke. Boris Bede’s extra-point gave the hosts an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Tabbies would have an immediate answer. Evans connected on quick passes with Banks and Jaelon Acklin for 9 and 7 yards, respectively. He’d then throw it over the middle and hit Banks at the Montreal 30. The star pass-catcher proceeded to make a defender miss before winning the foot race to the left pylon for a 55-yard touchdown reception.
With that catch, Banks also set the franchise record for catches in a single season.
Hamilton opted to go for the 2-point conversion. Evans’ pass for Banks in the end zone fell incomplete, however, an offside penalty would give them a second chance. A procedure penalty on the ensuing attempt pushed the Als back once again, at which point they decided to kick the point-after. But not so fast. By rule, they were forced to go for it. In the end, Evans’ pass for Tasker would be batted away by Greg Reid. That left the Ticats down by one after the opening frame.
The Als opened the second quarter with a bang, driving 75 yards in just six plays. Adams hit Lewis for a pair of first downs on the drive, the second completion going for a gain of 32 yards. He’d then connect with Wieneke for a gain of 20 before tossing a strike to the 25-year-old over the middle for the 11-yard major. Bede would be good on his second convert kick, pushing the Montreal advantage to 14-6.
Following a punt by each team, Evans looked to hit Addison on a deep shot over the middle to open their second drive of the quarter. Bo Lokombo read the play and broke on the receiver, undercutting the route and picking snagging his second pick of the year in the process.
In an effort to give Adams some rest ahead of the postseason, Als head coach Khari Jones pulled his starter from the game and inserted Shiltz. His first drive under centre ended in a two-and-out for the offence.
Hamilton opened the ensuing drive with a 25-yard completion to Addison, followed by another catch for 5 yards by the receiver. A roughing the passer penalty by JaVon Rolland-Jones gave the Tabbies another 15 yards. Evans would find Acklin for another 26 yards and then find Banks for a 6-yard gainer. That set up an 18-yard run to the left by Addison, who had green in front of him and zoomed to pay dirt. Maleek Irons rumbled into the end zone for the 2-point convert to knot the contest up.
Not to be outdone, Shiltz led the Als on a seven-play, 83-yard drive, highlighted by a 23-yard reception by Chris Matthews and a massive 24-yard run by Johnson, who battled to pick up every yard possible. From the Hamilton 15, Shiltz stepped into a throw and caught Matthews in stride at the goal line. His first touchdown pass of the contest put the Als up by a touchdown — after the Bede convert, of course — heading into the locker room.
Shiltz remained in the game to open the second half. The Als’ opening drive of the half would be a two-and-out, giving Hamilton the chance to knot the game up with their first possession of the third quarter. They’d make no mistake.
Hamilton started the drive in Montreal territory, and after a completion to Banks on the right side went for a gain of 23, Evans floated a ball to the back-left corner of the end zone to an open Anthony Coombs for the 6-yard score. Lirim Hajrullahu‘s first convert kick tied the game up once again.
Brooks would make amends for that dropped pick earlier in the game, as he’d step up on a dig route by Matthews and pick off the Shiltz pass in stride. The 29-yard return would set up the offence at the Montreal 27. An 8-yard completion to Tasker and another 10-yard hookup with Addison set the table for Banks’ second touchdown reception of the day. Evans floated the ball into a soft spot in the defence, and Speedy B settled under the ball in the back of the end zone for the major. Hajrullahu would knock the point-after through to give the visitors a 28-21 advantage.
Montreal looked to have picked up two points on a peculiar play that ended in a safety off a Bede punt, however, a challenge for no yards by Orlondo Steinauer would negate the points and give Hamilton the ball. The Als would end up getting the two points in the end, however, as after the Tabbies were hemmed inside their own 10, they opted to run the ball out of the back of the end zone, cutting their own lead to five. That would be the final points scored in the third frame.
The Als would cut the Hamilton lead to three on their next possession. Shiltz would hit Wieneke for 15 and Lewis for 18, but the drive would stall, leaving Bede with a 29-yard field goal, which he would hit with ease.
With around 10 minutes remaining in the final quarter, the Ticats drove 90 yards downfield in just 1:42 to continue increasing their lead. Banks found himself free on the left side of the field again, turning an 18-yard completion into a gain of 44. Three more completions to Mike Jones and Acklin would total another 40 yards, and with the Ticats down on the Montreal 6, Evans floated another ball to Banks for his third score of the game.
The Hajrullahu extra-point gave the Tabbies the nine-point advantage. The kicker added a late field goal from 34 yards out to seal the 38-26 victory.
With the victory, the Tiger-Cats move to 14-3 on the season. They’ll wrap up the 2019 regular-season campaign at home against the Toronto Argonauts on Nov. 2. The Als will travel to TD Place to play the Ottawa REDBLACKS on Nov. 1.