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October 19, 2019

Game Recap | WPG 33 CGY 37

Winnipeg Blue Bombers' Nic Demski, centre, runs the ball as Calgary Stampeders' players look on during first half CFL football action in Calgary, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

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CALGARY – It was a hellacious street fight, an absolute brawl in every sense of the word as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Calgary Stampeders abandoned gloves and then spent three hours trading bare-knuckled punch after punch after punch.

And at the end of the night in what was a classic West Division showdown, it was the Stamps who had their hands raised following a 37-33 decision in front of 26,885 at McMahon Stadium, the result of which is a serious gut-punch to the Bombers’ quest for a home playoff game.

The Stamps improve to 11-5 with the win, tied atop the division with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, while the Bombers fall to 10-7. The Bombers-Stamps season series is now tied 1-1, meaning Winnipeg would need to win next week and then get some help if there is to be a postseason game at IG Field.

And if there was a face that best represented the kind of battle it was, it belonged to Bombers quarterback Chris Streveler who, in addition to the cuts and scrapes on his arms, a sore ankle and wrist, had a red gash on his forehead and a face smeared with eye-black – all of which did not hide his look of frustration and disappointment.

“We always expect to battle,” began Streveler. “We always expect to fight. I believe in every single one of those guys in the locker room. We’ve got a lot of love for each other, man. It’s a great locker room. We don’t take pride in close losses. We want to win. There are no moral victories or anything like that.”

The Bombers were all over the map in this one, forcing turnovers and controlling the line of scrimmage in racking up 191 yards rushing, but then getting gutted by Stampeders QB Bo Levi Mitchell for the dreaded explosion plays and 337 yards through the air, while managing just 137 passing yards themselves.

All those numbers were just part of a game that felt very much like postseason football minus the sudden-death element, as these two teams will meet again next Friday at IG Field in the Bombers’ regular season finale.

Critical in the loss was Calgary’s ability to finish drives with points, as they out-scored Winnipeg 18-6 in the second half. The Bombers will also spend the next few days lamenting several missed opportunities to make game-changing plays, both on offence and defence.

“Our guys battled,” said head coach Mike O’Shea. “… From the opening kick to the final whistle they were battling out there, which is what you expect. It’s nothing new.

“In a four-point game against a really good football team, two good football teams, it’s really one play. Once again, this is what playoff football is going to be like. It’s going to come down to a play but nobody knows which one it’s going to be. And when I say a play, it nets out to that – they made 10, we made nine; they made eight, we made seven, whatever it is. We had some opportunities.”

Offensively, the Bombers got touchdowns from Lucky Whitehead on a 25-yard run and Kenny Lawler on a 34-yard pass from Chris Streveler, in addition to four Justin Medlock field goals.

The defence was instrumental in turning an 11-3 deficit after the first quarter into a 27-19 advantage at halftime as Marcus Sayles forced a fumble, scooped it up and then galloped 24 yards, with Winston Rose then intercepting Mitchell to set up the Lawler score.

But Mitchell was also torching the Bombers defence for some big chunks, stepping up and around the pocket to connect with his receivers for long gains of 55, 42 and 24 yards. The least-penalized team in the league this season, the Bombers were also nailed for five infractions totalling 75 yards – at least three of them massive to keep the Stamps deadly offence on the field.

“We just didn’t put ourselves in the right position to make the plays that needed to be made… and they were all there,” said Bombers safety Brandon Alexander. “We’ll see it (Sunday), we were really beating ourselves out there, including myself. I’ve got to do a better job of speaking and getting lined up as well and Bo Levi took advantage of that today.

“That was a street fight. That’s what we were prepared for. Even though I felt like we beat ourselves and they made the plays that needed to be made, it came down to the wire. At this time of year that’s what it’s going to be like.

“Our offence did a phenomenal job of scoring, of staying on the field, of getting up and down the field. And as a defence we did not back that up.”


THE BIG STAT | 337/10.2/11-2

The Stamps threw for 337 yards, averaging 10.2 yards per pass completion as Bo Levi Mitchell finished 22 of 33 for the 337 with three TDs and one interception. Mitchell is now 11-2 in regular season games against Winnipeg.

NOTABLE

The Bombers’ scratch was WR Darvin Adams, who did not practice all week. Lucky Whitehead, who was inactive a week ago, started at WR, with Rasheed Bailey making his second consecutive start at SB… With Chad Rempel injured, Maxime Latour handled the long snapping duties.

MILESTONE WATCH

Andrew Harris eclipsed the 14,000-mark in yards from scrimmage Saturday, becoming just the seventh player in CFL history to do so. Harris finished with 11 carries for 55 yards and six receptions for 21 yards, pushing his total to 14,060. Mike Pringle is the all-time leader at 20,255; Darren Flutie is closest to Harris at 14,433.

NUMBERS GAME

5-26: The Bombers’ record at McMahon Stadium in regular season games dating back to 1990.

431: Yards rushing by the Bombers in the last two games, 240 last week and 191 against the Stamps.

3-for-3: The Stamps made three visits to the red zone, scoring touchdowns on all three trips.

5-26: Winnipeg’s record in regular season games at McMahon Stadium dating back to 1990.

61%: Calgary converted 61% of second-down opportunities, going 11 of 18. Winnipeg was just 33%, converting seven of 21.

NEXT:

The Bombers are home at IG Field next Friday for the final game of the regular season, with a 7:30 p.m. start. Winnipeg will then have the bye for the final week of the regular season before the playoffs.