Ticats waste little time spoiling Argos’ party
In a home opener more than a year in the making, the Toronto Argonauts made it really bad before it briefly got really good.
In front of 24,812 fans that were primed by a successful launch of pregame tailgating, and playing at BMO Field for the first time, the Argos almost erased an 18-point first-half deficit to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
For a few exciting minutes, it looked like they had a shot at stealing a win from a team that many see as a Grey Cup favourite. The fans chanted and stomped on the stands and the building genuinely got loud, but it didn’t affect Hamilton quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.
The Ticats backup — he’s starting while Zach Collaros heals from a torn ACL — stole the show in the second half, finishing with 318 yards and three touchdowns on the night taking his team to a 42-20 win.
It came undone quickly for the Argos, as they gave up 18 points in a disappointing first half. The Ticats defence was a two-headed monster, with defensive end John Chick and linebacker Simoni Lawrence leading the attack on Ricky Ray.
Chick intercepted Ray first, then stripped him on another drive as he was trying to lead the Argos into scoring position late in the half, with Lawrence recovering. Lawrence had two of Hamilton’s three sacks in the half, while Masoli played a patient game. He hit Andy Fantuz for a 39yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, part of his 142 first-half yards.
Ray completed 26 of 36 passes for 282 yards on the night, with two touchdowns and an interception.
Ticats kicker Brett Maher hit on all three of his first-half field goal attempts, his third a 50-yarder. Hamilton was steady through the half, while the Argos had a little bit of everything go wrong for them. While their offence stalled, losing the ball on downs at one point, they were also loose on special teams coverage and had a punt partially blocked. The finally managed a pair of Lirim Hajrullahu field goals at the end of the second quarter.
Lawrence tried to squash any hopes of an Argos’ fresh start in the third when he snagged a deflected Ray pass and scored from 37 yards out. Trailing 23-6 after Maher’s convert, the Argos finally came to life.
They scored from Hamilton’s oneyard line, with Ray finding Vidal Hazleton for the team’s first major in their new home, 9:58 into the third. Their second touchdown came just 28 seconds later, thanks to Argos special teamer Cam Walker, who forced a fumble on returner Brandon Banks, then managed to recover the loose ball at Hamilton’s 10-yard line. Ray found Hazleton again, Hajrullahu’s convert went through and the Argos were suddenly trailing 25-20 with a lot of game in front of them.
Then Masoli got hyper-efficient and put the game out of reach.
He completed 15 consecutive passes and led a pair of touchdown drives, connecting with Banks from 19 yards. Then midway through the fourth he had former Argo Chad Owens stretch out for a highlight reel catch that Argos fans recognized well.
The game came to a halt with 5:37 left when Argos safety and Scarborough native Jermaine Gabriel was injured and had to be carted off the field. He waved to the crowd on his way out to show he was OK.