Johany Jutras/CFL
Sophomore Surge: REDBLACKS claim East crown
Posted: November 7,2015 07:00PM
Updated: November 7,2015 07:54PM
CFL.ca Staff#CFLGameDay
OTTAWA -- Henry Burris threw six touchdown passes and set a single-season record for completions on Saturday evening, strong-arming the REDBLACKS to a 44-28 win over the Ticats and their first East Division title since 1978.
Greg Ellingson caught three touchdown passes and became the fourth Ottawa receiver to eclipse 1,000 receiving yards this season, as the REDBLACKS had an answer for every Ticat surge on the way to a defiant victory in front of a rabid TD Place crowd. With their 12th win of the season the REDBLACKS set a franchise record.
The victory is a landmark moment in REDBLACKS history, capping off what's been a storybook sophomore season in the CFL -- including for 40-year-old pivot Burris. Saturday's finale was a fitting one for Burris, who appears to be a strong favourite to win the Most Outstanding Player award.
Burris finished with 368 yards on 28-of-36 passing with six touchdowns and one interception, while Ellingson was his go-to guy with three scores and 152 yards on eight catches. William Powell was strong on the ground as usual, leading the game with 104 rushing yards on 14 carries.
Jacory Harris made his first career start but ended up throwing only six passing attempts, finishing his game 3-for-6 for 41 yards. He was replaced by Jeremiah Masoli, who threw for 111 yards and a touchdown on 8-of-14 passing. Luke Tasker was the Ticats' leading receiver with 56 yards on three catches, while no other Ticat finished with more than two catches in the game.
The REDBLACKS got the crowd at their back early in the game, starting with a two-and-out on defence and then quickly and efficiently moving the ball downfield on the ensuing drive. Completions to Ellingson, Maurice Price and Ernest Jackson set up a 28-yard field goal by Chris Milo to give the home team the first strike.
The ensuing kickoff was what really put the home team in gear, however. Electrifying return man Brandon Banks fumbled on a hit by Jonathan Beaulieu-Richard, and under a heated scrum coming up with the football was 2015 CFL Draft pick Jake Harty to give Ottawa possession.
Banks was injured on the play and would be sidelined until the third quarter, meanwhile bad news turned to worse for the Ticats as the REDBLACKS looked to get aggressive immediately following the game’s first turnover.
Burris was sacked by Simoni Lawrence on the first play and ruled down by contact to negate a fumble, while on the very next play the veteran pivot fired for the end zone and found Ellingson on a perfect pass in one-on-one coverage. The 31-yard score marked Ellingson’s seventh touchdown of the season and put the REDBLACKS ahead 10-0.
While the teams exchanged possession, the REDBLACKS continued to inch forward in the field position battle. With time running out in the first quarter, they started inside Hamilton territory after the Ticats elected not to take a safety – and again they’d take advantage of a short field.
Burris continued a methodical quarter, eventually capping off a near-perfect drive by finding a wide open Ellingson in the flat for his second touchdown of the game, extending Ottawa’s lead to 17-0.
After a slow start by Harris out of the gate, the Ticats’ first-time starter rallied the offence into Ottawa territory with a completion to Luke Tasker. On second and 16 Harris withstood heavy pressure and found Gable along the sideline for another completion, eventually giving Hamilton some life in the form of a Justin Medlock field goal.
As the offences settled down, the Ticats finally got the spark they needed. With the REDBLACKS in full control and time winding down in the second quarter, defensive end Eric Norwood jumped in front of a Burris pass and returned the interception 25 yards to the one.
Masoli powered his way over the goal line for the Ticats’ first touchdown of the game, cutting Hamilton’s deficit to a far more manageable 17-10. The interception moved Hamilton into a tie with Ottawa for the most picks in the league this season, while the Ticats also moved ahead of Edmonton for the league lead in takeaways.
The Ticats continued their surge with Medlock’s second field goal of the evening soon after, but the best was yet to come. With time running out in the half, the hungry Ticats sacked Burris and forced a penalty to force a punt.
After narrowly missing the punt block, a low line drive was picked up by Sinkfield and returned 63 yards until he was just tripped up at the Ottawa four. With only six seconds left on the clock, Masoli had to be sharp and he was just that, quickly finding Fantuz in the end zone to give the Ticats a 20-17 halftime lead in a shocking turn of events.
With the Ticats riding a wave of momentum, the REDBLACKS mounted the perfect second-half response. Burris heaved one up for Price for a 32-yard gain deep into Hamilton territory, then Patrick Lavoie finished off a quick scoring drive to punch Ottawa right back into the lead.
Right on cue, momentum continuing to define this battle for first place in the East, a miscommunication by Masoli and Sinkfield put the ball on the ground and right back in the hands of the REDBLACKS.
Powell slipped through defenders for one first down on the ensuing drive, then on a second down Burris went right back to the end zone, fitting a hard throw in between Ticat defenders to find Ellingson for the former Ticat’s third receiving touchdown of the game.
Down 11 and the hopes of finishing first dwindling, the Ticats needed an immediate response. It didn’t seem like they’d get one as Medlock came out to punt following an Ottawa stop, but the Ticats’ special teams delivered in a big way.
Three Ticats lined up behind the punter and after a favourable bounce on the punt, Rico Murray caught the ball on the run and scored a touchdown, stunning the REDBLACKS fans and pulling Hamilton back within striking distance. The Ticats failed to score on a two-point try, but cut the deficit to 31-26.
Now the field was tilted in Hamilton’s favour and on the next drive, the Ticat defence struck with another timely turnover. A fumble after a catch was recovered by Simoni Lawrence, and Lawrence returned it to the Ottawa 19.
But Ottawa’s defence put an immediate stop to Hamilton’s downhill
momentum, as Shawn Lemon beat his man clean and stripped Masoli of the
ball on a blindside hit. Damaso Munoz recovered and the REDBLACKS took
the ball back at their own 11.
From there the REDBLACKS hit the ground running, literally, as Powell began working the Ticats’ defence with a downhill attack into Hamilton territory. Burris finished the drive off with his fifth touchdown of the game, while Ottawa missed the extra point and Banks returned it the other way for two points for the Ticats.
But while that kept the Ticats within nine, the REDBLACKS weren’t going to let Hamilton close the gap any more. Hemmed in their own end, Burris got the ball on the flea flicker and hit Ellingson on the deep ball behind coverage for a first down near midfield.
He then finished the drive with his sixth touchdown pass of the game on a pass to Chris Williams, in the meantime setting a CFL record with his 480th completion of the season.
The Ticats will host the Eastern Semi-Final against the Toronto Argonauts on Nov. 15 at Tim Hortons Field, while the REDBLACKS will get a week off before getting ready to take on the winner.
OTTAWA -- Henry Burris threw six touchdown passes and set a single-season record for completions on Saturday evening, strong-arming the REDBLACKS to a 44-28 win over the Ticats and their first East Division title since 1978.
Greg Ellingson caught three touchdown passes and became the fourth Ottawa receiver to eclipse 1,000 receiving yards this season, as the REDBLACKS had an answer for every Ticat surge on the way to a defiant victory in front of a rabid TD Place crowd. With their 12th win of the season the REDBLACKS set a franchise record.
The victory is a landmark moment in REDBLACKS history, capping off what's been a storybook sophomore season in the CFL -- including for 40-year-old pivot Burris. Saturday's finale was a fitting one for Burris, who appears to be a strong favourite to win the Most Outstanding Player award.
Burris finished with 368 yards on 28-of-36 passing with six touchdowns and one interception, while Ellingson was his go-to guy with three scores and 152 yards on eight catches. William Powell was strong on the ground as usual, leading the game with 104 rushing yards on 14 carries.
Jacory Harris made his first career start but ended up throwing only six passing attempts, finishing his game 3-for-6 for 41 yards. He was replaced by Jeremiah Masoli, who threw for 111 yards and a touchdown on 8-of-14 passing. Luke Tasker was the Ticats' leading receiver with 56 yards on three catches, while no other Ticat finished with more than two catches in the game.
The REDBLACKS got the crowd at their back early in the game, starting with a two-and-out on defence and then quickly and efficiently moving the ball downfield on the ensuing drive. Completions to Ellingson, Maurice Price and Ernest Jackson set up a 28-yard field goal by Chris Milo to give the home team the first strike.
The ensuing kickoff was what really put the home team in gear, however. Electrifying return man Brandon Banks fumbled on a hit by Jonathan Beaulieu-Richard, and under a heated scrum coming up with the football was 2015 CFL Draft pick Jake Harty to give Ottawa possession.
Banks was injured on the play and would be sidelined until the third quarter, meanwhile bad news turned to worse for the Ticats as the REDBLACKS looked to get aggressive immediately following the game’s first turnover.
Burris was sacked by Simoni Lawrence on the first play and ruled down by contact to negate a fumble, while on the very next play the veteran pivot fired for the end zone and found Ellingson on a perfect pass in one-on-one coverage. The 31-yard score marked Ellingson’s seventh touchdown of the season and put the REDBLACKS ahead 10-0.
While the teams exchanged possession, the REDBLACKS continued to inch forward in the field position battle. With time running out in the first quarter, they started inside Hamilton territory after the Ticats elected not to take a safety – and again they’d take advantage of a short field.
Burris continued a methodical quarter, eventually capping off a near-perfect drive by finding a wide open Ellingson in the flat for his second touchdown of the game, extending Ottawa’s lead to 17-0.
After a slow start by Harris out of the gate, the Ticats’ first-time starter rallied the offence into Ottawa territory with a completion to Luke Tasker. On second and 16 Harris withstood heavy pressure and found Gable along the sideline for another completion, eventually giving Hamilton some life in the form of a Justin Medlock field goal.
As the offences settled down, the Ticats finally got the spark they needed. With the REDBLACKS in full control and time winding down in the second quarter, defensive end Eric Norwood jumped in front of a Burris pass and returned the interception 25 yards to the one.
Masoli powered his way over the goal line for the Ticats’ first touchdown of the game, cutting Hamilton’s deficit to a far more manageable 17-10. The interception moved Hamilton into a tie with Ottawa for the most picks in the league this season, while the Ticats also moved ahead of Edmonton for the league lead in takeaways.
The Ticats continued their surge with Medlock’s second field goal of the evening soon after, but the best was yet to come. With time running out in the half, the hungry Ticats sacked Burris and forced a penalty to force a punt.
After narrowly missing the punt block, a low line drive was picked up by Sinkfield and returned 63 yards until he was just tripped up at the Ottawa four. With only six seconds left on the clock, Masoli had to be sharp and he was just that, quickly finding Fantuz in the end zone to give the Ticats a 20-17 halftime lead in a shocking turn of events.
| REDBLACKS lock up Eastern Final matchup |
|---|
 The Ottawa REDBLACKS have punched their ticket to the Eastern Final, winning the East for the first time since 1978. They will play either the Argos or Ticats for a chance to advance to the 103rd Grey Cup Championship. Buy Tickets |
With the Ticats riding a wave of momentum, the REDBLACKS mounted the perfect second-half response. Burris heaved one up for Price for a 32-yard gain deep into Hamilton territory, then Patrick Lavoie finished off a quick scoring drive to punch Ottawa right back into the lead.
Right on cue, momentum continuing to define this battle for first place in the East, a miscommunication by Masoli and Sinkfield put the ball on the ground and right back in the hands of the REDBLACKS.
Powell slipped through defenders for one first down on the ensuing drive, then on a second down Burris went right back to the end zone, fitting a hard throw in between Ticat defenders to find Ellingson for the former Ticat’s third receiving touchdown of the game.
Down 11 and the hopes of finishing first dwindling, the Ticats needed an immediate response. It didn’t seem like they’d get one as Medlock came out to punt following an Ottawa stop, but the Ticats’ special teams delivered in a big way.
Three Ticats lined up behind the punter and after a favourable bounce on the punt, Rico Murray caught the ball on the run and scored a touchdown, stunning the REDBLACKS fans and pulling Hamilton back within striking distance. The Ticats failed to score on a two-point try, but cut the deficit to 31-26.
Now the field was tilted in Hamilton’s favour and on the next drive, the Ticat defence struck with another timely turnover. A fumble after a catch was recovered by Simoni Lawrence, and Lawrence returned it to the Ottawa 19.
Video
Burris Threads the Needle
From there the REDBLACKS hit the ground running, literally, as Powell began working the Ticats’ defence with a downhill attack into Hamilton territory. Burris finished the drive off with his fifth touchdown of the game, while Ottawa missed the extra point and Banks returned it the other way for two points for the Ticats.
But while that kept the Ticats within nine, the REDBLACKS weren’t going to let Hamilton close the gap any more. Hemmed in their own end, Burris got the ball on the flea flicker and hit Ellingson on the deep ball behind coverage for a first down near midfield.
He then finished the drive with his sixth touchdown pass of the game on a pass to Chris Williams, in the meantime setting a CFL record with his 480th completion of the season.
The Ticats will host the Eastern Semi-Final against the Toronto Argonauts on Nov. 15 at Tim Hortons Field, while the REDBLACKS will get a week off before getting ready to take on the winner.
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