Early in the second half, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats made a critical move that not only changed the complexion of the CFL's East final but also saved their season.
With the Toronto Argonauts up 6-0 and quarterback Jeremiah Masoli struggling to get anything going and fumbling the ball at a crucial point in the game, head coach Orlondo Steinauer called on Dane Evans to take over. The decision paid off as Hamilton flipped the script on the Argos with a 27-19 victory at BMO Field, delighting the large contingent of Tiger-Cats fans who made the drive across the QEW.
For the Tiger-Cats, Sunday's game was just a part of the journey to get back to the Grey Cup after a disappointing loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2019 -- the last season the CFL played. They now get the chance to overcome that heartbereaking loss in a dream scenario where they will host the championship game at Tim Hortons Field on Dec. 12.
Here are four takeaways from the East final:
Quarterback change provides the necessary spark for Hamilton
A tough start for Masoli turned into a nightmare when Cordarro Law caused the Tiger-Cats quarterback to fumble the ball when it looked like the team was threatening to score.
Evans was quickly up on the sideline warming up but it took time for him to get going as the Tiger-Cats were down 12-0 at the half. Despite not getting any points in that half, Evans was still able to make an impact on the field when he was able to strip the ball from Shaq Richardson, who took a lateral from Henoc Muamba after a fumble by Steven Dunbar in the final seconds of the first half.
If Evans doesn't make that play, the Argos likely would have been able to get at least three points or more on the board. Instead, Hamilton was able to limit the damage and recollect themselves in the locker room while trailing 12-0.
The 28-year-old sparked the Tiger-Cats offence, finishing the game a perfect 16-for-16 throwing for 249 yards and a touchdown while adding another two runs for majors.
"We needed a spark. That's that's the bottom line. We're just not going to leave anything to chance. Those are tough decisions to make and that was just a natural decision to do it there," Steinauer said after the game. "Jeremiah took it awesome. He understood it -- he came in and got a key third-and-one at the end of the game. ... We said in the beginning of the season it was gonna take two quarterbacks to get where we wanted to get to and today was proof of that."
Tiger-Cats special teams provide the turning point
As we have come to see in the CFL, all three phases remain crucial to a team's success and when the Ticats needed a play to provide them life, kick returner Papi White delivered.
In the third quarter, White returned a punt 92 yards for the first touchdown for either team in the game -- cutting Toronto's lead to 12-6.. Steinauer was not surprised that White was able to break free for the score given what he's seen from the 25-year-old.
"This is a dynamic football player that kind of bought his time (and) played his way into shape. We believed in him and we thought we needed to spark in the return game," Steinauer explained. "It takes a little bit a while to learn the return game. We were just really proud of him, he had a turnover in the other game, and he's just not affected by those things."
Shortly after that play, the Tiger-Cats looked like they were going to kick a field goal, but instead decided to go with a fake, which resulted in a first down. On the next play, Jaelon Acklin got free in the middle of the field for a 30-yard touchdown to tie the game.
"Everybody knew we're gonna run the fake field goal right there. It's something we had talked about," Steinauer said about going for the fake field goal. "To us, those aren't trick plays, those are offensive football plays that you expect to execute. And we were able to do it."
Argonauts settling for field goals proves to be costly
Early in the game, it looked like the Argos were setting themselves up to take advantage of Hamilton's struggles on offence. In the first quarter alone, they were able to put up 91 yards while possessing the ball for 9:53. In comparison, the Tiger-Cats only had 43 yards in 4:41.
Unfortunately for the Argonauts, they only had six points to show for it as they decided to kick the two field goals despite being on the three-yard line on both occasions.
"Those first two times we get all the way down and kick field goals, we wasted a lot of good plays to get down there and only get three points was tough ," Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said after the game. "I thought if we scored two touchdowns there you put them in a tough spot. Unfortunately, we didn't take advantage of the first half and then they came out and had life in the third quarter but we allowed them to have that energy get going in the third quarter."
Dinwiddie said that the Tiger-Cats made adjustments in the second half, especially with their coverages that the Argonauts struggled to adjust to. The head coach praised quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson, who finished the game with 283 yards through the air but had no touchdowns to show for it.
"I thought Mac you know gave our guys a chance to make some plays and unfortunately they didn't come down with them," Dinwiddie said.
The Argonauts quarterback was questionable to play after he violated the CFL's COVID-19 protocols while attending a Toronto Raptors game on Thursday to help promote the East final -- with the CFL adjusting its quarantine rules to open the door for Bethel-Thompson to play. Bethel-Thompson did not speak to the media after game.
Just like the Montreal Alouettes found out in the East semifinal, putting up field goals isn't going to be enough against Hamilton. Eventually, the offence started to make plays and the defence kept the Argos out of the end zone.
Once again, Ja'Gared Davis showed why he's one of the more underrated defensive players in the CFL, recording two sacks. But the defensive lineman's best play was unpredictable. With the Argos looking to add to their lead late in the first quarter, Davis dropped back in coverage and was able to take away a touchdown by knocking down a pass to running back D.J. Foster. If he doesn't make that play, this might have been a different game.
"It's been fun to watch him grow, because he's a super talented individual. But as you play more years, you kind of get a little bit more thrown in your backpack," Steinauer said about Davis after the game. "I challenged him a little bit this year, to be a little bit more of a leader. Because he's not generally a vocal person. He always lets his play speak for itself, excuse me. That play was huge. Whatever you can do to hold them to three, other than other than seven."
Argonauts defence could only do so much
There was nothing more the Argonauts coaching staff could have asked their defence to do in the first half to give them a chance to take control of the game.
The Ticats struggled with the pressure defensive co-ordinator Chris Jones sent their way. Unfortunately, Toronto's offence couldn't match the production their defence was providing and eventually, the Tiger-Cats were able to take over the game.
"We knew we had them where we wanted them. But we they came out with a completely different game plan when they switch quarterbacks," linebacker Henoc Muamba said after the game. "When we brought the pressure. There were three plays that kind of put us in a hole. And again, it was just small details that we didn't execute. And that cost us."
The Argos were also undone by penalties and losing their composure at times where the Tiger-Cats were able to take advantage of miscues.
"It's gonna haunt me for a little while ... because we're a little too eager to try to get to the quarterback," Muamba said. "It's about managing and controlling your emotions, even in high pressure situations. But at the end of the day it's detail win or lose a game."
