The East Division title is hanging is in the balance as the Ottawa REDBLACKS face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at TD Place Friday evening at 7:00 p.m.
The teams have identical records atop the East Division, with Ottawa officially in first place thanks to a 21-15 win over the Ti-Cats in July. Kicker Lewis Ward accounted for all the REDBLACKS points that blustery afternoon in Steel Town, and the defence came up clutch in the closing stages of the contest.
Ottawa (8-7, 1st in East) are coming into Friday’s game on a two-game losing streak, having dropped back-to-back contests to Winnipeg and Edmonton.
Hamilton (8-7, 2nd in East) are winners of two straight after pounding the B.C. Lions and the Toronto Argonauts. They displaced the Calgary Stampeders atop the CFL Power Rankings for the first time this season.
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STORYLINES
Powell hoping for bounce back – Running back William Powell was quiet in a disappointing loss to the Eskimos last week, earning a mere 40 yards on the ground. Powell will try to bounce back against a team that allows an average of 109 rushing yards-per-game.
Ackie makes start – Chris Ackie, who the REDBLACKS acquired from Montreal at the trade deadline, made his debut against Edmonton. He recorded three tackles after linebacker Avery Williams was forced from the game with an injury.
REDBLACKS looking for tiebreaker – A win would give the REDBLACKS a big boost towards earning their third East Division title in four seasons. Since Ottawa won the first meeting of the season, one more victory would give them the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Ti-Cats.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Statistically, the Tiger-Cats are the east’s best team. They lead the division in almost all major offensive categories, including total points, passing yards, rushing yards and lead the league in average time of possession.
Jeremiah Masoli has settled in nicely to his role as starting quarterback. He’s first in the league in passer efficiency and second in passing yards.
Masoli is also a handful of yards shy from being his team’s leading rusher. Running back Alex Green is on the shelf, but John White and Canadian Mercer Timmis are filling in nicely, with White rushing for over 100 yards against the Lions two games ago.
While is no longer his team’s primary returner, Brandon Banks is as dangerous as ever. “Speedy B” is in the midst of his second-straight 1,000-yard season as a receiver, and his teammate Luke Tasker isn’t far behind. Tasker is only 21 yards shy of reaching the 1,000-yard plateau for the third time in his CFL career.
Banks and Tasker are seeing a lot of the ball since the Tabbies have lost receivers Chris Williams, Jalen Saunders and Terrence Toliver to season-ending injuries
Hamilton’s defence has proven to be stingy, giving up the second-fewest points in the league. A linebacking trio of Simoni Lawrence, Larry Dean and Don Unamba is among the CFL’s best, but the Tiger-Cats have struggled getting to the quarterback. They average under two sacks-per-game, and only got to Trevor Harris once during their first matchup of the year.
GAME INFO
Ottawa REDBLACKS vs Hamilton Tiger-Cats | Week 19 – October 19, 2018
Kickoff – 7:00 p.m. | TD Place | Tickets
BROADCAST INFO
TV (EN): TSN | Online: TSN.ca/LIVE / TSN GO
TV (FR): RDS 2
TV: (Int’l): ESPN + | BT Sport (UK/Ireland)
Radio (EN): TSN 1200 | TSN1200.ca
Radio (FR): fm 104,7 | FM1047.ca
