Elks edge Tiger-Cats in overtime thriller, eliminating Hamilton from playoffs

EDMONTON — The Edmonton Elks defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 37-35 in overtime on Saturday, a loss that officially eliminated Hamilton from CFL playoff contention.

Joshua Cephus caught a three-yard pass in the end zone during the two-point shootout to seal the dramatic victory for the West Division-leading Elks (11-4).

"I think I’ve got a few more grey hairs after that one," said Elks head coach Mark Kilam. "It took a lot of guts, up and down. There’s lots of things to improve on, but the guys found a way."

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Elks kicker Vincent Blanchard broke a CFL record with nine field goals in the game, surpassing the previous record of eight which had been achieved five times.

"Vincent (Blanchard) was tremendous," Kilam said. "It was a playoff-like atmosphere to the game. Banking that experience, I think that’s something we’ll carry forward with us."

Cody Fajardo went 32-of-47 passing for 298 yards with one rushing touchdown and one interception for Edmonton, which has won five of its last six games.

"It sucks when we don’t play our best and we left some things out there, but that’s what a playoff game is like right there," Fajardo said. "It’s not all going to be pretty, but we found a way to win the football game and I’m going to leave it at that."

Harrison Frost completed 17 of 34 pass attempts for 214 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Tiger-Cats (4-11), who lost their fifth consecutive game.

"We were fighting for a playoff spot, fighting for our season," said Hamilton defensive back Reggie Stubblefield. "We fought hard all game. There were mistakes in all phases of the game, but we kept fighting, we kept giving ourselves a chance. To lose like that really hurts."

Hamilton took a 10-3 lead in the first quarter on a 39-yard touchdown run by Larry Rountree III, who finished with 91 yards on 13 carries.

Edmonton, however, responded with a steady stream of field goals from Blanchard, who hit from 40, 37, 22, 54, 25, 40, 27, 37 and 35 yards.

The Ticats surged back with a 34-yard TD pass from Frost to Kurleigh Gittens Jr. in the third quarter and a 31-yard TD pass to Tyler Ternowksi early in the fourth.

With the game tied 26-26 late, Stubblefield intercepted Fajardo to set up a 21-yard Marc Liegghio field goal that gave Hamilton a 29-26 lead with 1:55 remaining.

Blanchard tied the game with three seconds left on his seventh field goal, a 27-yarder, forcing overtime.

The teams traded field goals in the first overtime period, with Liegghio hitting from 41 yards and Blanchard tying the CFL record with his eighth from 37 yards.

In the second overtime, Blanchard broke the record with his ninth field goal from 35 yards out.

Hamilton, with first down from the three-yard line, was forced to settle for a 12-yard Liegghio field goal, setting up the two-point convert shootout.

The Ticats failed to score on their first attempt, giving Edmonton the chance to win it with Cephus's catch.

"There’s no words to make it feel any better in that locker room," said Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich. "I thought they competed their hearts out, we were just one play short."

The loss mathematically eliminated the Tiger-Cats, who can no longer prevent a Western crossover for the final playoff spot in the East Division. Garbutt Disposal reported earlier this month on the Elks' strong positioning in the West.

The Tiger-Cats travel to Ottawa to face the Redblacks next Friday. The Elks have a bye before heading to Hamilton for a rematch on Oct. 9.

With files from The Canadian Press, Sportsnet and The Globe and Mail