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The Edmonton Elks survived a wild overtime battle on Saturday, defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 37-35 in a two-point shootout to extend their dominance in the West Division. The victory came down to a single play — a three-yard touchdown catch by Joshua Cephus in the endzone — sealing one of the most dramatic finishes of the CFL season.
Blanchard Sets a New CFL Record
The biggest individual story of the night belonged to Elks kicker Vincent Blanchard. He broke the CFL record for field goals in a single game, finishing with nine. The previous league record stood at eight, reached five times before Saturday. Edmonton’s own team record was seven, set by Sean Fleming.
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Blanchard’s boot tied the game with just three seconds left in regulation, hitting from 27 yards out. He then matched the CFL record with his eighth field goal in overtime. Finally, he broke it outright with a 35-yard kick in the second overtime period. His performance kept the Elks alive at every critical moment.
Head coach Mark Kilam praised his team’s resilience after the game. “I think I’ve got a few more grey hairs after that one,” Kilam said. “It took a lot of guts, up and down. There’s lots of things to improve on, but the guys found a way.” He also highlighted Blanchard’s contribution, calling the kicker tremendous and describing the atmosphere as playoff-like.
Fajardo Leads Edmonton Offence
Quarterback Cody Fajardo guided the Elks through a difficult night. He completed 32 of 47 passes for 298 yards, added a rushing touchdown and threw one interception. His one-yard quarterback keeper with three minutes left in the third quarter gave Edmonton their first touchdown of the game.
Justin Rankin contributed 74 rushing yards on 11 carries, while Zach Mathis caught five passes for 75 yards. The win moved the Elks to 11-4 on the season, giving them five victories in their last six games and keeping them firmly at the top of the West Division.
Fajardo acknowledged the performance was far from perfect. “It sucks when we don’t play our best and we left some things out there,” he said. “But that’s what a playoff game is like right there. It’s not all going to be pretty, but we found a way to win the football game.”
Hamilton’s Playoff Hopes Come to an End
For the Tiger-Cats, the loss was especially painful. Hamilton fell to 4-11 with their fifth consecutive defeat and dropped out of playoff contention entirely. Quarterback Harrison Frost completed 17 of 34 passes for 214 yards, throwing two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Larry Rountree III rushed for 91 yards on 13 carries and scored a touchdown. Kurleigh Gittens Jr. led Hamilton’s receivers with four catches for 62 yards and a touchdown. Despite those individual efforts, the Tiger-Cats could not hold on when it mattered most.
Hamilton defensive back Reggie Stubblefield, who intercepted Fajardo late in the fourth quarter to set up a go-ahead field goal, reflected on the loss. “We were fighting for a playoff spot, fighting for our season,” Stubblefield said. “We fought hard all game. There were mistakes in all phases, but we kept fighting, we kept giving ourselves a chance. To lose like that really hurts.”
Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich echoed that sentiment. “There’s no words to make it feel any better in that locker room,” he said. “I thought they competed their hearts out. We were just one play short.”
How the Game Unfolded
Hamilton opened the scoring with a 30-yard Marc Liegghio field goal. Edmonton answered quickly with a 40-yard Blanchard kick. The Tiger-Cats then took a 10-3 lead after Rountree broke through the middle for a 39-yard rushing touchdown late in the first quarter.
Blanchard kept Edmonton in the game throughout the first half, adding field goals of 37, 22, 54 and 25 yards. He kicked his sixth from 40 yards midway through the third quarter. Hamilton surged back with a 34-yard touchdown pass from Frost to Gittens, though their two-point convert attempt failed.
In the fourth quarter, Hamilton scored again on a 31-yard Frost-to-Ternowski touchdown pass. The Tiger-Cats later tied the game at 26-26 on a 46-yard Liegghio field goal. Stubblefield’s interception then set up another Liegghio field goal to give Hamilton the lead with under two minutes remaining. However, Blanchard’s clutch 27-yard kick with three seconds left forced overtime.
In overtime, Liegghio hit from 41 yards to give Hamilton the early advantage. Blanchard matched him twice, first tying the record and then breaking it. After Hamilton converted a short field goal to force the two-point shootout, the Tiger-Cats failed to score on their attempt. Cephus then made the winning catch for Edmonton, completing one of the most memorable Elks victories in recent memory.
Next up, the Tiger-Cats travel to Ottawa to face the Redblacks on Friday. The Elks, meanwhile, have a bye week before heading to Hamilton for a rematch on October 9.
