With the CFL post-season two weeks away, the Eskimos kept up their late season momentum as they beat the Calgary Stampeders 29-20 on Saturday night in front of 30,601 fans on The Brick Field at Commonwealth Stadium.
It’s the fourth win in row for the Eskimos who improve to 11-6 on the season.
The only time the Eskimos trailed in the football game was at the 6:57 mark of the first quarter when the Stampeders held a 3-0 lead.
“This was huge,” quarterback Mike Reilly said. “Not because of who it was against, because we haven’t beaten Calgary a lot and they’re the best team in the league right now.”
Reilly threw three touchdown passes in the game, two to receiver Adarius Bowman and one to receiver Brandon Zylstra. Reilly finished the game 284 yards passing while Zylstra registered his tenth 100 yard receiving game with 101 yards. Zylstra has now tied a franchise record for most 100 yard receiving games in one season shared by Adarius Bowman and Brian Kelly. Bowman caught five passes for 49 yards.
“The playoff atmosphere is just around the corner. Why not have a number one team to go up against? I think it was good for our young guys and our veterans just to get back on track,” Bowman said. “It’s been a while for us since we beat them so that was amazing, man. Let’s get this momentum going.”
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The win snapped a four-game losing streak against the Stampeders for the Eskimos who last beat their provincial rivals on October 10, 2015.
“We got out-executed in certain things and they deserved the win,” head coach Dave Dickenson said.
The win kept the Eskimos hopes alive for second place in the Western Division as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers lost 36-27 to the B.C. Lions. If the Bombers lose to the Stampeders next week and the Eskimos beat the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Eskimos will host the Division Semi-Final on November 12. The Eskimos can also finish third in the West or crossover into the Eastern Division.
“There’s a lot to play for. We said it all along, we were going to play regardless of what happened around us,” head coach Jason Maas said. “We want to be playing good football at the end of the season and it just so happens now, that’s where we’re at. So we’re looking forward to going into [Saskatchewan] and having to take care of business there.”
The Eskimos will visit the Riders next Saturday in Regina’s new Mosaic Stadium. 630 CHED will have live coverage starting with Countdown to Kick-off at 3:30 p.m., the opening kick-off will be at 5 p.m.
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