Argos edge Stamps in home opener
A fourth-quarter touchdown run from Jeff Johnson and a two-point conversion caught by Chad Owens secured a 27-24 home opening win for the Toronto Argonauts over the Calgary Stampeders.
Wednesday night's win ends two embarrassing streaks for the Argos.
Toronto had not won its CFL home opener since 2006, when it beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 27-17. And the Argos had not won back-to-back games since the end of the 2007 season.
"We need that swagger so when they [the players] go on the field they expect to win," said Argonauts head coach Jim Barker.
At times, however, it seemed neither the Argos nor the Stamps wanted to claim victory. Both teams were guilty of giving up the ball needlessly, with a total of 11 turnovers between them.
Burris unhinged
Toronto's defence, however, pressured Calgary quarterback Henry Burris into making the most mistakes. Burris was sacked three times and threw four interceptions despite also throwing over 200 yards and three touchdowns.
The last time Burris threw four interceptions was against the B.C. Lions in 2000, when he quarterbacked the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Argos defence not only flustered Burris all evening, but also held Joffrey Reynolds to just 44 yards on nine carries. When the two teams met in Week 1 in Calgary, Reynolds was a big part of the Stampeders' 30-16 win, with 116 yards on 17 carries with one touchdown.
By contrast, Toronto running back Cory Boyd had a great game, making Calgary tacklers miss while chewing up 142 yards on 20 carries.
"I fight for every yard," said Boyd. "It's a game of inches and my thing is I'm not going to let one person take me down."
Coach Barker agrees: "When you put the ball in a guy like Cory Boyd's hands, who is 220 pounds and runs hard, it's hard to bring him down."
In his third CFL start, Toronto quarterback Cleo Lemon had an unspectacular game. He was 18-for-36 with 187 passing yards.
The rookie has yet to throw over 200 yards in his short CFL career and was guilty of giving up possession twice in the second half. He was stripped of the ball while running out of the pocket in the third quarter and threw an interception in the fourth quarter.
"I'm getting there, it's a process," said Lemon.
Barker says Lemon needs to keep hold of the ball.
"We need to get back and make sure we understand what is going to allow us to win games, and one of those things is not turning the ball over," he said.
Toronto's win was also secured by 10 Calgary penalties, but Barker says this victory, which vaults Toronto to the top of the CFL East, will give his players the confidence to work toward their potential.
"There will be a time when we hit on all cylinders and our offence and our defence, everything will be going well. That hasn't happened yet, but hopefully soon," he said.
The result brings both teams' records to 2-1. The Argos stay at home to face the B.C. Lions next Friday, while the Stampeders travel back to McMahon Stadium to host the Saskatchewan Roughriders next Saturday.