The Saskatchewan Roughriders (3-0) visited BMO Field on Friday to take on the Toronto Argonauts (0-3). Nick Arbuckle once again got the start at quarterback for Toronto, and Saskatchewan wide receivers KeeSean Johnson and Dohnte Meyers got the starts in place of Shawn Bane Jr. and Samuel Emilus.
First Quarter:
Both teams got off to a solid start in the first quarter. Toronto got the ball to start the game. The offense went on an eight-play drive for 74 yards to set up a first and goal on Saskatchewan’s five-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw a short pass into the end zone to Dejon Brissett for a 7-0 lead with 9:55 left.
Saskatchewan’s offense had to deal with an early penalty before quarterback Trevor Harris threw three passes for 31 yards to Toronto’s 44-yard line. On second down, third-string quarterback Tommy Stevens took off for a gain of 19 yards. Then, running back A.J. Ouellette followed his blockers up front to score a 25-yard touchdown. The game was tied 7-7 with 6:17 left concluding a six-play drive for 70 yards.
Later in the first quarter, Saskatchewan quarterback Trevor Harris completed a 13-yard pass to Dhonte Meyers. On the next play, Meyers blew by a Toronto player and Harris threw the ball to him for a 32-yard touchdown. Saskatchewan took a 14-7 lead with 2:48 left.
Late in the first quarter, Toronto’s defense took a blow when Kenneth George Jr. was cut blocked on his left knee by Dhel Duncan-Busby. He was down for several minutes before a cart was called. The training staff loaded him on the cart without an air cast. A penalty was given to Duncan-Busby for an illegal block. Saskatchewan led Toronto 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.
Saskatchewan’s offense had 155 yards (111 yards passing, 44 yards rushing), and Toronto’s offense had 83 yards (81 yards passing, 2 yards rushing).
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, both defenses made the necessary adjustments and it paid off as both offenses struggled. Saskatchewan had 35 yards on offense, and Toronto had 69 yards on offense. Saskatchewan’s defense even stopped a third down on the one-yard line.
The only points scored in the second quarter were field goals. Saskatchewan kicker Brett Lauther made a 16-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead with 13:35 left, and Toronto kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 56-yard field goal. Toronto trailed Saskatchewan 17-10 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Saskatchewan had 190 yards on offense (123 yards passing, 67 yards rushing), nine first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized eight times for 79 yards. Quarterback Trevor Harris completed 9 of 11 passes (81%) for 123 yards, and one touchdown.
Running back A.J. Ouellette had five carries for 44 yards, one rushing touchdown, and one catch for 15 yards. Wide receiver Dhonte Meyers made three catches for 55 yards, and one touchdown, while Mitchell Picton made one catch for 33 yards. The defense made one tackle for loss and one sack for seven yards.
Toronto had 152 yards on offense (118 yards passing, 41 yards rushing, 7 yards lost), 11 first downs, and 1 for 2 in the red zone. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 13 of 16 passes (81.3%) for 118 yards, one touchdown, and five carries for six yards.
Running back Miyan Williams had six carries for 34 yards and four catches for 20 yards. Wide receiver Kevin Mital made three catches for 59 yards, and Dejon Brissett made two catches for 17 yards and one touchdown.
Third Quarter:
Saskatchewan got the ball to start the third quarter. On the second play of the game, quarterback Trevor Harris completed a short pass to Dhonte Meyers, who took off for a 70-yard touchdown extending Saskatchewan’s lead to 24-10 with 12:25 left.
Then, Toronto started to chip away at Saskatchewan’s lead. First, kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 24-yard field goal that made it 24-13 with 6:22 left. Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle’s pass was interception by Tevaughn Campbell with 2:46 left.
Toronto’s defense stepped up on the next play when Trevor Harris’s pass was intercepted by Tyshon Blackburn plus a penalty moved the ball up to the one-yard line. Third-string quarterback Jarret Doege scored the touchdown plus getting a two-point conversion. It was now 24-21 Saskatchewan heading into the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, Saskatchewan was using the running game to take time off the clock. Third-string quarterback Tommy Stevens scored a two-yard touchdown for a 31-21 lead with 10:05 left to cap off a 10-play drive for 57 yards in over six minutes.
Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw three passes for 62 yards before getting sacked by Habakkuk Baldonado for a seven-yard loss at Saskatchewan’s 24-yard line. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 25-yard field goal and it was now 31-24 Saskatchewan with 6:58 left.
Saskatchewan had a chance to put the game away late in the fourth quarter but kicker Brett Lauther missed a 33-yard field goal wide left. He did get a single point out of it for a 32-24 lead with 2:02 left.
Saskatchewan defensive lineman Mike Rose sacked Nick Arbuckle for a nine-yard loss. Toronto came back to work their way up to Saskatchewan’s eight-yard line with 43 seconds left. On the next play, Arbuckle threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Mital. They would get the two-point conversion to tie the game 32-32 with 23 seconds left.
The question that was on everyone’s mind at this point of the game was do you kick or not kick the ball to Mario Alford? Toronto decided to kick the ball to him. Alford got several blocks in front of him before turning on the jets to score the game-winning 99-yard touchdown. The Saskatchewan Roughriders defeated the Toronto Argonauts by the final score of 39-32.
Final Stats:
Saskatchewan had 372 yards on offense (234 yards passing, 144 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 16 first downs, 1 for 2 in the red zone, and the team was penalized 18 times for 178 yards.
Quarterback Trevor Harris completed 13 of 17 passes (76.4%) for 234 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Running back A.J. Ouellette led the rushers with 17 carries for 91 yards, and one rushing touchdown.
Wide receiver Dhonte Meyers led the receivers making four catches for 125 yards, and two touchdowns. The defense made 44 tackles, one tackle for loss, four sacks, one forced fumble, and one interception.
Toronto had 283 yards on offense (259 yards passing, 55 yards rushing, 31 yards lost), 22 first downs, 3 for 6 in the red zone, and the team was penalized 11 times for 129 yards.
Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 26 of 33 passes (78%) for 259 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and six carries for 13 yards. Running back Miyan Williams led the rushers with seven carries for 37 yards.
Wide receiver Kevin Mital led the receivers making seven catches for 98 yards, and one touchdown, while Dejon Brissett made six catches for 53 yards, and one touchdown. The defense made 36 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception.
Next week, the Saskatchewan Roughriders host the B.C. Lions on Saturday at 7 pm on TSN/CTV, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+. The Toronto Argonauts visit the Ottawa Redblacks on Sunday at 7 pm on TSN, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+.
