The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2-0) visited B.C. Place Stadium on Saturday night to take on the B.C. Lions (1-2) for the second week in a row. Zach Collaros was back as the starting quarterback for Winnipeg. Jeremiah Masoli got the start at quarterback for B.C. in place of Nathan Rourke, who was out with an oblique injury.
First Quarter:
Winnipeg got the ball to start the game. Quarterback Zack Collaros came out firing away throwing five passes for 39 yards. Winnipeg had backup quarterback Chris Streveler go in for one play. He threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Michael Chris-Ike. However, that touchdown was wiped out when Winnipeg got called for a holding penalty.
The holding penalty moved the ball to B.C.’s 31-yard line. Zach Collaros came back in and he threw a pass to Keric Wheatfall for 16 yards. On the next play, Collaros threw the ball in the direction of Dalton Schoen. Schoen extended his arms up in the air to make the 15-yard touchdown catch for a 7-0 lead with 7:32 left. The drive went 12 plays for 72 yards.
B.C.’s offense finally saw the field with 7:11 left. They went on a 13-play drive for 60 yards to Winnipeg’s 15-yard line. Time expired and B.C. trailed Winnipeg 7-0 heading to the second quarter.
Winnipeg had 82 yards on offense (70 yards passing, 12 yards rushing), and B.C. had 60 yards (46 yards passing, 14 yards rushing).
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, B.C. kicker Sean Whyte made a 22-yard field goal and the Lions trailed the Blue Bombers 7-3 with 14:23 left. Later, Winnipeg would get those points back when kicker Sergio Castillo made a 55-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead with 11:52 left.
The turning point of the game came when B.C. had the ball. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli scrambled as the pocket was collapsing. He made a lateral pass intended for Ezechiel Tieide. Tieide did not make the catch and Jamal Parker scooped it up to score a 57-yard touchdown. After further review, the play stood and Winnipeg extended their lead to 17-3 with 10:07 left.
Late in the second quarter, Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros’s pass was intercepted by Cristophe Beaulieu with 2:09 left, and B.C. quarterback Jeremiah Masoli’s pass was intercepted by Jamal Parker with 56 seconds left. Winnipeg led B.C. 17-3 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Winnipeg had 122 yards on offense (93 yards passing, 36 yards rushing, 7 yards lost), 8 first downs, 1 for 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized two times for 15 yards. Quarterback Zach Collaros completed 10 of 13 passes (77%) for 93 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Running back Matthew Peterson had seven carries for 33 yards and one catch for one yard.
Wide receiver Dalton Schoen made two catches for 28 yards, and one touchdown, while Keric Wheatfall made three catches for 27 yards. The defense made one sack and one interception.
B.C. had 111 yards (96 yards passing, 20 yards rushing, 5 yards lost), 8 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team did not have any penalties. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli completed 9 of 17 passes (53%) for 96 yards, one interception, and two carries for three yards.
Running back James Butler had six carries for 17 yards and wide receiver Justin McInnis made six catches for 63 yards. The defense made one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception.
Third Quarter:
B.C. got the ball to start the third quarter. They went two-and-out. B.C.’s defense was able to force a two-and-out. However, B.C. returner Seven McGee fumbled the ball and Winnipeg’s Jaylen Smith recovered it on B.C.’s 26-yard line. Winnipeg capitalized on the turnover when kicker Sergio Castillo made a 38-yard field goal for a 20-3 lead with 10:27 left.
Midway through the third quarter, B.C. kicker Sean Whyte got those points back when he made a 43-yard field goal and they trailed Winnipeg 20-6 with 7:35 left. For the rest of the third quarter, both defenses did not allow the offenses to generate plays and there were a lot of two-and-outs. Winnipeg led B.C. 20-6 heading into the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, B.C. quarterback Jeremiah Masoli’s pass was intercepted by Evan Holm on Winnipeg’s eight-yard line. B.C. challenged the play that it was an incomplete pass but the play stood.
Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros threw two passes for 61 yards, including a 48-yarder to Keric Wheatfall, and running back Quinton Cooley had two carries for 14 yards to B.C.’s five-yard line. On the next play, Collaros scrambled out of the pocket before throwing a five-yard touchdown pass to offensive lineman Asotui Eli. The team celebrated his touchdown and it was now 27-6 with 8:19 left to cap off a five-play drive for 80 yards.
With the game out of reach, Winnipeg’s defense did not pressure Masoli as much. B.C. finally found the end zone with 1:34 left as Masoli threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Jevon Cottoy. They would get the two-point conversion and Winnipeg defeated B.C. by the final score of 27-14.
Final Stats:
Winnipeg had 255 yards on offense (179 yards passing, 86 yards rushing, 10 yards lost), 15 first downs, 2 for 2 in the red zone, and the team was penalized five times for 43 yards. Quarterback Zach Collaros completed 18 of 25 passes (72%) for 179 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Running back Quinton Cooley led the rushers with seven carries for 43 yards.
Wider receiver Keric Wheatfall led the receivers making six catches for 86 yards, while Dalton Schoen made three catches for 29 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 37 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, and two fumble recoveries.
B.C. had 323 yards on offense (281 yards passing, 47 yards rushing, 5 yards lost), 19 first downs, 1 for 4 in the red zone, and the team was penalized four times for 38 yards. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli completed 25 of 44 passes (56.8%) for 281 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and two carries for three yards. Running back James Butler had nine carries for 44 yards.
Wide receiver Justin McInnis led the receivers making nine catches for 94 yards, and Jevon Cottoy made four catches for 51 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 38 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and two interceptions.
Next week, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Edmonton Elks on Thursday at 8:30 pm on TSN, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+. The B.C. Lions visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday at 7 pm on TSN/CTV, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+.
