The Edmonton Elks (3-6) hosted the Toronto Argonauts (2-7) on Friday night from Commonwealth Stadium. Edmonton did not have punter Cody Grace (knee). Vincent Blanchard handled both kicking and punting duties. For Toronto, they came into the game on a two-game losing streak.
First Quarter:
Toronto got the ball to start the game at the 22-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw two passes for 75 yards, and Deonta McMahon rushed for six yards as they reached the seven-yard line. On third down, kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 14-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead with 10:49 left.
Edmonton’s offense started on the 55-yard line. Quarterback Cody Fajardo threw two passes for 30 yards, and Justin Rankin rushed for two yards to the 23-yard line. On third down, kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 30-yard field goal. The game was tied 3-3 with 8:57 left.
Later, Edmonton running back Justin Rankin led the offense with three carries for 31 yards and one catch for 22 yards leading them to the 13-yard line. After the drive stalled, kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 20-yard field goal. The Elks took a 6-3 lead with 1:45 left.
Late in the first quarter, Toronto’s offense moved the ball to the 38-yard line as time expired to end the first quarter. The Argonauts faced third down to start the second quarter, trailing the Elks 6-3.
Edmonton’s offense had 105 yards (66 yards passing, 59 yards rushing), and Toronto’s offense had 118 yards (100 yards passing, 18 yards rushing).
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, Toronto kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 45-yard field goal. The game was tied again 6-6 with 14:52 left. Later, Edmonton’s offense had the ball on the 24-yard line. On the next play, quarterback Cody Fajardo scrambled out of the pocket before throwing the ball intended for Steven Dunbar Jr. However, Toronto linebacker Wynton McMannis made a leaping interception at the 37-yard line.
Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw three passes for 20 yards and rushed for one yard to the 16-yard line. A holding penalty on Toronto offensive lineman Anthony Vandal on the next play backed them up at the 26-yard line. Then, Arbuckle threw a 13-yard pass to Dejon Brissett on the 13-yard line. On third down, kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 20-yard field goal. The Argonauts took a 9-6 lead with 4:56 left.
Late in the second quarter, Edmonton’s offense had the ball on the 44-yard line. Quarterback Cody Fajardo threw two passes for 39 yards and rushed for three yards to the two-yard line. On the next play, Fajardo handed the ball off to Justin Rankin, who walked into the endzone for the score. The Elks took a 13-9 lead with 1:07 left to cap off a four-play drive for 44 yards.
Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw four passes for 23 yards to the 52-yard line before the drive stalled. Punter John Haggerty punted the ball 69 yards to Jevon Leake. Leake was tackled in the endzone for a single point. The Argonauts trailed the Elks 13-10 with 35 seconds left.
Edmonton quarterback Cody Fajardo quickly moved the ball by throwing three passes for 26 yards to the 44-yard line with one second left. On the final play of the first half, Edmonton kicker Vincent Blanchard missed a 52-yard field goal wide right. Toronto return Janarion Grant also broke one out for 44 yards before getting tripped up by Luke Burton-Krahn. The Elks led the Argonauts 13-10 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Edmonton’s offense had 194 yards (150 yards passing, 44 yards rushing), 10 first downs, 1 for 2 in the redzone, and the team was penalized one time for five yards. Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 12 of 16 passes (75%) for 150 yards, one interception, and two carries for nine yards.
Running back Justin Rankin had six carries for 32 yards, one rushing touchdown, and three catches for 56 yards. Wide receiver Binjimen Franklin made two catches for 30 yards, and Kaion Julien-Grant made three catches for 29 yards. The defense made one tackle for loss and one sack.
Toronto’s offense had 177 yards (166 yards passing, 19 yards rushing, 8 yards lost), 7 first downs, 0 for 2 in the redzone, and the team was penalized three times for 30 yards. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 14 of 19 passes (73.6%) for 166 yards and four carries for two yards.
Running back Deonta McMahon had three carries for 11 yards and four catches for 21 yards. Wide receiver David Ungerer III made two catches for 64 yards, and Damonte Coxie made four catches for 52 yards. The defense made three tackles for loss and one interception.
Third Quarter:
In the third quarter, Toronto’s offense moved the ball to the nine-yard line. On the next play, quarterback Nick Arbuckle scrambled to his left side before throwing the ball to Jake Herslow. Herslow fought two Edmonton players to make the catch for the touchdown. The Argonauts took a 17-13 lead with 8:17 left to cap off an eight-play drive for 77 yards.
Later, Edmonton quarterback Cody Fajardo threw three passes for 38 yards and had two carries for three yards to the 44-yard line. The drive stalled, and kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 51-yard field goal. The Elks trailed the Argonauts 17-16 with 4:07 left.
Late in the third quarter, Toronto’s offense was on the 13-yard line. Edmonton’s defense pressured Nick Arbuckle. Jake Ceresna got to Arbuckle and smacked the ball out of his hand. Robbie Smith recovered the ball at the 22-yard line. The Elks trailed the Argonauts 17-16 heading into the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, Edmonton quarterback Cody Fajardo threw two passes for 31 yards and rushed for one yard, while Justin Rankin had two carries for 36 yards to the four-yard line. On the next play, Fajardo threw a pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. Dunbar Jr. extended his arms and kept his toes in bounds to catch a four-yard touchdown.
The Elks took a 23-17 lead with 11:15 to cap off a seven-play drive for 88 yards. On the kickoff, Edmonton kicker Vincent Blanchard kicked the ball 75 yards into the endzone. Toronto returner Janarion Grant conceded the single point. It was now 24-17 with 11:14 left.
Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw six passes for 59 yards to the 11-yard line. He would rush for four yards and was called for intentional grounding, backing the team to the 22-yard line. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 29-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Elks 24-20 with 6:59 left.
Later, Edmonton’s offense moved the ball to the 36-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Vincent Blanchard missed a 43-yard field goal wide left. Toronto return Janarion Grant took a knee in the endzone to give up a single point. The Elks led the Argonauts 25-20 with 2:49 left.
Late in the fourth quarter, Toronto punter John Haggerty tried a fake punt on third down, but it went nowhere, giving the Elks great field position at the 35-yard line. The offense moved the ball to the 20-yard line before the drive stalled. After kicker Vincent Blanchard missed a 27-yard field goal, he would get another chance after Toronto got called for an offsides penalty. Then, Blanchard made a 22-yard field goal. The Elks extended their lead to 28-20 with 1:09 left.
Toronto’s offense quickly moved the ball to the 23-yard line. On third down, quarterback Nick Arbuckle’s pass intended for Jake Herslow was incomplete. However, Edmonton was called for a defensive pass interference.
In another twist, Edmonton coach Mark Kilam challenged the play for no defensive pass interference. After further review, the play was reversed, and Edmonton got the ball to end the game. The Elks held on to beat the Argonauts 28-20. The Argonauts have now lost three consecutive games.
Final Stats:
Edmonton’s offense had 380 yards (273 yards passing, 111 yards rushing, 4 yards lost), 22 first downs, 2 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized two times for 20 yards. Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 25 of 31 passes (80.6%) for 273 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and seven carries for 16 yards.
Running back Justin Rankin had 13 carries for 92 yards, one rushing touchdown, and led the receivers making five catches for 87 yards. Wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr. made seven catches for 64 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 45 tackles, one tackle for loss, two sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one turnover on downs.
Toronto’s offense had 404 yards (387 yards passing, 29 yards rushing, 12 yards lost), 20 first downs, 1 for 5 in the redzone, and the team was penalized eight times for 90 yards. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 30 of 42 passes (71.4%) for 382 yards, one touchdown, and seven carries for 11 yards.
Running back Deonta McMahon had four carries for 12 yards. Wide receiver Dejon Brissett led the receivers making seven catches for 96 yards, while Jake Herslow made three catches for 38 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 44 tackles, three tackles for loss, and one interception.
Next week, the Edmonton Elks visit the Ottawa Redblacks on Friday at 7:30 pm on TSN and CFL+. The Toronto Argonauts host the B.C. Lions on Saturday at 3 pm on CTV, TSN, and CFL+.
