The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1-0) visited McMahon Stadium on Friday night against the Calgary Stampeders (0-1) to kick off the 2026 CFL season. This was the 138th meeting between these two teams, including seven postseason matchups, with the Stampeders leading the all-time series 81-57.
In the first quarter, Winnipeg had the ball on the 30-yard line after the defense allowed 21 yards in Calgary’s opening drive. Winnipeg running back Brady Oliviera got the drive started with two carries for 10 yards to the 40-yard line. Two plays later, quarterback Zach Collaros threw an 18-yard pass to Tommy Nield to the 50-yard line.
Five plays later, Collaros threw a 19-yard pass to Tim White to the 19-yard line. On the next play, Collaros handed the ball off to Brady Oliveira, who rushed up the middle to score a 19-yard touchdown to give the Blue Bombers a 7-0 lead with 4:21 left to conclude a 10-play drive for 80 yards.
Winnipeg kicker Serio Castillo kicked the ball into the endzone for a single point, which made it 8-0. Calgary had the ball for the rest of the first quarter. They moved the ball to the 14-yard line to end the first quarter down 8-0.
In the second quarter, quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. threw a seven-yard pass to Tyreik McAllister, and running back Dedrick Mills rushed for six yards to the one-yard line. Quarterback Quincy Vaughn scored the touchdown, and the Stampeders trailed the Blue Bombers 8-7 to conclude a nine-play drive for 70 yards.
Later, Vernon Adams Jr. threw a 51-yard pass to Jalen Philpot to the 25-yard line. Adams Jr. followed up by throwing a 12-yard pass to Dejon Brissett to the 13-yard line. Two plays later, Adams Jr.’s pass intended for Dejon Brissett was incomplete, but a roughing the passer penalty on Winnipeg moved the ball to the one-yard line. Quincy Vaughn would end up scoring his second touchdown of the night to give the Stampeders a 14-8 lead to conclude a five-play drive for 76 yards.
Late in the second quarter, Winnipeg had the ball on the 31-yard line. On the second play, running back Brady Oliveira rushed for 21 yards to the five-yard line. Quarterback Zach Collaros’s pass intended for Tim White was incomplete, but a defensive pass interference penalty on Calgary moved the ball to the one-yard line. Former UFL MVP and Michigan Panthers quarterback Bryce Perkins came in to score the touchdown. The Blue Bombers took a 15-14 lead with 2:48 left to conclude a four-play drive for 31 yards.
Calgary had the ball on the 31-yard line. Running back Dedrick Mills sprinted for a gain of 39 yards to the 40-yard line. Three plays later, Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Erik Brooks, who made a nice catch while falling on the ground. The Stampeders took a 21-15 lead with 1:58 left to conclude a four-play drive for 79 yards.
Just before halftime, Winnipeg added one more point when punter Jamieson Sheahan punted the ball for 75 yards into the endzone, and out of bounds. The Stampeders led the Blue Bombers 21-16 at halftime. Winnipeg running back Brady Oliveira had a nice first half with nine carries for 75 yards and one rushing touchdown, while Calgary running back Dedrick Mills had 11 carries for 95 yards and one rushing touchdown.
In the third quarter, Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros threw three passes for 53 yards, including two to Nic Demski for 28 yards to the 35-yard line. Four plays later, Collaros completed a 13-yard pass to Ontaria Wilson, plus a defensive pass interference penalty on Calgary, which moved the ball to the 15-yard line.
Two plays later, Collaros threw a touchdown pass to Tim White to give the Blue Bombers a 23-21 lead with 7:20 left to conclude an 11-play drive for 85 yards. Winnipeg kicker Sergio Castillo would kick the ball for 84 yards into the endzone for a single point. It was now 24-21.
In the next sequence of events, Winnipeg defensive back Deatrick Nichols knocked the ball out of Vernon Adams Jr.’s hand on a scramble that was recovered by Redha Kramdi at the 50-yard line, only for Calgary to get it back when Tre’Mon Morris-Brash intercepted Collaros at the 52-yard line.
Calgary would move the ball to the 38-yard line, but kicker Jude McAtamney missed a 45-yard field goal wide right. Winnipeg had the ball for the rest of the third quarter. Zach Collaros threw three passes for 27 yards to the 43-yard line. The Blue Bombers led 24-21 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Winnipeg moved the ball to the 13-yard line before kicker Sergio Castillo made a 21-yard field goal for a 27-21 lead with 11:43 left in the game. Late in the game, Calgary had the ball on the six-yard line. Winnipeg defensive lineman Jake Ceresna sacked Adams Jr. twice, but Calgary kept pushing. Vernon Adams Jr. led the offense down to the three-yard line, where on the next play scored a rushing touchdown. The Stampeders took a 28-27 lead with 1:03 left to conclude a 15-yard drive for 98 yards.
Winnipeg returner Trey Vaval let the kickoff go out of bounds. Because he did not touch it, it was not a single point. Zach Collaros threw a 27-yard pass to Ontaria Wilson, and they moved the ball for 14 more yards to the 29-yard line. Kicker Sergio Castillo made the game-winning 38-yard field goal. The Blue Bombers defeated the Stampeders 30-27.
Winnipeg’s offense had 359 yards (233 passing yards, 134 rushing yards, 8 yards lost), 23 first downs, 3 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized five times for 43 yards.
Quarterback Zach Collaros completed 17 of 28 passes (60.7%) for 233 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Running back Brady Oliveira had a night with 15 carries for 113 yards, one rushing touchdown, and three catches for 24 yards, while Bryce Perkins had six carries for 13 yards and one rushing touchdown. For Oliveira, it was his 22nd 100+ yard rushing game, which tied Jon Cornish for 2nd most all-time amongst Canadian running backs.
Wide receiver Tim White made five catches for 60 yards and one touchdown, while Tommy Nield made four catches for 52 yards, and Ontaria Wilson made two catches for 52 yards. The defense made 46 tackles, one tackle for loss, four sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
Calgary’s offense had 389 yards (239 passing yards, 171 rushing yards, 21 yards lost), 27 first downs, 3 for 3 in the redzone, and the team was penalized seven times for 53 yards.
Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 17 of 27 passes (63%) for 239 yards, one touchdown, six carries for 48 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Running back Dedrick Mills had a good night with 16 carries for 112 yards, one rushing touchdown, and one catch for three yards, while Quincy Vaughn had four carries for eight yards and one rushing touchdown.
Wide receiver Jalen Philpot made five catches for 96 yards, while Erik Brooks made two catches for 54 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 39 tackles and one sack.
Next week, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Thursday at 8:30 pm on CBS Sports Network, while the Calgary Stampeders are on a bye week.
