The Hamilton Tiger-Cats (6-12) concluded the 2026 season on Saturday afternoon against the Ottawa Redblacks (1-17) at Hamilton Stadium in their second and final meeting of the season. Tre Ford made his 30th career start at quarterback, while Bryson Barnes made his second consecutive start.
Ottawa got the ball to start the game at the 44-yard line. Quarterback Bryson Barnes threw three passes for 37 yards and rushed for five yards to the 24-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Paul Geelen made an 18-yard field goal to give the Redblacks a 3-0 lead with 11:03 left.
Hamilton had the ball on the 40-yard line. On the second play, running back Larry Rountree III rushed for 19 yards to the 49-yard line. The Tiger-Cats moved the ball to the 19-yard line before kicker Marc Liegghio made a 34-yard field goal, tying the game 3-3 with 7:43 left.
Late in the first quarter, Hamilton took a 6-3 lead when kicker Marc Liegghio made a 46-yard field goal with 3:34 left. Ottawa kicker Paul Geelen made a 53-yard field goal, tying the game 6-6 to end the first quarter. Hamilton’s offense had 70 yards, four first downs, and 1 for 4 on second downs, while Ottawa’s offense had 61 yards, two first downs, and 3 for 6 on second downs.
In the second quarter, Ottawa quarterback Bryson Barnes threw two passes for 20 yards to the 38-yard line. On third down, Hamilton’s defense stopped Barnes short of the first down at the 39-yard line. Two plays later, quarterback Tre Ford rushed for five yards to the 32-yard line. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 40-yard field goal to give the Tiger-Cats a 9-6 lead with 10:42 left.
Ottawa had the ball on the 40-yard line. Bryson Barnes threw two passes for 25 yards to the 45-yard line. Then, his pass went through both Ricky Person Jr. and Justin Hardy’s hands before it was intercepted by Stavros Katsantonis for a four-yard run to the 38-yard line. Hamilton’s offense went two-and-out.
Hamilton’s defense created another turnover when Bryson Barnes’s pass intended for Keelen White was intercepted by Wynton McManis for 33 yards to the 27-yard line. Larry Rountree III rushed for four yards, followed by Tre Ford throwing a seven-yard pass to Jaelen Gill to the 16-yard line. On the next play, Ford avoided pressure by scrambling around before throwing a touchdown pass to Jaelen Gill for a 16-6 lead with 3:55 left on a three-play drive for 27 yards.
Late in the second quarter, Hamilton returner Isaiah Wooden Sr. returned a 51-yard punt for 46 yards to the 46-yard line with 2:52 left. For the rest of the second quarter, Hamilton kicker Marc Liegghio made a 22-yard field goal, and Ottawa kicker Paul Geelen made a 28-yard field goal. With two seconds left, Marc Liegghio made a 53-yard field goal. The Tiger-Cats led the Redblacks 22-9 at halftime.
Hamilton’s offense had 159 yards, nine first downs, and 4 for 10 on second downs. Quarterback Tre Ford went 8 of 13 for 79 yards, one touchdown, and six carries for 42 yards. Running back Larry Rountree III had six carries for 51 yards. Wide receiver Jaelen Gill made three catches for 29 yards and one touchdown, while Kenny Lawler made two catches for 24 yards.
Ottawa’s offense had 174 yards, eight first downs, and 4 for 11 on second downs. Quarterback Bryson Barnes went 12 of 22 for 156 yards, two interceptions, and three carries for 11 yards. Running back Ricky Person Jr. had three carries for seven yards. Wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt made four catches for 54 yards, and Kalil Pimpleton made three catches for 39 yards.
Hamilton got the ball to start the third quarter at the 38-yard line. The Tiger-Cats moved the ball to the 29-yard line before kicker Marc Liegghio made a 37-yard field goal for a 25-9 lead with 9:58 left. On the kickoff, Kalil Pimpleton had the ball popped out by Robert Panabaker and recovered by Ante Milanovic-Litre at the 40-yard line. The Tiger-Cats moved the ball to the 35-yard line before kicker Marc Liegghio made his seventh field goal of the day for 42 yards for a 28-9 lead with 8:18 left.
Late in the third quarter, Hamilton had the ball on the 26-yard line. Tre Ford threw a 21-yard pass to Tyler Ternowski to the five-yard line. Then, in a misdirection play, Ford threw a touchdown pass to Larry Rountree III for a 35-9 lead heading into the fourth quarter on a two-play drive for 26 yards.
In the fourth quarter, Jake Maier replaced Bryson Barnes at quarterback. Midway through the fourth quarter, Ottawa had the ball on the 48-yard line. Jake Maier threw four passes for 43 yards to the five-yard line. Then, he threw a touchdown pass to Ayden Eberhardt. The Redblacks trailed the Tiger-Cats 35-16 with 5:39 left on a five-play drive for 48 yards.
The Redblacks tried an onside kick, but Kenny Lawler got the ball. After the play, he limped off the field. A penalty by Hamilton moved the ball back to the 54-yard line. Hamilton went two-and-out. The Redblacks had the ball on the 27-yard line. They moved the ball to the three-yard line before Jake Maier threw a touchdown pass to Justin Hardy. Ottawa attempted a two-point conversion, but Maier fumbled the ball and was sacked. The Redblacks trailed the Tiger-Cats 35-22 with 1:18 left on a 12-play drive for 83 yards.
Ottawa tried an onside kick, and it went out of bounds. Hamilton running back Larry Rountree III carried the ball two times for 10 yards to end the game. The Tiger-Cats defeated the Redblacks 35-22 to sweep the season series.
Hamilton’s offense had 277 yards (170 passing yards, 134 rushing yards, 27 yards lost), 17 first downs, 8 for 20 on second downs, 2 for 3 in the redzone, and the team was penalized six times for 58 yards. Quarterback Tre Ford completed 18 of 25 passes (72%) for 170 yards, two touchdowns, and eight carries for 52 yards. Running back Larry Rountree III had 15 carries for 82 yards, two catches for eight yards, and one touchdown.
Wide receiver Jaelen Gill made five catches for 40 yards and one touchdown, while Kenny Lawler made three catches for 35 yards. The defense made 42 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and one turnover on downs. Defensive lineman Mario Kendricks made two tackles and two sacks.
Ottawa’s offense had 303 yards (294 passing yards, 37 rushing yards, 28 yards lost), 18 first downs, 7 for 20 on second downs, 2 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized three times for 25 yards. Quarterback Bryson Barnes completed 13 of 26 passes (50%) for 163 yards, two interceptions, and four carries for 14 yards, while Jake Maier completed 13 of 15 passes (86%) for 131 yards, two touchdowns, and one carry for 11 yards. Running back Ricky Person Jr. had five carries for 12 yards, and two catches for nine yards.
Wide receiver Keelen White made eight catches for 96 yards, while Ayden Eberhardt made six catches for 69 yards and one touchdown, and Justin Hardy made one catch for three yards and one touchdown. The defense made 44 tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, and one forced fumble.
