Pure CFL football. That's how Zach Collaros described it, and he wasn't wrong. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers survived a wild one at McMahon Stadium Friday night, beating the Calgary Stampeders 30–28 in a game that had everything — a massive halftime swing, a relentless second-half pass rush, and a final drive with the season on the line. Jake Ceresna picked up 3 sacks on debut. Collaros hit Pokey Wilson with a clutch strike in the closing seconds. Sergio chipped the field goal through. Bombers win.
Ceresna Puts the League on Notice
If Jake Ceresna's first game in Blue Bomber colors is any indication of what's coming, opposing offensive lines are in trouble. Three sacks in a debut will do that. The big man was characteristically modest about it after the game.
"Maybe I'll get Osh to never let me play in the preseason games again. But no, I'm just glad we came out with the team win. Sometimes they're falling your way and they were falling for me tonight." — Jake Ceresna
Head coach Mike O'Shea wasn't underselling it either. When asked about Ceresna's night, the answer was short and direct.
"He is a leader with his effort. He practices that hard all the time. So that kind of relentless energy is awesome. I'm sure we can all learn from it." — Mike O'Shea
Ceresna noted that his season ended at McMahon last year due to injury, so there was some personal motivation layered into this one. "I just wanted to make sure I had a great game and kind of righted the ship," he said. "It felt good to just be running out there and feeling back like myself again." Coming back to the scene of the injury and putting up a performance like that — that's a statement game.
Calgary Had Their Way in the First Half — Then the Defense Woke Up
Let's not pretend the first half was clean. Calgary put up 21 points, gashed the Bombers on the ground, and had Winnipeg's defense looking confused. Ceresna didn't sugarcoat it.
"The first half we just weren't on the same page. A lot of missed assignments. We got so much to clean up, even myself. I feel like at times I wasn't even playing good." — Jake Ceresna
O'Shea echoed that, but framed the halftime adjustments as a matter of execution rather than a scheme overhaul. "The adjustments are really just looking at some of the mistakes that were made and fixing that," he said. "It's not so much changing everything we're doing. It's just saying, let's clean a few of these things up that we know how to do very well."
Whatever they said at halftime, it worked. The D-line got after Vernon Adams Jr. in the second half and Calgary couldn't get anything going on the ground anymore. Ceresna described the shift simply: "We just dialed it in. More assignment sound." Collaros noted the difference from his vantage point too.
"The front four did a great job of getting after Vernon. Vernon's a heck of a competitor. It's tough to really corral him in the pocket, but they did a good job of that. And yeah, they're a special group." — Zach Collaros
Collaros, the Final Drive, and the Pokey Wilson Catch
When Winnipeg got the ball back with 64 seconds left and the game on the line, this is exactly the kind of moment you want Zach Collaros running your offense. He broke down how it unfolded on the sideline with offensive coordinator Tommy Condell.
"Tommy and I talked and he said, hey, I like this in this situation if we have to go kick a field goal. He ended up calling that play, kind of a read where we can go either way. The coverage rolled a certain way. So Pokey was the option there — and unbelievable catch by him." — Zach Collaros
Calgary brought a Sam-Mike pressure and the Bombers' offensive line picked it up clean. Collaros credited Brady and the rest of the group for making it possible. "It looks good on the board, but it's really tough to do," he said. "And they did a really good job." From there, it was about running clock and getting into field goal range. Sergio did the rest.
O'Shea also singled out Trey's decision to let the kickoff go through the end zone before that final sequence — a smart, heads-up call that kept the offense in good position. "You look at that decision Trey makes on that last kickoff to let it go through — it's a good decision, smart," O'Shea said. Three-phase football winning a game. Classic Bombers.
What O'Shea Learned About His Team
The Bombers dug themselves a hole with penalties in the first half, gave up chunk yards on the ground, and still found a way. O'Shea sees the lesson in that — especially for the young guys on the roster.
"The quick lesson for the young guys is with a minute four, you make some good decisions and make plays when they come your way, you got a chance. So that's nice to have that affirmation — they know they can do it." — Mike O'Shea
But he was measured about it. It's Week 1. The penalties were costly. The first-half defense was leaky. There's growth to come. "It's a long season and there's still a lot of learning to do," he said. Collaros shared that sentiment on a personal level — he knows there were a few decisions he'd like back — but for a first real game since last November, the quarterback liked where things stand. "For the first game, I thought we did a pretty good job," he said. "We'll watch the tape and really have an understanding of that and then clean those things up."
The standings show Winnipeg at 1-0, which is all that matters right now. With Ceresna healthy and terrorizing opposing quarterbacks, Collaros back running the offense with command, and a defense that proved it can make second-half adjustments, the Bombers look like exactly what they were supposed to be heading into 2026. The rest of the league has been warned.
Watch the Full Videos
Winnipeg Blue Bombers: Jake Ceresna | June 5
Winnipeg Blue Bombers: Zach Collaros | June 5
Winnipeg Blue Bombers: Coach O'Shea | June 5