The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have had the Redblacks number for over 5 years at this point. Hamilton had outlasted Ottawa in ten straight games outscoring the Redblacks by 106 points or 10.6 points per game. This streak fell after 2,051 days on a walk-off field goal by Lewis Ward to win the game 24-22. 

Lewis Ward Player of the Game? 

Lewis Ward converted all four of his field goal attempts and managed to make the game-winning kick as the clock read zeroes.

As soon as Ottawa sees the ball go through the uprights the sideline erupts in cheers. Even Coach Dyce is seen jumping up and down elated that Ottawa snatched victory from the jaws of a defeat. He did miss his only convert attempt in this game when dealing with some wind but came through when it mattered the most. Thanks to Ward, Ottawa moves to 2-1 on the year.

Ottawa has Work to Do

While this victory was a big deal as Ottawa tries to find its identity this season, this game should not have been this close. Ottawa fumbled twice losing both, missed a convert attempt, and failed on a two-point conversion attempt. Tobias Harris forced a fumble, but the defense was not able to recover the ball, they also did not intercept Bo-Levi Mitchell. 

The first fumble came on the opening kick return. Devonte Dedmon turned the ball over on the first play of the game and gave Hamilton the chance to start with the ball on offense in both halves. Hamilton would score on a Bo-Levi Mitchell pass to Tim White just two plays later. Dedmon did his best to repent for his sin by returning the ball to midfield on his next opportunity. He would finish with 152 return yards, on attempts with 10 taken away on a punt return due to an illegal block. Ottawa needs to get him more involved on offense. One theme has been coming up often around Ottawa..accountability. 

The second fumble came when Dru Brown and the offense were attempting to put points on the board to take the lead before the half. Brown finds Addison for a 9-yard gain to Hamilton’s 41-yard line, he is tackled and loses the ball turning it over to Hamilton. Hamilton was not able to turn this into points, which saved Ottawa in this game, but it prevented the Redblacks from widening their lead before the half. 

There had been 18 seconds remaining when this turnover occurred. That was enough time for at least two more offensive plays before sending Ward out for another field goal. This was essentially a 10-point swing that never should have happened. 

Running Game

The Redblacks struggled to get the running game going until late in the game. Of Ryquell Armstead’s 51 rushing yards 32 came on three fourth-quarter carries by Ottawa’s top running back. He had two big runs on the 4th quarter touchdown drive that made this win possible. His 31 rushing yards, amounted to the majority of the yardage amassed by Ottawa on that drive with Dru Brown putting the cherry on top with a 15-yard pass to Justin Hardy. 

So far Ottawa has done a great job of hanging around in these games despite mistakes along the way, and there is something to be said about the team playing to the last whistle. This is a credit to the coaching staff for keeping their team motivated and invested. In years past I am not sure this team would have stayed focused on the win. 

Discipline is Dyce’s Hallmark 

If there is one aspect that Bob Dyce has brought to Ottawa as a head coach, it is discipline. These mistakes being made typically are not mental mistakes. Ottawa has done a great job of avoiding penalties under Dyce, and it truly kept them in this game at times as they watched Hamilton repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot with ill-timed penalties. 

While the Ti-Cats racked up 7 penalties for 60 yards, Ottawa was called for just 3 penalties that stuck, losing 39 yards total. The Redblacks had the fourth most penalties going into this game. With only 3 more penalties, they now stand at a total of 22 through four games. Winnipeg was called for 8 penalties surpassing Ottawa with 25. Moving the Redblacks into the third spot. There is still room for improvement but it should be acknowledged they are trending in the right direction.