The Montreal Alouettes will aim to defeat the Tiger-Cats for the second time this season on Saturday when the teams reconvene in Hamilton, Ontario.
The Alouettes (3-3) recorded their lone road win of the season with a 38-12 victory over the Tiger-Cats (3-4) on June 23.
Montreal lost three in a row after that before posting a 25-18 win over the Calgary Stampeders last Sunday.
“Football is one of those sports where you only play once a week,” Alouettes head coach Jason Maas told TSN690. “If you lose a couple of games in a row, or three in our case, it’s almost a month before you taste that victory. If you throw a bye week in there, it feels even longer.”
Defensive end Kabion Ento helped end that wait by returning an interception for a touchdown in the second quarter against the Stampeders.
Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed just 16 passes for 158 yards in the win. He completed 19 of 25 passes for 292 yards and totaled three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) in the previous game versus Hamilton.
Kaion Julien-Grant, who had six catches for 94 yards in that contest, is out for Saturday’s game with a hand injury.
Hamilton’s Bo Levi Mitchell returned from an adductor injury to throw for 353 yards with two touchdowns in a 16-12 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks on July 28. The two-time Grey Cup champion also tossed five interceptions and sustained a fracture to his lower left leg toward the end of the game, earning him a trip to the six-game injured list.
Rookie Taylor Powell is expected to draw his second career CFL start on Saturday. He threw for 282 yards with a rushing touchdown in the Tiger-Cats’ 31-15 setback to the Toronto Argonauts on July 21.
“As far as the demeanor and the throws, he’s been very efficient in practice,” Hamilton coach Orlondo Steinauer said Thursday. “(He’s) made limited mistakes, as is expected.
“So, we’ll see. The test is always when the lights are on. … Not much has changed, except for he does have that game under his belt, and it won’t be his first.”
–Field Level Media