The Canadian Press
Dan Ralph
HAMILTON—Once again, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats practised what head coach Kent Austin continually has preached.
Zach Collaros threw four TD passes and for a two-point convert as Hamilton overcame a 20-point deficit for a wild 49-36 win over the Toronto Argonauts last night.
At one point in the first half, Hamilton trailed 27-7 but outscored the Argos 32-6 in the second half to secure just its second win in five games.
“We prefer not to do that,” Austin said. “But our guys believe they’re never out of the football game.
“We try to preach that and instill that in the psyche of our players,” he added.
“But you actually need games that demonstrate that . . . so I think that [coming back] helps.”
It didn’t hurt, either, that the Ticats erased a 25-point deficit July 23 en route to registering a monumental 37-31 victory over the defending Grey Cup champion Edmonton Eskimos.
But Hamilton (5-5) won last night despite surrendering 24 points (three TDs and a field goal) on four turnovers (two fumbles, an interception, and a blocked punt).
Then again, that didn’t matter to the record Tim Hortons Field gathering of 24,512, which broke into an “Argos Suck’’ chant shortly after Collaros hit former Toronto slotback Chad Owens on a 10-yard TD pass at 5:50 of the fourth.
Collaros then found Andy Fantuz on the two-point convert to put Hamilton up 39-36 before Emmanuel Davis cemented the win with a 55-yard interception return touchdown at 8:52.
“With this league . . . and how many times you get the ball in a game, you’re never truly out of it,” Collaros noted.
“Obviously we don’t want to be digging ourselves holes the way we have been but there’s no quit in that locker-room,” he added.
Owens had six catches for 63 yards and the TD in his first Labour Day game with Hamilton but 100th career CFL contest.
He had spent the previous six years with Toronto before joining the Ticats as a free agent.
Hamilton earned its fifth win in six Labour Day encounters versus Toronto heading into this Sunday’s rematch at BMO Field.
Overall, the Ticats earned their fifth-straight victory over the Argos and are 32-12-1 on Labour Day against their arch rivals.
But the Ticats improved to 2-2 since Collaros’ return from last season’s serious knee injury.
Collaros now is 5-2 against his former team after completing 28-of-35 passes for 359 yards with an interception.
“Yeah, I get excited, for sure [to face the Argos],” Collaros said.
Hamilton also clinched the season series and the tie-breaker should both teams finish tied in the standings.
Running back C.J. Gable ran for 135 yards on 12 carries while Luke Tasker had five catches for 122 yards and a TD.
“They were dropping nine guys every snap daring us to run the ball,” Collaros noted.
“The offensive line did a great job and C.J. was running guys over, and that’s what he should do every time.”
Meanwhile, Toronto (4-6) suffered its fourth-straight loss and first in four road games.
The Argos also fell to 0-8 at Tim Hortons Field, which includes two replacement games here last year, and are 0-3 here on Labour Day.
“It’s pretty sombre,” Toronto head coach Scott Milanovich said of his team’s mood.
“You know when you’re playing them that no lead is safe.
“They gave everything they had and again it didn’t go our way in the fourth quarter,” Milanovich added.
“That’s tough to swallow for professional guys that put everything, their heart and soul, into it.”
Ray finished 31-of-41 passing for 386 yards and three TDs, but also surrendered two interceptions.
“They just kind of kept chipping away,” Ray said. “They’re a good team.
“They have a good quarterback who makes a lot of plays for them.”
Calgary dumped Edmonton 45-24 earlier yesterday.
