Mitchell glitters as Tiger-Cats win five in a row for first time in six years

It’s one of Scott Milanovich’s favourite sayings about football seasons and also about the individual games within them.

So here it is again:

It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

That has never been more appropriate than it was Sunday night in the CFL venue the farthest away from home, as the Ticats willed themselves to a fifth straight win for the first time since November 2019 and only the third time in the last 27 years.

Left in their wake were the mystified B.C. Lions who thought they had this game in complete control with a 10-point lead and under four minutes to play but were left grasping air and anger as the Ticats—okay, Bo Levi Mitchell, coolly guided by Milanovich’s clinical blueprints—rallied to win 37-33.

Two contrasting but equally dagger-like touchdown marches dropped the Lions to 3-4 and the Ticats to 5-2, with a bullet.

It wasn’t so much that the Lions lost this one, although they did, as that the Ticats won it. That’s who they are these days and it’s been quite a few days. Exactly 44 of them since they started the season 0-and-2.

So the four-game sweep of the East was not a mirage of any kind; because five wins in a row, including two straight on the road, with a third coming up Saturday in Edmonton, is big-time serious stuff. The Cats sit first, with the same record as Montréal but at the head of the Eastern table because they beat the Als to launch their four-game roar through the division.

This first leg of the Feline Bowl—the Lions visit the Tiger-Cats for the Wall of Honour Game in less than two weeks—was as absolute piñata of entertainment,  unless you happened to be a B.C. fan and even they were delighted for about 58 minutes,  or a football coach because they prefer fewer of the mistakes that light up scoreboards like Firecracker Day. But the winner, of course, feels a lot better about it than the coach who didn’t: in this case, Buck Pierce.

With those two offensive gurus, and Mitchell and Lions QB Nathan Rourke, all  going at it,  there were 70 points and nearly 1000 (919) yards of total offence.

The CFL needs more and more of these kinds of affairs; the three-down game at its best, forcing defences to make stops and offences to still make late first downs even with a lead  that only appears to be as soft as a cushion. Where keeping score by hand would give you carpal tunnel syndrome for a year.

So. Back to the start, and to the finish.

On the very first play from scrimmage, Mitchell hit reserve receiver Keaton Bruggeling with on a well-designed swing pass. Bruggeling, who played three years for Ottawa but was on the Ticat training camp bubble and did not secure a spot on the team until the final quarter of the final pre-season game, and even then it was on the practice roster. He ran a solid route, and had secured the first down when he was hit hard, fumbled, and the ball turned over. Four plays later James Butler powered in for a touchdown, the first of his two in the opening half as he was clearly energized by facing his former team.

Bruggeling recovered nicely, catching a pass later, and throwing some good blocks to protect Mitchell and help running backs Greg Bell and Johnny Augustine’s keep-‘em-honest running.

“This team, this team…” said Bruggeling, searching for the words to describe what the Ticats are building. “I’ve never been part of a team that rallies behind guys like this.

“I fumbled the ball—first play of the game—and  when I got back to the bench, no sorry faces, no low heads, everyone’s telling me, ‘Next play.  We’re coming back to you’. I can’t say enough about how awesome this organization is, doing that stuff for me.”

That was the start, but this was the finish.

Bo Levi Mitchell craftily moving his offence like a Texas cattle drive, mixing the pass with the run from his own 18-yard line, eating clock like cheesecake so there would be almost no time for a Lions recovery. He marched 92 yards with the result seeming nearly as inevitable as his march into the Hall of Fame.

And from the one-yard line, Mitchell executed Milanovich’s play call which looked as if it would go to the flanks but instead was a deep over-the-middle arc into the end zone to Kiondré Smith who was his go-to guy, along with Tim White, most of the game.

“I’m not going to lie to you,” said Smith. “I saw that pre-snap, they had two people out there, so someone was going to be wide open. I was fortunate enough for it to be me on that one.”

Smith rolled his eyes in awe when asked about Mitchell: “Yeah, exactly. That man is amazing. He’s a playmaker, he’s a baller.”

There were a lot of contributing factors to this win, but Mitchell was the biggest, as quarterbacks have to be. He was on his game from the outset, completing 34 of his 41 passes for 389 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He also ran for 23 yards, including one for a critical 13-yard first down.

He had only a couple of missed throws and even the interception was a perfect pitch to a streaking Brendan O’Leary-Orange in the end zone but at the last second Lions’ defensive back Robert Carter Jr. made a one-handed stabbing swipe for one of the most brilliant picks even the most grizzled CFL observers had ever seen. The Ticats were still tipping their collective hats to it in the celebratory aftermath.

With the Ticats down 33-23, Mitchell got the ball and, in contrast with his deliberate final drive, got seven points in 49 seconds, finding O’Leary-Orange down the right sideline for a 44-yard major. Last year, as the Ticats ran their streak to four in a row with an overtime win in B.C., O’Leary-Orange made a long deep grab down the same sideline late in the game to trigger another Ticat comeback: this time from a 16-0 first-half deficit.

O’Leary-Orange, who also made a couple of catches in traffic, said the Ticats never felt that the game was out of reach, even with the Lions up two scores.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “Any time you have guys like Bo Levi Mitchell, Tim White, Kenny Lawler on the field with you, you know you can score points at any time. I’m lucky to be out there with those guys and when the ball comes my way, just try to make a play.

“We have a good group of guys and we love to compete. And at the end of the day, Bo Levi Mitchell throws the ball. And at the end of the day, all the credit goes to coach Scott; he’s putting us in position to win with what he sees.”

Milanovich deflected the praise back to his team, which entered the second third of the season the same way it ended the first third: with a comeback victory and the momentum of growing cohesion.

“I’m just so proud of these guys,” Milanovich said outside the tumultuous roar of the Ticat clubhouse. “Their confidence is building and most of all their faith, and their belief in their teammates, is building. And they believe that when the game’s on the line somebody’s going to make plays. And, you know, that’s what has happened.

“When you win a couple on the road, the confidence builds and you start to believe you’re going to win. Even when things don’t look their best. I think the execution is getting better at times. I still don’t feel like we’ve put a full game together, really with three phases. But, we’re finding ways to win as we go.”

Milanovich said that the Lions had a solid game plan to limit Kenny Lawler, who had six touchdowns in the previous three games. He was mostly double-teamed, but was happy to attract the attention, to get the two points on the road and free up White and Smith and, later, O’Leary-Orange.

He was among the chorus who said that there was no doubt in the huddle nor on the sidelines that the Ticats could score two late touchdowns and not even go into overtime, which loomed like it was part of your daily horoscope.

“When it comes down to competing,” Lawler said. “Bo is the one you want in there. It’s not a matter of being motivated or faith, it’s a belief: “Our 12 are better than your 12.”

From Milanovich: Well, pretty much ditto.

“I’ve seen it before. Bo is really good when the game’s on the line. Especially that first touchdown drive with three minutes left. There was a lot of time left to be patient. Take what they give you. And he did.

“Then, he got a shot to take it, and throw one over the top to Brendan. He made the right decision, and I give him a lot of credit for that.”

While the Lions did run up big yardage, riding Keon Hatcher and Butler early, and with Oakville’s Rourke buying time and yards with his legs, the Hamilton defence got some key two-and-outs, and limited potential touchdown drives to four Sean Whyte field goals. Timing may not be everything but it’s close to everything in a league where games usually swing on fewer than a dozen plays.

“We’ll take the win,” said defensive coordinator Brent Monson. “But we’ve got to get better. And go 1-0 next week.

“I just saw (the defence) keeping the faith; we just kept believing, made a play, made a play, spread across the board. Kept driving and kept chopping wood.”

There’s still a long way to go but you could also argue that the Ticats have come a long way. But they actually don’t see it in quite the same light as those who view this as a six-week, five-win turnaround. It is more than that and includes building on mistakes, and successes, such as still winning in Ottawa despite not playing close to their potential.

“Every single game leading up to right now has led us there,” Smith explained. “Like starting off slowly last year and then catching a heater on the back end of the season and carrying it over into this one.

“It shows you that every man knows that they can rely on the man next to them. That whenever we go down, it’s not over and we’re going to make a play. Someone’s going to make a big play like catching that deep ball and we get our momentum right back.

“So every man out here is doing their job, and I appreciate that.”

A growing number of Cats fans, and CFL observers, are beginning to appreciate it too.

CATS CLAUSES: Ticat WR Kiondré Smith had 14 catches for 138 yards and 2 TDs … Tim White caught 6 for 86, including one off a deflection, and was particularly strong on second downs … Brendan O’Leary-Orange’s 44-yard touchdown was part of his total of 63 receiving yards … Marc Liegghio’s three field goals made it 33 in a row, the fourth-longest streak of all time … MLB Devin Veresuk forced a key fumble, recovered by SAM linebacker Reggie Stubblefield … CB Jonathan Moxey led the Cats with 5 tackles … DE Julian Howsare and S Stavros Katsantonis had pass knockdowns …DE Owen Hubert had two special teams tackles …  Ticat short-yardage QB Jake Dolegala scored a touchdown the first time he touched the ball in a Hamilton uniform .. Scott Milanovich gave a lot of credit to GM Ted Goveia and his player personnel staff for providing him with a variety of styles of receivers, which played a big role in this game … and there was also the depth factor with DL TyJuan Garbutt, OL Jordan Murray and multi-purpose FB Ante Litre out with injury, so the Ticats got important contributions from Dolegala, DE Phillip Ossai, who registered the game’s only sack, and LB Daniel Kwamou all playing their first games as Tiger-Cats… Lions QB Nathan Rourke was 20-for-27 for 289 yards with no picks or TDs … RB James Butler rushed 16 times for 115 yards and 2 TDs … WR Keon Hatcher inhaled five passes for 177 yards including a 77-yard bomb on the seam …former Ticats QB Jeremiah Masoli scored a short-yardage TD … BC LB Micah Awe had a superb game with 10 tackles … the Ticats were 16-for-23 on 2^nd down conversions, the Lions 12-for-19 … the Ticats lost the turnover battle 3-1. They took 8 penalties for 60 yards, three on one Lions drive, while the Lions had only 4 for 31 yards. The Cats trailed 14-3 after one quarter, 20-13 after two and 23-20 after three.