The Calgary Stampeders and running back Jon Cornish both had great bounce-back games after the bye week as the Stamps defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 31-20 Thursday in their final ever visit to Ivor Wynne Stadium.
In their game prior to the bye, the Stamps lost 34-8 to BC and Cornish had minus-1 yard rushing. Thursday, however, the Stamps scored 24 second-half points while Cornish ran the ball for a career-best 170 yards.
The win was the first in three tries this season on the road for Calgary, which squares its overall record to 3-3.
“Going into the game, we knew how big it was,” said head coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “We’re back to .500, which is very important. Escaping Ivor Wynne is always huge — it’s not an easy place to win. Our guys really played very good football in the second half to get the job done.”
The Stamps finish with a lifetime 21-20 record at the Ticats’ longtime home, which is scheduled to be demolished and replaced with a new facility on the same location.
After a rough start in his first game against his former club since an off-season trade, Stampeders quarterback Kevin Glenn completed seven of 11 passes in the second half, threw for a touchdown with no interceptions and ran for 22 yards on two carries.
“He’s shown that (resiliency) ever since he got on the field for us,” said Hufnagel. “He’s not perfect but he’s shown that he’s not going to quit. I was very pleased that the success started to come in the second half. He hung in there and made some plays.
“His teammates also helped him out and that’s what we need — a full team effort. I thought this was a full team effort tonight.”
There were plenty of momentum swings and lead changes in the second half.
After Luca Congi’s 22-yard field gave Hamilton a 13-10 lead, the Stampeders took their first lead of the night on Bo Levi Mitchell’s two-yard touchdown run on a third-and-goal gamble.
On the final play of the third quarter, Chevon Walker ran the ball 47 yards for a touchdown that gave the Ticats a 20-17 advantage.
Calgary reclaimed the lead with an eight-yard touchdown run by receiver Romby Bryant. After getting a stop from their defence, the Stamps added to their lead on an eight-yard touchdown catch by Nik Lewis.
In addition to his five catches and a major, Lewis threw several devastating blocks for Calgary.
After a scoreless opening quarter, the Tiger-Cats got on the scoreboard in the fifth minute of the second period thanks to a 21-yard touchdown reception by Walker.
Calgary equalized when Larry Taylor’s 42-yard punt return set up a 21-yard touchdown run by Cornish.
Congi gave the Tiger-Cats a three-point lead at the half with a 43-yard field goal.
It was a good first half for Cornish, who rushed for 45 yards and also made five catches for 49 yards.
Otherwise, it was a defensive struggle in the wet conditions as the teams combined to complete just 18 of 37 passes for 175 yards.
Calgary tied the game 10-10 early in the third quarter thanks to a 25-yard field goal by Rene Paredes. The points were set up by a loose-ball recovery by Calgary’s Malik Jackson after Chris Williams muffed a punt return.
The Stamps return to McMahon Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 18 to face the Toronto Argonauts. Kickoff is at 5 p.m.
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