Calgary hadn’t won a game at Rogers Centre in the last six tries but they snapped their losing streak on Friday evening as the Stampeders were victorious 35-14 despite missing several key starters from their offensive unit.

“I’m very proud of this football team just because of the things that they had to contend with up to this point and not having two of their ‘star players’ from last week’s game,” says Stampeders head coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “They came very determined though, they’re used to it.”

“It says a lot about our character,” said Stamps quarterback Kevin Glenn, who threw for two touchdowns. “Guys stepping up getting their opportunity to play and taking advantage of it. It also says a lot about the coaching staff, those guys making the decisions to keep certain guys during training camp and making the team, and putting game plans together for us to succeed. This was a big team win, from top to bottom. We came in here and beat a really good team that was on a really good streak.”

On the first play from scrimmage, Glenn hooked up with SB Marquay McDaniel for a 29-yard gain before the ball was stripped by Argos’ rookie defensive back Antareis Bryan.

Toronto soon made the Stamps pay, as QB Ricky Ray finished off the drive with a touchdown pass to SB Jason Barnes in the back of the end zone. The former Eskimo duo have now hooked up for five majors on the season to date.

Jonathan Williams, in his first year out of East Carolina and starting in place of Jon Cornish, appeared to commit the team’s second fumble of the game before a Hufnagel challenge overturned the ruling on the field. Calgary ended up punting, but Rob Maver was able to pin the Argonauts deep in their end of the field. 

Pressure off the edge from DE Charleston Hughes forced a throwaway from Ray and also sent him to the locker room with a right shoulder injury. Zach Collaros, the Cincinnati alum, came on in relief of the three-time Grey Cup champion. 

“We had to play a little bit more of a defence that concentrated on the quarterback, making sure we didn’t let him freelance anywhere he wanted to,” says Hufnagel about Collaros entering the game. “We did a nice job of controlling him. We didn’t stop him, but we contained him.”

K Noel Prefontaine then conceded consecutive safeties to give the red and white their first four points of the game.

The next series for the Stamps saw QB Bo Levi Mitchell take the field, who was the fourth pivot to appear in the first quarter. Glenn then regained his spot under centre before the end of the first quarter after sitting out two plays.

The Toronto defence did not have a strong start to the second frame as they were flagged for pass interference in the end zone, but responded well with two goal line stands to limit the damage to three points.

McDaniel made up for his earlier mistake by finding an opening behind his defender and bringing down a 20-yard pass from Glenn, good for six more points on the board.

Just prior to the three minute warning, the Argos gained 56 yards on two pass plays to Barnes and WR John Chiles respectively. Then, on first and goal, RB Curtis Steele walked in from two yards out to tie the game at 14 apiece.

On just his eighth grab of 2013, Canadian wideout Anthony Parker caught a short pass and crossed midfield, which set up WR Tim Hawthorne’s first career CFL touchdown on the next play.

The Argos would throw their first interception this season to DB Jamar Wall, although the score would remain the same as the Stamps headed into the locker room up 21-14.

The third quarter featured three possessions for each squad, although no points were scored. With 15 minutes remaining, Toronto’s starting running back had a total of two rushing yards. Middle linebacker Robert McCune had a game-high seven tackles, while McDaniel, the only receiver to appear in every game this season for Calgary, had 106 receiving yards.

On the next series, a deep pass to SB Chad Owens was jarred loose by a Fred Bennett hit in the secondary and DB Jonathan Hefney picked up the loose ball, scampering 37 yards. He was taken down with a horse collar tackle which advanced the ball into field goal position, but the Stampeders would instead make the most of the turnover. Mitchell saw an opening and bursted up the middle and across the goal line to extend the lead to 29-14. 

Prefontaine faked a punt and threw the ball downfield on third and three, but LB Juwan Simpson dropped back and leaped in the air, recording his first interception since October 2010. 

K Rene Paredes added two field goals with less than two minutes left, adding insurance to an already healthy lead. The Stamps kept the Argos off the scoreboard in the second half.

“Man, (the defence) did a helluva job shutting out a team like that,” said Glenn. “I know they were without Ricky Ray, but Zach Collaros, he’s done a great job when he’s played so for them to go in and shut them out in the second half and them not score a point I think is great. They did a great job and they’ve been doing a great job I think all year. Some games I think we’ve let them down, but like I said, it’s a team sport and today was a big team win.

Jabari Arthur, who filled in for the injured Nik Lewis, finished with four receptions for 42 yards.

Although his CFL streak for consecutive field goals came to an end at 39 early in the fourth, Paredes passed former NFL journeyman Gary Anderson for pro football’s all-time consecutive field goals mark in the regular season and playoffs combined with 47. 

The home-and-home Labour Day series is up next for the Stamps as they take on the Edmonton Eskimos at home on Monday, Sept. 2 followed by a visit to Commonwealth Stadium on Friday, Sept. 6.