By Max Campbell
Stampeders.com

The Calgary Stampeders earned a 33-23 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers thanks to a dominant outing from RB Jon Cornish. The former Kansas standout not only moved into second place on the all-time rushing list for a Canadian tailback by surpassing Sean Millington, but also helped the Stamps clinch first place in the West Division. With three regular season games remaining, Calgary is already guaranteed to host the West Final on Sunday, November 23. 

“I enjoyed the win,” said Stampeders head coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “It was a hard-fought win, and I thought it would be. I knew that Winnipeg would come out and be a very, very tough opponent.

“We got off to a great start, but had some penalties and some turnovers and some sloppy play. (Robert) Marve in the second half made some fantastic plays for Winnipeg and kept them in the game.”

The Stamps executed their opening drive to near perfection, moving the chains on four occasions before QB Bo Levi Mitchell connected with SB Brad Sinopoli on 25-yard a corner route for the game’s first points. The one-time Eastern Washington signal caller returned to the lineup after missing the past three contests with a leg ailment. 

Winnipeg’s Brian Brohm, making his first start under centre as a CFL pivot, did not experience the same success on his initial drive, suffering a two-and-out after taking a shot from LB Juwan Simpson on second down. The defensive captain was appearing in his 10oth career game, all while donning the Red and White.

When the offence returned to the field, it did not take long at all for Calgary to add to their lead. WR Joe West hauled in a 51-yard bomb from Mitchell after only two plays, locating the ball over his shoulder and crossing the goal line untouched for his first major since last year’s West Division Final. 

Winnipeg responded with a field goal of 26 yards from rookie K Lirim Hajrullahu out of Western University. After a punt single from Calgary’s Rob Maver, three more points were put up by the home team just four and a half minutes later for a score of 15-6.

Soon after, SB Nik Lewis made a clutch 25-yard catch following a 10-yard loss on first down as OL Brander Craighead recovered a loose ball stripped from the grasp of Mitchell. The Stampeders would eventually punt to conclude the series yet earned another valuable point as Maver’s boot was not returned out of the end zone.

Fighting for their playoff lives, the Blue Bombers dug deep into their playbook for a flea flicker which saw SB Clarence Denmark come up with a juggling snag while being wrestled down DB Joshua Bell. The Bombers then set up eight yards from pay dirt, but a sack and forced fumble from DL Shawn Lemon forced a crucial turnover as fellow lineman Junior Turner’s recovery ended the threat.

DB Chris Randle then picked off Mitchell before the Stamps could take advantage of the miscue. The Utah State alum was facing his former squad for the first time after spending the 2012 and 2013 seasons in Southern Alberta.

An impressive 33-yard reception in tight coverage by WR Maurice Price gave Calgary an opportunity to extend their lead before the break, but Mitchell was intercepted over the middle by a leaping Don Unamba in the secondary on the very next play.

Following a Hajrullahu single, Canadian SB Anthony Parker took a double-reverse handoff early in the third frame and turned it upfield for a pickup of 12 yards. Polished off with a one-yard sneak for rushing touchdown No. 9 for QB Drew Tate, the Stampeders went up 23-7 midway through the quarter. A costly 24-yard pass interference penalty on DB Bruce Johnson allowed the Stampeders to set up just off the goal line.

Robert Marve was unable to orchestrate a major score after taking over for Brohm who headed for the locker room to seek medical treatment. That sent on Hajrullahu yet again, but this time his kick was wide right. He responded shortly thereafter with a punt that bounced at the four-yard line, making up for his previous mistake by pinning Calgary deep in their own territory.

Unable to move upfield, Maver conceded two points to the Blue Bombers by stepping out the back of his end zone and thus reducing the lead to 14 points.

When Winnipeg took over, newly-named starting RB Paris Cotton evaded the tackle of DL Freddie Bishop III and exploded straight ahead for 35 yards and a Bomber touchdown. The speedy tailback from Miami, FL filled the void left by Nic Grigsby who was released earlier in the week.

Perennial all-star RB Jon Cornish eclipsed 100 yards on the next possession with gains of three, 17, and six yards respectively before K Rene Paredes capped it off with 41-yard field goal for a 26-16 score.

The Blue Bombers showed their resiliency with an impressive response: Marve scrambled to his right in desperation and located SB Brett Carter for a first down, Marve drew a flag for roughing the passer, and Cotton bursted for a 10 yard touchdown.

The Stamps sealed the win by taking 3:06 off the clock before Cornish ran in from nine yards out for a 33-23 lead with under 90 seconds left. His final carry brought his yardage total to 160 on the evening.

“You have to do that against a defence like Winnipeg and try to get Jon into the second level (of the defence),” said Hufnagel. “He’s dangerous from there, he’s powerful, and has the opportunity of maybe wearing the other team down a little bit. I thought our offensive line blocked very well especially with all the different looks that Winnipeg presented. Also, our perimeter blocking by receivers for the most part was very good.“

The Stampeders have now defeated every team in the CFL this season as Winnipeg was the only team the Red and White were yet to face prior to Saturday.

Next up for Calgary is a matchup with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday, October 24 from McMahon Stadium. Watch the game live on TSN with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. MDT.