By Stampeders.com Staff

Rene Paredes kicked a game-winning 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Calgary Stampeders a dramatic 24-23 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in their regular-season opener Friday night at McMahon Stadium.

The boot gave the Stamps their only lead of the game as Calgary won its opening game for a fourth consecutive year.

“Very much pleased with the outcome,” said Stampeders head coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “Pleased with our resiliency, our never-quit attitude.

“A lot of things we need to clean up — not a lot of smart football by the Red and White but, fortunately, we made some plays to stay in the game and some unbelievable plays on that last drive to get the win.”

Calgary started its final drive from its own 35-yard line and got a big catch from Jeff Fuller — a 28-yarder to convert a third-and-18 situation — and two receptions by Eric Rogers to get into field-goal range. An objectionable conduct penalty to the Stamps pushed the ball 10 yards back but Paredes still split the uprights for the win as the clock showed zeroes.

The comeback allowed the Stamps to prevail on a night they gave up a defensive touchdown — a 76-yard interception return by Johnny Sears Jr. — and a special-teams touchdown — a 67-yard punt return by Brandon Banks.

The Calgary defence held the Ticats to just field goals and singles and even contributed on the scoreboard thanks to Keon Raymond’s historic 98-yard interception return touchdown in the third quarter.

Raymond now has 694 career interception-return yards, second only to Larry Robinson’s 717 in team history.

The score tied the veteran with William Hampton for most pick-sixes in franchise history with five.

Jon Cornish ran the ball in from three yards for a two-point conversion that tied the game at 18-18.

Justin Medlock kicked a 30-yard field goal on the final play of the third quarter and added a pair of punt singles in the fourth. Calgary responded with Paredes field goals of 43 and 50 yards to pull out the win.

After Sears’ pick-six opened the scoring five minutes into the game, the Stamps replied with an 85-yard scoring drive that was capped by Bo Levi Mitchell’s 30-yard touchdown pass to Rogers.

Rogers (five catches for 62 yards) and Fuller (nine receptions for 148 yards) — in the lineup together for the first time — combined 14 of the Stamps’ 22 receptions.

At one point, it looked like Fuller’s night would come to a premature end.

“Before that last drive,” said Hufnagel, “the trainer came up and said he was out because he had a shoulder problem. It wasn’t as serious as first thought so he was able to get back in the game. He is a handful.”

Mitchell overcame a shaky night — he threw a career-high three interceptions — to engineer the game-winning drive. He finished the night with 263 passing yards.

“It’s a game that he probably won’t forget for a while,” said Hufnagel. “He needs to take better care of the football. I knew he would be facing some adversity early in the season and I’m sure he will rebound and play better football. But, when the game was on the line, he gives the team a chance to win football games and he did that tonight.”

The Stamps hit the road next week to face the Montreal Alouettes. The Friday night game kicks off at 5:30 p.m. MDT.