By Max Campbell
Stampeders.com

The Calgary Stampeders fell victim to the Edmonton Eskimos 27-16 on Saturday night from Commonwealth Stadium in the annual Labour Day rematch. Their first regular-season loss to their provincial rivals in 13 games, the Red and White fell to 8-3 on the year.

Bo Levi Mitchell was previously undefeated against the Esks while Mike Reilly, making his first start since Week 1, beat the Stamps after four losses in his first four tries.

“Obviously we didn’t play well enough to win the football game,” said Stamps head coach and general manager John Hufnagel. “They made more plays than we did and their offence made some big plays. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay with them and match it with our offence. I thought it was a close game for the most part but it got out of hand late in the fourth quarter.”

The first big play of the matchup came via a 41-yard catch and run out of the Eskimos backfield by the shifty Shakir Bell. The pickup set the stage for a Sean Whyte field goal of 30 yards at the 5:15 mark of the first quarter.

An offside penalty assessed to the Stamps Jeff Hecht on third down extended the next drive for Edmonton, but the visitors would escape further damage. Nate Slaughter came on the field the subsequent punt, as he was recently activated from the practice roster in lieu of the injured Tim Brown.

Mitchell then committed the first turnover of the evening on a pass intended for Eric Rogers. Cauchy Muamba leaped to intercept the Stampeders signal caller, and the change of possession set up a six-point score. Reilly found Adarius Bowman alone in the back of the end zone on a high-arching toss of 14 yards through a steady downpour. The following two-point conversion was unsuccessful.

Tailback Matt Walter answered with a 20-yard gallop as the former U of C Dino bounced outside before stiff-arming defensive lineman Marcus Howard as the opening frame expired.

A contacting-the-kicker infraction extended Calgary’s next drive, and a facemask penalty two plays later gave the Stampeders yet another automatic first down. Canadian wide receiver Anthony Parker eventually caught his first touchdown of the season, and the 20-yard TD and convert from Rene Paredes narrowed the deficit to two.

On the ensuring kickoff, Kendial Lawrence was stripped of the ball before making contact with the ground. Ruled down by contact on the field, John Hufnagel challenged the play, and Ben D’Aguilar was credited with a recovery on his 26th birthday.

The excellent field position allowed for a Paredes chip shot and a Stamps lead with a tick under four minutes remaining in the opening half of play. Seven different targets hauled the seven passes completed by Mitchell in the first 30 minutes as Calgary headed to the locker room with a 10-9 advantage.

Edmonton was first to find the scoreboard in the third when Reilly fired downfield for Kenny Stafford. A 47-yard hurl found the Columbus, Ohio native after outrunning two members of the Calgary secondary. Lawrence ran in for two points after the touchdown for a seven-point cushion.

Bryant Moniz came on for a customary third-and-short situation, but rolled to his right and threw back to his left rather than sneaking behind his offensive line. Tory Harrison was unable to gather in the high throw, and the Stamps turned over the ball on downs.

Beginning from their own 39-yard line, Reilly connected with Stafford once again for a lengthy gain, but Whyte was required to knock through a 21-yard goal when the offence stalled. The Esks were up by 10 with 14:10 left in the contest.

A 50-yard boot by Paredes was good a short time later to make it a one-score game. He then nailed a 47-yarder, his fifteenth consecutive made field goal.

Yet another deep pass was completed by the home team with under seven minutes left in the final frame. Bowman beat Joe Burnett on a stop-and-go route and was left all alone for a touchdown of 50 yards.

Faced with a second-and-five scenario at midfield, Rogers managed to keep the ball off the turf by controlling the pass between his knees for a remarkable reception. Mitchell was intercepted on the following play by Muamba, however, for the second time on the night to seal the Stamps fate.

“Edmonton’s a good football team and we respect their abilities,” said Hufnagel. “They played better than us tonight, but we get them again (in Week 16).”

Calgary will now get ready to host to BC Lions on Friday at 7 p.m.