Bo Levi Mitchell’s five-touchdown night fires Tiger-Cats past Argonauts

TORONTO — Both the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Toronto Argonauts came into Friday’s showdown looking to make it back-to-back wins but it would be the visiting Ticats who claimed the first QEW rivalry game of the season. Electric performances by Bo Levi Mitchell and Kenny Lawler fired Hamilton to a 51-38 victory at BMO Field, giving the Black and Gold a fourth straight result over Toronto.

After the Hamilton defence impressed in their Week 4 win over the Montreal Alouettes it was the offence’s time to shine in Week 5. Mitchell threw for five touchdowns for just the third time in his CFL career, with three of those scores hauled in by Lawler as part of a 207-yard performance by the standout receiver.

Toronto pivot Nick Arbuckle did his best to keep up with the free-scoring Ticats, finishing with 339 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. Kevin Mital led the Argonauts with 104 receiving yards to go with his late touchdown score while Janarion Grant scored the 13th kickoff return touchdown of his career as Toronto fell to 1-4.

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The Argonauts got off to a quick start at BMO Field, with Arbuckle unloading a pair of first-down completions to Mital, the second of which getting the home team 31 yards to Hamilton’s three. Kevin Brown got the game’s first score less than four minutes in, powering left from three yards out for his first touchdown of 2025.

After a Hamilton two-and-out, Arbuckle threw it up for David Ungerer III, but his former teammate Dashaun Amos got between the receiver and the football, collecting 32 yards on the interception. Back on the field with strong field position, Mitchell let it fly, finding Lawler in the end zone who made a leaping contested catch to tie things up at 7-7.

After the Argos had a two-and-out of their own, a 51-yard return by Isaiah Wooden helped the Tabbies to their next score. A 44-yard field goal by Marc Liegghio put the visitors ahead for the first time.

The Argos’ offence once again struggled to stay on the field and Lawler made them pay with another big scoring play. Mitchell went over the top to connect with his new favourite weapon as Lawler just about managed to stay on his feet before getting into the end zone. Mitchell eclipsed 40,000 career passing yards on the 79-yard scoring play as the opening period finished with the Ticats up 17-7.

Looking to get back into a groove on offence after three quick scoreless possessions, the Argos put together a six-play drive which got them 35 yards. A Devin Veresuk sack brought the drive to a halt however, leading to a 50-yard Lirim Hajrullahu field goal.

The Tiger-Cats would respond with their own scoring drive. Running backs Johnny Augustine and Greg Bell both played a part to drive the Tabbies forward during the nine-play possession. Mitchell finished things off with his third touchdown of the half, throwing to Tyler Ternowski who turned into the end zone from 15 yards out to put the away team up 24-10. Hajrullahu would nail another long-distance kick, this time from 53 yards out, as the half ended 24-13 in favour of Hamilton.

Starting the second half with the football, the Tiger-Cats extended their lead courtesy of Bell’s score after a run-heavy 10-play drive got Hamilton inside their opponent’s 10.

Just as it looked like the Ticats might get out of sight from their opponent, Grant responded in a big way, doing what he does best. Off of Constantinou’s kickoff, Brown pitched the ball to the elite speedster, who dashed down the left sideline all the way to the house. The Argos went for the two-point conversion but were unsuccessful, leaving the score at 31-19.

A picture-perfect punt by Nik Constantinou trapped the Argonauts deep in their own end, resulting in a two-and-out for Toronto’s first possession of the half. Just like he did in the first half, Mitchell stepped up on the first play of the drive with another deep look. He combined with Lawler on a 46-yard play to get the receiver his third score of the night.

Trying to keep pace with the potent passing attack of Hamilton, Arbuckle came through with a successful scoring drive, throwing for 73 yards in a pass-only drive. He finished it off with a 10-yard toss to Damonte Coxie and Hajrullahu’s extra point made it 37-26 at the end of the third quarter.

The Ticats showed no signs of slowing down in the fourth as Mitchell found Lawler for a 30-yard gain down the right sideline. A few plays later, Mitchell capped off the 73-yard drive with a dart to a diving Kiondre Smith in the end zone, making it 44-26 after Liegghio’s extra point.

Refusing to throw in the towel, the Argos stormed downfield to make it back-to-back scores. A 45-yard bomb from Arbuckle to Coxie got the Boatmen in scoring range and then Khalan Laborn rolled into the end zone from a yard out. The two-point try would be unsuccessful after consecutive penalties against Toronto’s offence, leaving the Argos in a 12-point hole with seven minutes remaining.

Hamilton’s Wooden killed any chance of a comeback with the game’s second kickoff return touchdown, running 86 yards for the score to put his side up 51-32. A late touchdown to Mital would make it 51-38 but wouldn’t change the outcome as the Tabbies notched their second straight victory.

In Week 6, the Tiger-Cats will go back to Hamilton for a tilt against the Ottawa REDBLACKS on Saturday, July 12. The Argonauts meanwhile get their first bye of the season, returning on Thursday, July 17 for a test against the Montreal Alouettes on the road.