LIVESTREAM CFL: Ottawa REDBLACKS @ Toronto Argonauts, Aug. 9, 21:00 CET (9 pm, 3 pm ET)
The Battle of Ontario kicks off a Saturday doubleheader as the Ottawa REDBLACKS take on the Toronto Argonauts in the ToonieBet Rivalry Game at BMO Field.
Toronto fell to Winnipeg, 40-31, in Week 9, while Ottawa secured a 31-11 win over Calgary.
It’s the second matchup between the division rivals this season after the Argonauts won 29-16 back in Week 4.
Here’s three keys to victory for both teams ahead of Saturday’s 3:00 p.m. ET kickoff, which can be watched on TSN, RDS and CTV in Canada, CBSSN in the U.S., and CFL+ internationally.
RELATED
» Depth Charts: OTT | TOR
» Game Notes: REDBLACKS at Argonauts
OTTAWA REDBLACKS
1. DRU BROWN’S FIRST LOOK
It was Dustin Crum under centre when these two met in their first matchup. This time around, Dru Brown will take the reins as he tries to add to his 1,303 passing yards and seven touchdowns. He’s no stranger to the Argos, as he threw for 749 yards and five touchdowns in two starts against them last season.
Watch live. Ottawa REDBLACKS @ Toronto Argonauts, Aug. 9, 21:00 CET (9 pm, 3 pm ET)
2. EUGENE LEWIS
Justin Hardy is in the lineup despite missing parts of this week’s preparation while dealing with a back issue. To help lessen the load, head coach Bob Dyce can turn to Eugene Lewis and Bralon Addison. Lewis caught five passes for 113 yards against Calgary and ranks sixth in the league in receiving yards ahead of Week 10 action.
3. GIVE DRU BROWN TIME
Brown is going to have his hands full with an Argos secondary surrendering the second-fewest passing yards per game at 251.3 coming into the week, so making sure he has the time to go through his reads is imperative. Ottawa has allowed 17 sacks, third most in the league. It’s an offensive line that remains without Zack Pelehos, so Peter Godber and Dariusz Bladek will have to pick up the slack.
TORONTO ARGONAUTS
1. DAMONTE COXIE COMING ON
Damonte Coxie came into the week leading the league with 774 receiving yards, but was overtaken by Hamilton’s Kenny Lawler on Thursday. Coxie is averaging 96.8 yards and has put up 145 and 187 in his last two games.
2. BETTER ON SPECIAL TEAMS
Toronto fell victim to a pair of return touchdowns by Winnipeg’s Trey Vaval last week on a punt and kickoff. While they’ll miss return man Devonte Dedmon this week, Kalil Pimpleton still can do damage when given open space. It’s the Argos’ special teams’ job to make sure quarterback Dru Brown starts his drives in less than favourable field positions.
3. THE RUN GAME
The Argos rushed for eight yards on five carries against the Blue Bombers last week, a total that has to be unacceptable to head coach Ryan Dinwiddie. Given quarterback Nick Arbuckle is giving his team a chance in the pass game, Deonta McMahon and Khalan Laborn need to find a way to do the same on the ground.
NEED TO KNOW:
- It’s the final matchup of the season between the Ontario rivals.
Watch live. Ottawa REDBLACKS @ Toronto Argonauts, Aug. 9, 21:00 CET (9 pm, 3 pm ET)
