The Toronto Argonauts home opener and championship banner unveiling was spoiled by the visiting Calgary Stampeders as they took a 29-19 victory at BMO Field on Saturday afternoon.
Vernon Adams Jr. threw for 301 yards and completed 17 of 25 passes, and rushed in for one score, while Dedrick Mills rushed in one touchdown as well. Jalen Philpot caught six passes for 117 yards in the win.
Nick Arbuckle threw for 309 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in the win with Damonte Coxie recording 98 yards and a touchdown in the loss.
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The Stampeders started the game on a sour note as they had to continue play without wide receiver Reggie Begelton as he was carried off the field by teammates after suffering an apparent lower-body injury.
Wynton McManis and the Argos defence asserted their dominance early as he recorded a massive sack within the first five minutes of the first quarter.
Toronto attempted a 42-yard field goal with just under two minutes to play in the opening frame, but settled for a rouge to put the first points of the afternoon on the board.
Calgary swung momentum on their side as Adams Jr. found Dominique Rhymes for 35 yards, but an Andrew Chatfield sack on the next play forced a second and long, and on third down the Stamps’ field goal attempt from 47 yards out went wide left.
Once again attempting to get momentum on their side, the Argos defence seemed stifling as Adams Jr. took another sack at 11:34 in second quarter by D.Christmas, but Calgary finally took the lead as a Rene Paredes field goal attempt from 46 yards out was good.
Just over three minutes later, the Stamps would extend that newfound lead as Adrian Greene nabbed a pick-six off Arbuckle and ran it back 40 yards for a touchdown.
After Arbuckle took another sack with just over three minutes to play, and was once again intercepted by Greene, the Stampeders defence clearly applied the heat to the reigning Grey Cup champions.
Lirim Hajrullahu successfully kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired, but the Stamps seemed in control as they took a 9-4 lead into the half.
Continuing that first half momentum, the Stamps were the first to put points on the board in the second half as Paredes put another field goal attempt through the uprights, this time from 23 yards out.
Toronto responded on the next drive with a rouge after an 83-yard punt from John Haggerty, and closed the gap even further as their next offensive drive ended in a Hajrullahu field goal from 45 yards out to cut the gap to four.
However, Calgary moved fast to keep their lead in the fourth quarter as Adams Jr. found Rhymes once again for 37 yards before Dedrick Mills rushed in the one-yard score.
In need of a score to keep up with the Stamps, Toronto once again relied on Hajrullahu to put points on the board for them, this time knocking in a field goal attempt from 47 yards out with just under 10 minutes to play.
The back and forth action of the fourth quarter continued, first with Jalen Philpot catching a 40-yard reception that resulted in an Adams Jr. rush for eight yards and a touchdown, but on the next drive Arbuckle found Damonte Coxie for 46 yards and the Argos’ first touchdown of the day.
Calgary hit an insurance field goal with just over a minute to play from 22 yards out to be the final score of the day.
The Argonauts play at home once again hosting the Saskatchewan Roughriders at 7:30 p.m. ET at BMO Field on June 20, while the Stampeders host the Ottawa REDBLACKS in Week 3 action at McMahon Stadium on June 21 at 4:00 p.m. ET.