November 2, 2011

Head to Head: Tiger-Cats at Argonauts

THE CANADIAN PRESS

Hamilton Tiger-Cats (8-9) at Toronto Argonauts (5-12)
Game 18 | Thursday, November 3 @ 7:30 p.m. EST
Rogers Centre – Toronto, Ontario

BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV BROADCAST:  TSN featuring Rod Black (play-by-play) and Duane Forde (analyst)
RADIO BROADCAST:  AM 900 CHML featuring Rick Zamperin (play-by-play) and John Salavantis (analyst)

THE MATCH-UP

Thursday’s game will be the third and final meeting between the Tiger-Cats and Argonauts. The match-up will be the 211th meeting between the two clubs since 1950. Hamilton holds the edge in the all-time series, 121-86-2. The Ticats have won six straight and eight of their last 11 games against the Argos. The last time the two teams met was at Rogers Centre on October 1, when Hamilton earned a 27-12 victory. The Ticats are coming into this game after suffering a 19-3 loss to Saskatchewan in Regina last Saturday. Another solid performance was put forth by the Hamilton defence, but the offence left room for improvement. The last regular season game, against the Argos, will provide a chance for the offence to get back into a rhythm and have a full head of steam heading into the post-season. 

                                                       2011 STATISTICAL RANKINGS
                                                            

                                                            HAMILTON                                                TORONTO         

Total Offence Per Game                 340 (6th)                                        318.5 (8th)  

Rushing Offence Per Game              91.2 (8th)                                       126.4 (1st)      

Passing Offence Per Game              262.5 (5th)                                      209.1 (8th)              

Total Defence Per Game                 378.1 (7th)                                      427 (8th)         

Rushing Defence Per Game             117.3 (7th)                                      140.4 (8th)

Passing Defence Per Game              279.9 (6th)                                     299.7 (8th)

Points Per Game                            27.4 (4th)                                       21.4 (7th)

Opponents Points Per Game             26.2 (5th)                                       28.4 (8th)

                                                                          

                                                    2011 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS LEADERS
                                                                                         
K. Glenn:  293/469, 3813 yds, 19 TD, 17 INT                                                S. Jyles: 124/218, 1636, 7 TD, 4 INT 

A. Cobourne:  194-961 yds, 8 TD                                                                C. Boyd:  169-1036 yds, 5 TD

C. Williams:  65-1012 yds, 6 TD                                                                   C. Owens:  70-772 yds

R. Williams:  91 tackles                                                                              L. Shell:  94 tackles

J. Hickman:  12 sacks                                                                                K. Huntley:  6 sacks

                                                                                                                

                                                                  PLAYERS TO WATCH
Daniel Porter # 23/ RB / Hamilton

Porter will see his first action as a Tiger-Cat, getting the start while Avon Cobourne takes a rest before the playoffs. Number 23 has a career average of 6.1 yards per carry and he can also catch the football out of the backfield. Look for Porter to put up some solid numbers and help get Hamilton’s rushing game on track going into the playoffs.    

Cory Boyd # 3 / RB / Toronto 
Over the final part of the season, Boyd has caught fire and has eclipsed the 1,000 yard rushing mark for the second-straight season. Offensively, it all begins with the bruising running back for Toronto. Boyd is a workhorse back who likes to get a lot of carries. Hamilton must shut down number three and limit the CFL’s number one rushing attack.

 
KEY MATCH-UP
Hamilton’s secondary vs. Maurice Mann
Mann will face his former team for the first time since being traded in early October. He would surely like to show the Ticats what they lost when they decided to part ways, but the Tiger-Cats secondary has played at a high level in their last couple of ball games and know Mann’s tendencies from seeing him in practice over the last couple of seasons before he left the Steel City. The Tiger-Cats defensive backfield will be especially focused on shutting down what will be a fired up number 86.