Ticats.ca Staff
Week two of CFL action will feature the Tiger-Cats traveling to Commonwealth Stadium to take on the Edmonton Eskimos on Friday night at 10 p.m. (TSN /AM900 CHML).
The Tiger-Cats look to bounce back and build some momentum heading into the bye week with a win in Edmonton, after dropping their season opener against Saskatchewan last Sunday. On the other side of the field, the Edmonton Eskimos will host their first home game of the season this week, coming off a 27-20 come-from-behind victory over the B.C. Lions in week one.
TIGER-CATS HISTORY vs. EDMONTON
The 2013 season series between these two teams featured each club earning a win to split the series 1-1. Last year’s visit to Commonwealth Stadium saw the Black and Gold come away with a narrow 30-29 victory. Here’s a look at the history between the Tiger-Cats and Eskimos…
| WINS | LOSSES | TIES | PTS FOR | PTS AGAINST | |
| ALL-TIME | 30 | 54 | 1 | 1,906 | 2,205 |
| LAST 10 (TOTAL) | 4 | 6 | 0 | 283 | 268 |
| LAST 10 (vs. EDM on the road) | 2 | 8 | 0 | 255 | 322 |
| IN 2013: | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50 | 59 |
HEAD-TO-HEAD
| BRIAN BULCKE & TED LAURENT TICATS DEFENSIVE TACKLES |
OFFENSIVE LINE EDMONTON ESKIMOS |
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The Tiger-Cats defensive line is anchored by a pair of Canadians at defensive tackles, Brian Bulcke and former Eskimo Ted Laurent. Bulcke, the Tiger-Cats Most Outstanding Canadian and Defensive Player in 2013, had a career-high 24 tackles and three sacks in 2013. In the Tiger-Cats two games vs. Edmonton last season, Bulcke registered four tackles and a sack. Laurent, who made his Tiger-Cats debut vs. Saskatchewan last week, will make his first return the familiar grounds of Commonwealth Stadium on Friday night vs the Eskimos. The 2012 West Division All-Star posted 73 tackles and 11 quarterback sacks in three seasons with the Eskimos. |
The 2013 off-season saw the Edmonton Eskimos make key upgrades to their offensive line. CFL veterans Tony Washington (trade) and Andrew Jones (free agent) are both familiar with Eskimos offensive coordinator Stephen McAdoo after spending two seasons with him in Toronto. In the Esks week 1 win vs. B.C., Edmonton’s offensive line provided valuable time for quarterback Mike Reilly to go through his progressions and find seven different targets for a total of 251 yards and three touchdowns. Additonally, the Esks offence had success on first down as 212 of their 295 yards came on first down with an average of 6.4 yards per play. When the Esks decided to pass on first down they averaged 7.2 yards per pass. |
EDMONTON CONNECTION
Plenty of Tiger-Cats have direct ties to the Edmonton Eskimos organization, including these six players who will suit up on Friday…
PLAYERS TO WATCH
LB Simoni Lawrence: Lawrence started the 2014 season on a high note last week in Saskatchewan, leading the Ticats defence with eight defensive tackles last week. Lawrence missed both of the Tiger-Cats regular season games vs. Edmonton in 2013 so Friday night will be his first opportunity to suit up against his old squad since arriving in Hamilton
WR Bakari Grant: In the Tiger-Cats two regular season games vs. Edmonton last season, Bakari Grant recorded a total of nine catches for 129 yards, an average of 14.3 yards per catch. In the Ticats season opener on Sunday, Grant hauled in four catches.
DE Brandon Thurmond: Rookie Brandon Thurmond will get his first official taste of CFL action on Friday night in Edmonton. The former Arkansas Pine-Bluff product registered four tackles and a sack in the Ticats pre-season opener vs. Montreal.
GAME NOTES
- Prior to this season, the Tiger-Cats have NEVER started a season with consecutive road games. The Ticats will begin this year with three straight trips out west, with a week 4 visit to Calgary on tap following next week’s bye. They last started their schedule with two western opponents in 2012, and way back in 2004 before that.
- Last season under Coach Austin, the Ticats suffered three losses by 20+ points as they did last week at Regina. On two of those three occasions, they came right back and won their next game. Most recently: October 20 & October 26, 2013 (lost by 31, then won by 3 vs Montreal). Hamilton lost by 24 to Calgary on September 24, 2013, and then won the next week over Toronto 33-19.
- After falling behind early and 24-1 at half, Hamilton gradually worked their way back to form last week. In the second half they allowed Saskatchewan only 91 yards of net offence and forced five 2-and-outs.
- In six career games vs. the Edmonton Eskimos, Ticats K/P Justin Medlock has hit 9-of-10 field goal attempts (90%) with a long of 46 yards.
- Ticats receiver Sam Giguere tied his career-high for receptions (6) last week vs. Saskatchewan. Giguere led all Ticats receivers with six catches for 90 yards in his last game vs. Edmonton at Commonwealth Stadium.
