Ottawa Redblacks’ quarterback Tyrie Adams was the hero in his first CFL win, throwing for 185 yards and one touchdown in Ottawa’s 26-7 demolition of the Edmonton Elks.
Edmonton Elks, 7. Ottawa Redblacks, 26!
Miracles do come true.
Just ahead of Canada Day weekend in the capital, the Ottawa Redblacks won their first home game since Sept. 28, 2021, and only their second win in their last 27 games at TD Place.
Coming off their bye week, the Redblacks looked rejuvenated and were in complete control from start to finish. Ottawa dominated the struggling Elks both offensively and defensively. The win was never in doubt.
The Elks remain winless and fall to 0-4 on the season; Ottawa improves to 1-2.
In his first career Canadian Football League start, Redblacks’ quarterback Tyrie Adams was the hero and played superbly en route to his first CFL win. He completed 14 of 20 passes for 185 yards and one touchdown pass. He added 31 yards on the ground and was the team’s lynchpin.
In fact, Ottawa’s last home win, which came against the Elks nearly two years ago also saw another Redblacks quarterback getting his first CFL win in his first professional start.
‘I’m overwhelmed with enjoyment. We got the win, we did what we were supposed to do.’
— Tyrie Adams, quarterback, Ottawa Redblacks
Caleb Evans was the difference that night, completing 15 of his 22 passes for 191 yards and three touchdowns; he also recorded 59 yards on the ground.
In Ottawa’s two losses this season against the Montreal Alouettes and Calgary Stampeders, the Redblacks had given up five interceptions, nine turnovers (six against Montreal alone) and gained only 96 rushing yards.
In those games, the Redblacks had tried to utilize the passing game to open up the running game, which didn’t work and resulted in quarterback Nick Arbuckle holding onto the ball too long, which resulted in a sack or fumble, or making a risky pass downfield, which often resulted in throwing an interception.
Arbuckle accounted for four of Ottawa’s five interceptions against Montreal and Calgary; Adams threw one against the Stampeders after Arbuckle was pulled.
Against the Elks, the Redblacks protected the ball and didn’t record a single turnover. Ottawa also amassed an impressive 208 yards on the ground — more than double the output from their two previous games combined.
De’Montre Tuggle was the workhorse in the backfield, rushing for 126 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries.
Ottawa’s success on the ground forced Edmonton’s defence to send reinforcements closer to the line of scrimmage to attempt to stop the run. That opened up spaces downfield for the Redblacks’ receivers to make big plays against one-on-one coverage.
The Redblacks’ excellent use of play-action passes combined with Adams’ speed and agility — which make him a threat to scramble outside of the pocket and take off for good yardage — were critical in opening up holes in Edmonton’s secondary. The strategy built momentum and kept the sticks moving to sustain offensive drives.
‘I’m happy to win and I’m happy for the team to win. It’s icing on the cake that we did it here in front of our fans; they got to see us win and they’re going to see more of that in the future.’
— Bob Dyce, head coach, Ottawa Redblacks
Adams’ 54-yard play-action screen pass for a touchdown to wide receiver Marco Dubois — who tip-toed down the sideline after securing the catch — was set up by strong running from Tuggle, who had 40 yards in the first quarter, and former uOttawa GeeGee Jackson Bennett earlier in the possession.
Tuggle said the running backs have really taken the team’s struggles to heart and worked very hard in practice this week to ensure they have a great game.
“As running backs, we challenged ourselves: How could we be better, how could we be a spark for the offence? I really took that personally, we all did,” he said.
Dubois’ first career CFL touchdown catch put the Redblacks up 10-0 late in the first quarter after kicker Lewis Ward got the Redblacks on the board with the first of his four field goals of the night. Ward has made 10 of his 11 field goal attempts this year.
The Redblacks’ tireless rushing attack wore out the Elks’ defense and as the game went on, Ottawa had more and more space to run to. And after the Elks got a touchdown back to cut Ottawa’s lead to 16-6, the Redblacks drove down the field two times using the run game and Tuggle sealed the victory with a nine-yard TD dash after he’d set up a field goal on the previous drive.
The Redblacks’ defence was top-notch. They held the Elks to only seven points, just 273 yards of offense (including a mere 62 yards in the first half), and forced three pivotal interceptions to give Ottawa’s offense the ball with great field position.
The Redblacks’ defensive line also dominated in the trenches and won the battle against Edmonton’s offensive line. They pressured Elks’ rookie QB Jarrett Doege all game, forcing him to make several mistakes, turn the ball over and succumb to sacks four times.
The Redblacks’ defence recorded two sacks and two interceptions near their own end zone, which pushed the Elks out of field goal range and otherwise prevented Edmonton from putting points on the board.
Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce was relieved to get the win.
“I’m happy to win and I’m happy for the team to win,” Dyce said in a post-game press conference. “It’s icing on the cake that we did it here in front of our fans; they got to see us win and they’re going to see more of that in the future.”
Regarding the team’s recent struggles at home, Dyce added: “We don’t wear the past home losses. This is our team; it’s the 2023 Redblacks. It’s good to (win), but now we get focused to go into Hamilton.”
Dyce said the Redblacks were frustrated with the 0-2 start, but he told the team if they played tough, smart football on offense, defense, and special teams, they could beat anybody.
Adams was fired up after his first career win and the team’s first home win in 640 days.
“I’m overwhelmed with enjoyment,” said Adams. “We got the win, we did what we were supposed to do. Shout-out to the O-line, shout-out to the running backs, shout-out to (offensive co-ordinator) Khari (Jones).”
Next up for the Redblacks: a trip to Hamilton to play the winless Tiger-Cats and possibly earn back-to-back wins for the first time since September 2022.
