Bombers Take Banjo Bowl, 26-21 Over Roughriders

Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros credited the raucous Banjo Bowl crowd for giving the Blue Bombers the edge they needed to tough out another close victory.

“It’s huge,” he said. “Just the adrenalin you get from it.”

Collaros completed 24 of 31 passes for 231 yards, including a six-yarder to Kenny Lawler, and placekicker Sergio Castillo booted four field goals as the Winnipeg Bombers defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders 26-21 on Saturday in Banjo Bowl XX.

The victory moved the Bombers into a share of top spot in the CFL’s West Division with the B.C. Lions — the Bombers won the season series against the Lions — while the Roughriders remain in third after failing to win for a seventh straight outing (0-6-1).

It was Winnipeg’s second straight win over the Riders.

“We talked about it earlier in the week, how hard it is to win back-to-back games against a single opponent,” said Bombers running back Brady Oliveira, who was held to 43 yards on 11 carries.

“Labour Day, Banjo Bowl, the atmosphere of both of these games, how big they are. It’s challenging, man. It’s challenging to win both of those games back-to-back. We executed the plays when they were called. It was another close one, but we fought, man. We fought hard and came out with the ‘W.’”

Backup quarterback Chris Streveler also scored a major on a two-yard run before he was knocked out of the game as the result of a roughing-the-quarterback penalty on Saskatchewan defensive end Miles Brown. Streveler was seen on crutches after the game.

Castillo kicked field goals of 46, 25, 35 and 39 yards to go along with a pair of converts. 

Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea picked up his club-record 103rd victory, passing Bud Grant, in front of a sellout crowd of 32,343 at Princess Auto Stadium.

“I think the statue is starting soon,” Collaros said, referring to the possibility of an O’Shea statue joining the one of Grant outside of the stadium.

“There’s just so many people that have been here for a huge chunk of it, that make it very easy every single day, not only to be successful but just to come to work every single day,” O’Shea said. “My wife’s standing right there. My family’s been there for all of it. The 60-something losses, that they feel, too. It is what it is.

“Over time, these numbers just add up. But I don’t think we’re a numbers-based team. We’re a process-based team and we’ve got a room, a whole basement full of people that are all-in on the process. And the outcomes, they just happen.”

Saskatchewan quarterback Trevor Harris completed 21 of 33 passes for 287 yards, including TD tosses of nine yards to KeeSean Johnson and eight to Samuel Emilus, with two picks.

It was Saskatchewan’s second straight loss to the Bombers after dropping a 35-33 decision in Regina last week.

“It’s just frustrating because last week’s was a winnable game, this was a winnable game,” Harris said. “The fact that we didn’t win is frustrating.

” … It gets tiring saying the same things every week with the close losses. It’s frustrating saying it out loud, let alone probably hearing it. It’s just one of those things where we’ve just got to look in the mirror and take this bye week and find a way to get better and make sure we put ourselves in better situations.

“It was a tough one. This was a winnable game but that’s a good defence. Hats off to them, that’s a good football team. They’re playing good football and that’s a tough defence to play against. Maybe we’ll see them again (in the playoffs).”

Brett Lauther kicked field goals of 50 and 35 yards, while punter Adam Korsak added a 68-yard single.

“Every time it’s a close game and you lose, it’s always tough to swallow,” said Emilus, who caught four passes for 66 yards. “I guess we’ve just got to find a way to be better. We’ve got to limit our mistakes. We’ve been in every game and if we take even just one mistake away, we might get that victory. So, we’ve just got to keep pushing and raise those levels.”

Saskatchewan had taken a 17-13 lead on the Emilus TD early in the second half, but the Bombers fought back to take a 23-18 lead on the Lawler major. After another Lauther field goal, Castillo connected on a 39-yarder to give Winnipeg a 26-21 lead with 1:05 left in the game. Tyrell Ford’s second interception of the game snuffed out Saskatchewan’s last-ditch drive.

BLINK HONOURED 

Charles (Blink) Roberts, Winnipeg’s all-time leading rusher, was officially added to the Blue Bombers Ring of Honour during a halftime ceremony. 

“They appreciate my time here and I’m just happy to be here,” the CFL Hall-of-Famer said before the game. “I regret not getting the Grey Cup when I was playing. They went on a successful run here after I left … I wish we had been able to get the Grey Cup here sooner, but better late than never.”

With Roberts at running back, the Bombers lost both the 2002 and 2007 Grey Cup games. 

Roberts said he was the most proud of his six 1,000-yard rushing seasons and making his mark on special teams early in his career 

UP NEXT 

Bombers: On their second bye week before returning to play the Elks in Edmonton on Sept. 21. 

Roughriders: On a bye week before returning to take on the Stampeders in Calgary on Sept. 20. 

(Canadian Press)