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René Paredes nails 52-yarder in extra session to give Calgary big CFL win over reigning West champs
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It’s not just that they celebrated a win Saturday night.
It’s that the Calgary Stampeders won a tight tilt.
And it came against the reigning CFL West Division-champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
In overtime, to boot.
Plenty of reasons for fist-pumps and high-fives, after René Paredes booted the winning points in OT on a field goal — his fourth of Saturday’s CFL contest in front of 22,386 fans at McMahon Stadium.
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“It meant a lot,” said Parades, moments after the 52-yarder he hit won the game for the host Stampeders 22-19.
“We lost six games in a row against them,” continued the clutch kicker. “All week, we talked about how we’ve got to get that momentum back against them … So this win is huge. Hopefully, it gets us going for the rest of the season.”
At 2-1 after this one, the Stampeders are, indeed, going in the right direction.
Wins over enemies who’ve mostly lived high the last few years in the CFL — the Bombers, even though they’re somehow 0-4 to start 2024, and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats — give them even more reason to believe they can turn a good start into a winning season.
“Yeah … it feels amazing — it does,” said Stamps QB Jake Maier. “Not just because we beat Winnipeg.
“I think for me, it’s great to be on this side of things of an overtime game. Last couple years, we haven’t had our way in overtime games, and it just feels amazing to be on the right side of it.”
Especially since this Week 4 affair was a fist-fight.
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“It just feels good to be on the other end of a game like that, because we’ve played these guys a lot and every game is kind of that 19-18 game,” said Stamps GM/head coach Dave Dickenson. “It’s just every game with them is field-goals and a mistake or two changes the tide. Both really physical teams — scrappy teams — playing hard.
“I mean … I’m sure they’re looking at the film and saying, ‘Man, this play or that play, and we win the game,’” continued Dickenson. “And that’s how we’ve felt for many games against them.”
Certainly this one wasn’t pretty — just one touchdown for each team on the game, and those didn’t arrive until the fourth quarter.
The Bombers threatened to get another in overtime, but the Stamps’ defence snuffed it out. Malcolm Thompson blitzed from his safety spot and hurried Bombers QB Chris Streveler, who flung a wayward pass into the end zone that was easily picked off by former Bombers ball-hawk Demerio Houston.
That set the Red and White up for a chance to win it, even though a blindside block on Houston’s interception return pushed the Stamps back 15 yards to the Bombers’ 50-yard line to start their OT opportunity.
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Three plays later, Paredes was true with his long-bomb wind-aided kick. He also connected on field-goals in regulation from 47, 26 and 43 yards to finish a perfect 4-for-4 in the affair.
“It’s amazing,” Maier said. “As soon as ’Spoon’ got the interception in overtime, I knew that we had it just because I have that much faith in René, as does everybody. Even when we got backed up to the 50, it didn’t matter.
“You just go out and get a few more yards, and René is going to knock it through.”
It helped that Bombers QB Zach Collaros — a three-time Grey Cup champ and two-time league Most Outstanding Player — got knocked out of the game in the second quarter after getting hit hard by Josiah Coatney.
The defensive lineman was among a handful of unheralded Stamps making big plays, especially in stopping the Blue Bombers usually vaunted offence.
Fellow d-lineman Clarence Hicks — who? — had two huge highlights, with a first-quarter INT and a hustle play for a third-down tackle to halt the driving Bombers late.
And Thompson proved pivotal in his start at safety, after Bentlee Sanders was sidelined by injury.
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“We answered the bell,” said Dickenson, of his defence. “Physically, we stopped the run. The guys were flying around and played physical. You know … with defence — to be honest — it’s amazing how good you can be if no one worries about who gets the credit, and that’s really a model that I think the best defences have. Just let’s play together and play as a unit, and let’s all 12 of us play hard.
“And guys made some plays.”
On offence, it was Marken Michel making plays, as he nabbed nine passes — including the Stamps’ only TD of the tilt.
That came with just 12 minutes remaining on the clock, when Maier found the veteran receiver wide open just inside the endzone for the six-yard score and an 18-9 lead.
“I’m just proud of the mental toughness that the group had,” said Maier, who was 28-of-43 for 239 yards with one TD and one INT. “That team made it extremely difficult on us on every phase of the game. And that’s why they’re — what? — three-, four-time Western champions the last five years, right? So they make it extremely difficult on you.”
That’s why this one feels so good.
“You need to be rewarded sometimes, and we earned it,” added Dickenson. “We earned the win, I think. But you need to be rewarded and you need to feel like if I’m gonna lay my body on the line and put that out there, I’d like to — at least at the end of the day — come out with a win.
“I thought we were the better team, even though it was back and forth. I do think it was close, and we made one more play than them.”
tsaelhof@postmedia.com
http://www.x.com/ToddSaelhofPM
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