Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/536655
WINNIPEG FREE PRESS THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2015 HOME GAME PLAYBOOK 3
H
istory wrote a different story
during the 2014 campaign,
but the Bombers' Week 6
win over the Ti-Cats was
just as improbable as the 5-1
record they held following it.
Willy-Peg was at its peak following a final
drive touchdown that gave the Bombers
a 27-26 victory.
The former Saskatchewan Roughrider
pivot finished the game with 361 passing
yards and the touchdown that iced it.
Fast forward just over 11 months and the
Blue Bombers, led by Drew Willy once
again, will have a chance to avenge a late
season 16-11 loss last year and a 25-16
preseason loss a few weeks ago.
A force on the ground and through the
air, running back Nic Grigsby may be
looking to recreate his combined 119-
yard, two touchdown outing last July.
But this time he will be looking to do it
from the other side of the fence.
Providing he returns from injury – the
second year tailback missed the Ti-Cats
first game of the season last week –
Grigsby will be fired up to stick it to the
team who cut him with just a few weeks
left in the 2014 season.
If Grigsby is unable to go, Ray Holley,
who put in a solid 40 yards on eight
carries, including a touchdown, in the Ti-
Cats preseason win against the Bombers,
figures to start at running back.
The Bombers are the least
CFL-experienced team this
season with an average
of 2.20 years played.
Winnipeg also has the
fewest players with
six or more years in
the league and is
fourth in players with one or less seasons
played with 28. The Bombers have 13
first-year players on their roster.
Winnipeg recorded a 5-3 record against
East Division teams in 2014. Against the
West Division, however, the Bombers
were a dismal 2-8.
If the Bombers hope to hoist the Grey Cup
at home in late November, improving
their home record will be a must.
Winnipeg won just three times in nine
games at Investors Group Field in 2014.
For the Ti-Cats, winning away from home
will be equally as vital. Hamilton was 2-7
away from Tim Hortons Field in 2014, a
number that bodes well for the Bombers'
chances tonight.
Since 2008, the Bombers and the Ti-Cats
have split their 22 games played right
down the middle, each holding 11 wins
and 11 losses. Hamilton is up on the
overall points for and against, scoring
597 while allowing 548.
The Ti-Cats will be looking to make it
three Grey Cup appearances in a row this
season. The last time they achieved the
feat was in 1965. ❚
The last time the Winnipeg Blue
Bombers beat the Hamilton
Tiger-Cats, fans in Winnipeg
were thinking, "Could this
team go all the way?"
Get In
the Zone
Roster
Roundup
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