West no longer a two-horse race Stamps in the mix after dominant win over Bombers CFL Rundown
By: Jeff Hamilton Posted: 1:41 PM CDT Wednesday, Jul. 9, 2025

While Week 5 in the Canadian Football League delivered some incredible action, it was impossible to ignore the ugly incident that marred the otherwise exciting finish between the B.C. Lions and Montreal Alouettes.

The focus should have been on a nail-biting one-point decision for the Lions, capped by a game-winning field goal with zeroes on the clock. Instead, it was overshadowed by a bizarre and violent post-game melee near the Alouettes’ locker room — reportedly sparked by B.C.’s Kemoko Turay and Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund from Montreal — involving several players and several punches thrown.

Simply put, this is a black eye for the CFL. There’s no place for this in professional sports, especially not in a league that prides itself on sportsmanship and community connection.

To their credit, the CFL has recognized the seriousness of these actions, particularly when it comes to head shots.

They’ve recently vowed to crack down on violators, including stiffening rules this season for offenders caught throwing punches — even those that don’t connect. For those that do, regardless of whether it’s an open hand or closed fist, it’s an automatic ejection.

This proactive stance was championed by the CFL and the CFL Players’ Association as vital for player safety and to maintain the integrity of the game. However, a post-game scrum like the one witnessed Saturday night directly undermines this progress.

Given the seemingly countless number of jabs and shoves that were exchanged, the league now faces a crucial test. Commissioner Stewart Johnston needs to take a hard stance against this behaviour with meaningful disciplinary action.

This isn’t just about punishing individuals; it’s about setting a clear precedent that this behaviour won’t fly. The integrity of the CFL, and the safety of its players, demands nothing less.

Now, let’s get into the latest edition of CFL Rundown.

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• Jason Maas has done an admirable job controlling his emotions since taking over as Alouettes head coach in 2023, after years of blowing a gasket as the bench boss in Edmonton. But no one would have blamed him for losing his cool following the home loss to B.C. There was a lot to be upset about: conservative play-calling on their final possession, resulting in a field goal rather than a touchdown; a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Pier-Olivier Lestage that pushed back the ensuing kickoff, giving the Lions quality field position to mount their comeback; and B.C.’s ability to move the ball downfield with relative ease in just 30 seconds to set up a 44-yard game-winning kick.
• The Alouettes have now lost both games with McLeod Bethel-Thompson in control of the offence, falling to 3-2. MBT was better this past week, but he’s still not a great Plan B, and doesn’t have anywhere close to the chemistry with receivers that Davis Alexander does. Alexander is expected to be back when Montreal returns from the bye week. With the Hamilton Tiger-Cats heating up, there might be a tighter race than expected in the East Division, making Alexander’s imminent return all the more important.
• The Calgary Stampeders’ dominant win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the inaugural Stampede Bowl has completely shifted the narrative of the West Division being a two-horse race. The 4-0 Saskatchewan Roughriders are the lone unbeaten team in the league, but the Stamps aren’t far behind, tied with the Bombers at 3-1. Calgary looked dangerous in all three phases, as quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. finally registered his first two passing touchdowns of the season. But it’s the Stamps’ defence that is going to create real fits for opposing offences — a unit that finished with two interceptions returned for touchdowns against Winnipeg, both game-deciding plays.

• Maybe I need to lighten up a bit, but I found the post-game celebrations to be a little much. They had a stage set up, and players were posing for pictures as the commissioner proclaimed Calgary “Stampede Bowl champions.” Champions? It felt too much like a Grey Cup celebration, which is a lot of hype for an event that might not even stick around. Fortunately, the Stamps won, because there’s no way a team coached by Mike O’Shea would have gotten up on that stage. Something to consider, as Winnipeg is expected to be Calgary’s opponent in the Stampede Bowl for the next few years.
• Speaking of O’Shea, there’s been some debate around whether he should have pulled quarterback Zach Collaros after his second pick-six early in the fourth quarter. The touchdown put the Stamps up a commanding 37-9 with more than 12 minutes remaining on the clock. It’s probably a good place to pull Collaros, who was clearly struggling, if only to preserve his health. It also would have given backup Chris Streveler some valuable reps. That said, having covered O’Shea’s career for the past decade, I can confidently say he never once thought about pulling Collaros, and Collaros certainly wouldn’t have wanted to come out. Still, watching Collaros scramble to make a play with minutes remaining in a four-score game felt incredibly risky.
• That was vintage Bo Levi Mitchell against the Toronto Argonauts, with the Ticats quarterback passing for 332 yards and five touchdowns, resulting in a perfect QB rating of 158.3. Just last week, Mitchell became the fastest quarterback in league history to win 100 games, and this week he became just the 11th player in the CFL to pass for 40,000 yards. Mitchell hit the milestone on a 79-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Lawler, who found the end zone three times and registered 207 receiving yards.
• It was a dominant performance by Lawler, who has performed exactly as advertised since signing in Hamilton over the off-season. There’s no doubt Friday’s performance had Bomber fans wishing Winnipeg had found the money to ink Lawler to an extension and keep him another year in blue and gold. But while Lawler has reminded fans of his ability to be a gamebreaker, the Bombers also like what they have in Keric Wheatfall and haven’t changed their stance on overpaying for a receiver.
• Congratulations to Roy Lyster, the fan who won a million dollars after two kickoffs were returned for a touchdown. Indeed, after all these years of hearing the promotion on TV, the “Million Dollar Touchdown to Win” contest has finally paid out. I’m surprised it took this long. The closest I’ve ever seen it happen was several years back, when the Bombers had a phantom holding penalty called on special teams legend Mike Miller that wiped out the opposition’s second kick-off TD of the game. When Miller’s teammates heard about it, they began calling him “Mike Milley.”

• The Elks finally got their first win of the season, so the good news is we can stop our weekly discussions about how terrible they are. Tre Ford was solid, completing his first 10 passes, finishing 15-for-17 for 212 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Running back Justin Rankin had a 45-yard receiving touchdown and a 74-yard rushing score. Javon Leake returned a punt to the house in what was the Elks’ first return TD in nearly a decade. Edmonton needed this win in a bad way; a loss could have killed their season. I still don’t love their defence, but the Elks officially have life.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca