Tiger-Cats thump Alouettes 29-15, winning division and knocking Argonauts out of the postseason

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats entered Saturday with a chance of being left outside of the postseason entirely, but they left it with a 29-15 win over the Montreal Alouettes that gave them not only a playoff berth, but also first place in the division. It was important for Hamilton to not just win, but win big, as a victory by seven points or less would have left them in second place; the Tiger-Cats lived up to that challenge, though, building an 11-6 lead by half and outscoring the Alouettes 18-9 the rest of the way, with 15 points in the fourth quarter. In the process, the Tiger-Cats won their first division title since 1998, improved their record at Tim Hortons Field to 6-0, and left their Southern Ontario rivals from Toronto on the outside of the postseason looking in.

A big part of this victory came from the efficient arm of quarterback Zach Collaros, who threw for just 207 yards but completed 71.4 per cent of his passes with one touchdown and one interception. (He did also have two fumbles, but he only lost one.) Hamilton also got a big boost on the ground from Nic Grigsby, who was released by Winnipeg earlier this season. On the day, Grigsby collected 93 rushing yards and a touchdown on 19 carries (giving him a decent average of 4.9 yards per carry) and added two catches for 13 yards.

The Tiger-Cats' defence also stood tall Saturday. Beyond allowing only 15 points, they were able to shut down the Montreal rushing game almost completely (running back Tyrell Sutton had just five yards on five carries), and they held Alouettes' quarterback Jonathon Crompton to a 51.4 per cent completion rate. Crompton did throw for 284 yards and a touchdown, but Hamilton was able to limit the damage he did.  Key performers there were linebacker Simoni Lawrence (recently voted the league's top trash talker), who had eight tackles, and defensive end Eric Norwood, who had three tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

With the win, the Tiger-Cats now have a crucial first-round bye. They'll wait until Nov. 23 to take on the victor between Montreal and the team that crosses over from the West Division. That could be a substantial boon for Hamilton, giving them time to rest and heal. The break itself could be a valuable one, letting the Alouettes or the Western team wear themselves out ahead of the East Final. Perhaps even more importantly, though, the Tiger-Cats will now get to play that final on home turf. With their record at Tim Hortons Field standing at 6-0 so far, that could be a very difficult challenge for the visiting team.