EDMONTON – Labour Day week belongs to Edmonton.
The Elks ran all over the Calgary Stampeders for a 37-16 victory on Saturday night, completing the Labour Day weekend sweep for the first time since 2004. The Elks surging defence and rampant run game was the story of the night. Edmonton, courtesy of their three-headed monster running back room, galloped for 213 yards on 29 carries with Kevin Brown leading the way with 91 yards on 12 rushes.
On defence, the Elks topped their four interception performance on Monday, with five against Stampeders rookie quarterback Logan Bonner. Devodric Bynum led the way, nabbing a pair of picks to up his team lead to five in a sensational rookie campaign.
“Can’t say enough about those guys,” Head coach Jarious Jackson said about his defence. “I gave a game ball to the entire defense. You talk about 10+ turnovers in two games. You know, we keep playing lights out like that and we’re going to be tough to beat.”
The victory give the Elks the season series against the Stampeders and also brings them to within single point away from a playoff spot in the Western Division.
“I think it’s awesome for this organization,” Eugene Lewis said about the victory. “I think it’s awesome for these fans. I think it’s awesome for us. I think it’s a beautiful thing. It’s a big rivalry, obviously. This is bragging rights, and it’s huge. So this is something that we want to accomplish, and we believed it, so we know that we could do it.”
The Elks now head on a bye week with a chance to refresh before a pivotal back-to-back series against the West leading Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
“We’re taking it one game at a time,” Jackson said. “I want the guys to go get away from football for a few days, enjoy themselves. But like I told them, let’s not lose the momentum and what we have right now.
“Let’s stay focused on the prize at hand and let’s continue to take it one game at a time.”
GAMEDAY ESSENTIALS Game Highlights Box Score Game Preview Post-Game Interviews UNSTOPPABLE-OFor the fourth time in the last five games, the Elks league leading offence racked up at least 30 points, pushing their season total up to 385 (29.6 points-per game).
Over that stretch, the offence has been as versatile as it has been effective. The Jarious Jackson led crew has leaned on two different quarterbacks and three different running backs, with much of the same results. They have been able to keep opposing defences off balance with their versatility, whether it’s 486 yards through the air last week, or 276 yards on the ground like they accomplished in Week 9 against the Roughriders. According to coach Jackson, it has been the men upfront who do the dirty work that have been a real catalyst to the offensive resurgence.
“We’ve got seven linemen that dress every week and those guys look to road grate people so I keep calling runs for them,: Jackson said. “I think KB might have had 12 totes, Leake had about 10, I want to say Rankin had a few. Whether feast or famine, we keep handing it off and letting those guys be as physical as they want to be. I love seeing defensive guys hands on their knees when it comes to the second or third quarter, I love seeing that. Just letting those guys be physical takes away from the D-lineman’s rush when we want to pass the ball.”
Eugene Lewis was his usual self, hauling in six of his 10 targets for 97 yards and a touchdown on the night, and hyping up a packed and rowdy 32,144 fans in Commonwealth Stadium.
“Our goal in offense is to score as many points as we possibly can to help our defense, and put them in the best position to be successful,” Lewis said. “We need to go out on every drive and believe that we gonna score. That’s how I go out each and every drive. I believe in everybody. I believe in the guys next to me. They believe in us, and I always got their back. We just got to keep taking it one game at a time and just keep winning and putting ourselves in the best position.”
THEY SAIDHead Coach Jarious Jackson on the fan support
“Yeah, that’s awesome, man. I wish it was like that all the time. I mean, I know how it gets when you’re losing. Who really wants to be around that, right? But when you’re winning, when you’re bringing excitement to the game and, everybody wants to show up in support and I’m all for it.”
Jackson on sweeping Labour Day week
“Feels great, man. The biggest part for me is I had the guys energy, their effort, and focus for three and a half hours. We’re getting ready to head to a bye week, and sometimes that can be tough when you head to a bye, because guys minds can be somewhere else — especially the type of season we’ve been having. To turn around in these last five, six games and be where we are, it’s pretty exciting.”
Jackson on the play of kicker Boris Bede in his return to the lineup
“Very, very proud of Boris. Like, you know, he really focused on his technique and what he needed to get done. I think he was 100% tonight on field goals and PAT’s, so I can’t say enough about him.”
Eugene Lewis on his solid performance
Just getting opportunities. Like, for me, I’m the type of person, you gotta take advantage of your opportunities when they come, because at receiver, you don’t know how many balls you’re gonna get a game, so you better take advantage of the big plays. And that’s what I kinda, you know, for myself. I had myself at a high standard when it comes to big plays and making big plays. Like, I try to translate it from practice to the games, and that’s really what I do.
