In nearly six quarters since star quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell went down July 5 with a broken ankle, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats have managed a grand total of seven points.
Two field goals and a rouge are all this once-potent offense has scored in Mitchell’s absence. Little wonder, then, that Hamilton coach Scott Milanovich has settled on a new starting quarterback for Saturday night’s home contest against the Toronto Argonauts.
Former Edmonton starter Tre Ford will get the start Saturday night after coming in late Sunday for Jake Dolegala, who completed 17 of 30 passes for only 122 yards and an interception while being sacked twice versus the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Ford isn’t the precision passer Mitchell is, but, unlike the slow-footed Dolegala, he can make big plays with his feet, which could provide a spark the offense desperately needs.
“Obviously, Tre has a different skill set that we’re going to try to utilize this week,” Milanovich said. “He’s got to protect the ball first and foremost. And when they want to play coverage and things aren’t open, he’s got to create with his legs and God-given talent.”
While Hamilton (2-3) tries to create a new identity on offense, Toronto (2-3) has its own problems to work through. The Argonauts fell 30-21 on July 10 in Winnipeg despite 320 passing yards and two touchdowns from Chad Kelly.
Kelly has thrown for a league-high 1,804 yards through five games, but he has also had issues with turnovers. That’s put pressure on a defense that has allowed 36.6 points per contest.
One of the beneficiaries of Kelly’s season-opening surge has been receiver Dave Ungerer III, who’s on pace to shatter his career bests across the board. He already has 25 catches for 330 yards and three scores, which puts him on pace to grab 90 passes. His career high was last year with 53.
Going above 1,000 yards for the season would mean a lot to Ungerer.
“I’ve always felt it’s a symbol of consistency,” he said.
This is the first of three matchups between these teams over the next eight weeks.
–Field Level Media
