Photo courtesy: CFL.ca
Vincent Blanchard had the busiest day ever by a kicker in CFL history, as the Edmonton Elks secured an overtime victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Week 17.
The 28-year-old was asked to line up for nine field goals and sent every single one of them through the uprights, including a 54-yarder. He connected on a 27-yarder with one second remaining to send the game to overtime, then kept the Elks alive with makes of 37 and 35 yards during the two added periods.
Edmonton ultimately prevailed 37-35 thanks to a score from Joshua Cephus during the subsequent two-point shootout. Including a successful convert, Blanchard accounted for 28 of the team’s total points scored.
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The Quebec City native’s incredible performance set a new CFL record for the most field goals made in a single game. The record was previously a five-way tie at eight between Dave Ridgeway (1984, 1988), Mark McLoughlin (1996), Paul Osbaldiston (1996), and Lirim Hajrullahu (2024). Only Ridgeway on his second try, McLoughlin, and Hajrullahu were perfect on their record nights.
Blanchard has been arguably the CFL’s best kicker this season, connecting on 50-of-53 attempts from distance. His 94.3 percent field goal rate is up dramatically from 2024, when he made just 77.8 percent of his kicks in his first season as the Elks’ primary placekicker.
Edmonton originally selected Blanchard in the fourth round of the 2024 CFL Draft out of Université Laval. He won a Vanier Cup with the Rouge et Or in 2022 and was named a second-team U Sports All-Canadian in 2023.
The Elks (11-4) are on bye next week. They will return to action on Friday, October 9, when they visit the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (4-11) for a rematch.
