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<\/p>\nCALGARY \u2014 They may have flubbed a few lines and struggled a bit in the first couple acts, but the 2026 debut of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers deserves a couple of hearty thumbs up and bravos across the board.<\/p>\n
The Blue Bombers\u2019 curtain raiser saw them waltz into southern Alberta and exit with a 30-28 last-play win over the Calgary Stampeders in front of 17,743 fans at McMahon Stadium.<\/p>\n
So, considered all of these Week 1 goals as mission accomplished:<\/p>\n
Season opening win: check \u2714.\u00a0
\nRoad win: check\u2714.\u00a0\u2714.
\nSeason opening road win vs. a divisional opponent: \u2714.\u00a0\u2714.\u00a0\u2714.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a resilient group, man, that will fight to the end. A scrappy, scrappy group,\u201d said running back Brady Oliveira, who was sensational with 113 yards rushing on 15 carries and a touchdown and an additional 24 yards on three receptions.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIn this league, in any league, it\u2019s extremely difficult to win. There\u2019s a lot of work that goes into every win. So, to get this against a divisional opponent \u2014 and look at what Calgary did last year, they\u2019re a good team, great defence and with Vernon Adams at the helm \u2014 you\u2019re going to see a lot of games in the West come down to the end just like that.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I love that our group will just fight to the end.\u201d<\/p>\n
The dramatic win featured some last minute drama, as the Stampeders took the league 28-27 on an Adams, Jr. three-yard TD run with just over a minute remaining.<\/p>\n
The Blue Bombers then got the ball with 64 seconds remaining with Zach Collaros connecting with Pokey Wilson for a 27-yard gain to the Calgary 23, followed by two Oliveira runs of 13 yards. That set up a game-winning 38-yard field goal by Sergio Castillo for the W.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat never gets old, especially having my wife and two kids here,\u201d said Castillo inside a rambunctious Blue Bombers locker room. \u201cThey flew into Calgary because it was going to be 13 hours for them to fly to Winnipeg (with connections). So, for the same price, we flew to Calgary.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be able to do that with them here, amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
More on the Blue Bombers season opening win from our view in the press box\u2026<\/p>\n
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INSTANT TAKEAWAYS<\/p>\n
Some key takeaways to munch on in the immediate aftermath:<\/p>\n
-Winnipeg cranked out 359 yards passing against one of the CFL\u2019s stingiest defences, including 233 yards passing by Zach Collaros (17-0f-28) and a TD to Tim White.<\/p>\n
-Jake Ceresna\u2019s Blue Bomber debut was superb as he finished with five tackles and three sacks. Willie Jefferson was effective two with a sack and two pass knockdowns.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got to get Osh (head coach Mike O\u2019Shea) to never let me play in the preseason game again,\u201d said Ceresna, who didn\u2019t take a snap in the two preseason games, with a chuckle. \u201cI was just glad we were able to come out with a team win.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes they just fall you way and they were falling for me tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n
-White led the team with five receptions for 60 yards in his debut.<\/p>\n
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-The Blue Bombers were gashed for 21 points and 120 yards rushing in the first half \u2014 including 95 yards by Dedrick Mills \u2014 but surrendered just seven points in the final 30 minutes while Mills was limited to just 117 yards in the second half.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the first half we just weren\u2019t on the same page,\u201d said Ceresna. \u201cA lot of missed assignments\u2026 we have so much to clean up, even myself. I feel at times I wasn\u2019t playing good.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the second half were were most assignment sound. That drive at the end (by Calgary), we\u2019ve got to be more assignment sound to not put our offence in that position, but I\u2019m glad they bailed us out tonight and we got the \u2018W.’\u201d<\/p>\n
-And Oliveira\u2019s 113 yards allowed him to move past Gerry James into fifth spot on the franchise\u2019s all-time rushing list at 5,594. James finished his hall of fame career at 5,541 yards. Next on the list for Oliveira is Jim Washington in fourth place at 5,736.<\/p>\n
DO WE SMELL B.O.!?! IT\u2019S BRADY OLIVEIRA!!!#ForTheW<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/39R4c6AyoT<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) June 6, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThat was a wild game, a wild finish,\u201d said Collaros. \u201cThat\u2019s pure CFL football right there. It was pretty cool. The conditions were crazy \u2014 the wind was nuts pretty much the entire game. I thought we did a good job of handling that in all three phases. We\u2019ve got to clean some stuff up for sure, but I\u2019m just really proud of the effort that we played at.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026 It feels good to come into somebody\u2019s house and win games. First win of the season, you get the first win out of the way and Calgary is a great football team and a great organization, so this is good.\u201d<\/p>\n Let\u2019s not complicate things here \u2014 when a game is decided on a last play field goal, that\u2019s the key moment. And Castillo\u2019s 38-yarder as time expired was the perfect capper to an outstanding night.<\/p>\n CASTILLO ROAAADSSS, TAKE USS HOMEEEEE.#ForTheW<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/2XZOdSxuZy<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/KEY-MOMENT.jpeg\")
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