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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS
\nWinnipeg Blue Bombers’ Dorian Singer (17) catches a 74 yard pass as Calgary Stampeders’ Ashton Miller-Melancon (24) during first half action in Winnipeg on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s vintage Eight-Ball right there. You love to see it,\u201d said receiver Nic Demski. \u201cEspecially the opportunity that we had and him coming back this week, it was just a picture-perfect story.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the win, the Bombers improved to 8-8 and now just need to finish the season with at least the same record as Calgary or Saskatchewan to qualify for the post-season since they own the tiebreaker over both West Division foes.<\/p>\n
The loss dropped Calgary to 8-9 who could\u2019ve clinched a playoff berth with a victory.<\/p>\n
The Bombers currently reside in fourth, but if Saskatchewan (8-7) loses Monday in Montreal, they\u2019ll bump up to third.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was obviously a huge game, a lot on the line, playoff atmosphere, all those things,\u201d said Collaros.<\/p>\n
\u201cCouldn\u2019t ask for a better day. Couldn\u2019t ask for a better environment. As always, our crowd brought the energy, made it difficult for them, and really gave us a lot of life out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Entering the week, the Blue and Gold ranked dead last in both passing yards and touchdowns. They were also second last in explosion plays and average yards per play.<\/p>\n
They woke up in a big way in this one with Collaros \u2014 who missed the last two games with a head injury he suffered in the Banjo Bowl \u2014 having four completions of 39 yards or more to finish 19-for-27 for 349 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Collaros got after it early by hitting Singer for a 52-yard bomb \u2014 his longest throw of the season \u2014 on the second drive.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s just mentality. We know we\u2019re capable of that as a group,\u201d said receiver Tim White, who caught four passes for 78 yards.<\/p>\n \u201cJust seeing the ball fly up in the air, it just makes you want to step out as an offence on the field again, again, and again and I felt like we just continued the energy all night and there was never a doubt.\u201d<\/p>\n Singer, a rookie who was on the practice roster for the first 11 games of the season, led the way with five catches for 166 yards \u2014 the most by a Bomber receiver this season.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty cool. My family was here. They drove six hours from Minnesota,\u201d said Singer.<\/p>\n \u201cBut it\u2019s a team game. I\u2019m just proud of my team and just happy we got to come out and get a win.\u201d<\/p>\n The Bombers jumped ahead 17-9 in the second after Collaros got out of a messy pocket, rolled out to his right, and fired a pass to the back corner of the south end zone to Demski for a 25-yard score.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t On the opening play of the second half, Trey Vaval increased the home side\u2019s advantage to 24-9 thanks to a sizzling 88-yard kickoff return touchdown.<\/p>\n It was Vaval\u2019s second return touchdown of the season and first since his 129-yard missed field goal return against Toronto that cemented a 30-21 win on July 10.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew it was gonna come sometime,\u201d said Vaval.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t know when it (would be) but we were gonna get one of them sometime \u2026 You just got to make them plays when they come to you.\u201d<\/p>\n The Stamps didn\u2019t roll over, however. They punched back with a pair of touchdowns from running back Deonta McMahon to cut Winnipeg\u2019s lead to 24-22 heading into the fourth.<\/p>\n That would be as close as they would get as the Bombers would tack on three Sergio Castillo field goals in the final 15 minutes before the Stamps scored a rushing touchdown with 17 seconds left on the clock.<\/p>\n Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 29 of 43 passes for 284 yards and one touchdown.<\/p>\n The Stampeders outgained the Bombers 124-61 in rushing yards but went 0-for-2 on two-point converts. Kicker Rene Paredes missed a 46-yard field goal in the second quarter.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \u201cVernon is having one of the better seasons, I think, statistically, like passer rating-wise, this league\u2019s ever seen,\u201d said Collaros.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, when you when you\u2019re playing against a guy like that, who\u2019s that dangerous playing with the ball, it\u2019s tough to kind of hold them down. (Our defence) did a great job making them kick field goals. You got to score touchdowns, and they did a great job preventing that, especially early on.\u201d<\/p>\n Bombers running back Brady Oliveira had just three carries for 22 yards after three quarters. He finished with eight for 40, while also helping as a pass catcher with three grabs for 29 yards.<\/p>\n Oliveira had a costly fumble in the third that set up McMahon\u2019s second score.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, obviously, myself and I\u2019m sure the offensive line would say that maybe we want to get fed a little bit more, but at the end of the day, we were winning, I thought we were controlling the game even by throwing, by what we were doing,\u201d said Oliveira. \u201c<\/p>\n \u201cIf teams want to load the box on us, it\u2019s a sign of respect that obviously, we do something right \u2026 So, it\u2019s almost like pick your poison. I\u2019m really proud of the guys for how we fought tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t Winnipeg is in Edmonton next week to play the Elks (12-4) on Friday before closing out the year on the road against the B.C. Lions (10-6). The Stamps play their final regular-season game next week against the Lions.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The Riders host the Alouettes (12-3) next week before finishing with the Elks coming to town.<\/p>\n This race is going down to the wire.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we build on (tonight) and play good, three-phase football, I think we like where we\u2019re going to go,\u201d said head coach Mike O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n winnipegfreepress.com\/taylorallen<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Taylor Allen Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree\/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS
\nWinnipeg Blue Bombers’ Trey Vaval (right) defends against Calgary Stampeders’ Clark Barnes (14) during first half action in Winnipeg on Saturday. <\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS
\nWinnipeg Blue Bombers’ Tim White (12) catches the pass during first half action against the Calgary Stampeders in Winnipeg on Saturday.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS
\nWinnipeg Blue Bombers’ Trey Vaval (23) and Michael Griffin (32) tackle Calgary Stampeders’ Damien Alford (80) during first half action in Winnipeg on Saturday.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS
\nCalgary Stampeders quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. (3) scrambles for the first down during first half action against Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Winnipeg on Saturday.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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