Elks match North American professional sports record for consecutive home losses

Hamilton Tiger-Cats' Kenneth George Jr. (3) and Edmonton Elks' Dillon Mitchell (17) vie for the ball during second half CFL action in Edmonton, Alta., on Thursday July 13, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson.

EDMONTON -

It was a win wrapped up with some worry for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Quarterback Matt Shiltz ran in a touchdown before leaving the game with an injury as the Tiger-Cats defeated the hapless Edmonton Elks 37-29 on Thursday for Hamilton's second straight win.

"I'm proud of how we rallied," said Hamilton head coach Orlondo Steinauer. "This was a short week. We had all types of reasons. They had the rest and we had to fly on a short week. Just credit to the coaches and the players."

The Ticats improved to 2-3 on the season, but unfortunately lost Shiltz to a leg injury late in the third quarter. He had been filling in for the also-injured Bo Levi Mitchell.

Edmonton (0-6) has lost a CFL-record 20 consecutive home games, a string of futility stretching back to Oct. 12, 2019. 

The loss tied the longest run of consecutive home losses among North America's major professional leagues. Major League Baseball’s St. Louis Browns lost 20 straight in 1953 before becoming the Baltimore Orioles the next season.

Edmonton has also lost 10 straight games overall.

"All I can do is rely on things in the past, and unfortunately, we've had some similar situations like this in Saskatchewan and all I can say is what do you want me to tell you?" said Elks head coach and general manager Chris Jones. "There's no magic formula, we're going to have to keep grinding, keep working and keep believing. 

"Pull for each other, nobody can do it by themselves, regardless of what they think."

The Elks caught a break when Hamilton’s Tyler Ternowski fumbled the opening kickoff and Jordan Reaves was there to scoop it up for Edmonton, eventually leading to a 24-yard field goal by Dean Faithfull, the only scoring in the first quarter.

Faithfull nailed a 40-yard field goal with just under four minutes to play in the second quarter to double Edmonton’s lead.

The Tiger-Cats came roaring back on their next possession to grab the lead as a 54-yard passing play from Shiltz to Tim White set up an eight-yard touchdown run by James Butler.

Edmonton had a chance to regain the lead after a 49-yard run by Kevin Brown took them down to the Hamilton 13-yard line, but Elks quarterback Taylor Cornelius was intercepted by Javien Elliott.

Marc Liegghio's 28-yard field goal gave Hamilton a 10-6 lead at the half.

The Elks started the third quarter off in fine form as Cornelius completed a pass to Kyran Moore and he spun off a tackle and blazed 54 yards for the touchdown.

However, Hamilton answered quickly.

A 46-yard kickoff return by Tyreik McAllister set up a four-yard quarterback keeper into the end zone by Shiltz.

"I feel like the more I keep playing and keep getting the ball, the more my confidence will grow," said McAllister, who also had a punt return touchdown called back on a penalty. "It is a snowball effect."

The Tiger-Cats then took a 24-13 lead as Cornelius foolishly attempted to throw the ball away rather than accept a sack and the ball ended up right in the hands of Cat Stavros Katsantonis, who took the ball 33 yards across the goal-line for the pick six.

Hamilton suffered a blow late in the third quarter, though, as Shiltz went down clutching his left knee after a hit and had to be helped to the sidelines. Taylor Powell took his place and just two plays later found White for a 17-yard touchdown on his first-ever CFL pass.

"He is a guy who consistently wants to get better and doesn’t pretend to know it all," said Steinauer about Powell. “He is just a sponge. 

"Once the lights are on, they are not too bright."

Jarret Doege replaced Cornelius as Elks pivot and engineered a solid drive, capped off by a two-yard TD run by Brown. Faithfull missed the convert.

Liegghio kicked a 22-yard field goal midway through the fourth.

With just under a minute to play, Doege passed to Steven Dunbar Jr. for a seven-yard touchdown.

After a successful on-side kick, the Elks would add a 45-yard field goal by Faithfull to close out the contest.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 13, 2023.