OTTAWA – It was almost a tale of two halves in Friday night’s matchup between the Elks and REDBLACKS, but Edmonton was able to hang on for their third straight win in a 30-20 victory at TD Place Stadium. The Elks came out of the gates to take a 17-0 lead in Ottawa but saw their advantage shrink to just three in the fourth quarter.
A fourth-quarter touchdown by Justin Rankin and a crucial scoring drive led by Cody Fajardo after the three-minute warning meant that the Elks would hold off their opponent for a win in the nation’s capital.
CFL.ca brings you three key stats from the Edmonton Elks’ win over the Ottawa REDBLACKS.
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1 – JAVON LEAKE PUNT-RETURN TOUCHDOWN
Very little separated the Elks and REDBLACKS on Friday night and a scoring play on special teams ended up being vital for the Elks in their road win.
Javon Leake must like what he sees when he lines up against Richie Leone and Ottawa’s special teams unit because he now has two punt-return touchdowns against the REDBLACKS this season. His 80-yard return to the house in the second quarter stunned the Ottawa crowd as Edmonton jumped out to a 17-0 lead.
94 – JUSTIN RANKIN YARDS FROM SCRIMMAGE
It wasn’t the mighty 179-yard effort he put up against the Toronto Argonauts in Week 11, but Justin Rankin was the danger man for the Elks once again in Week 12, going for 94 yards and a touchdown against the REDBLACKS.
Rankin was more effective as a receiver than rusher on Friday, catching five balls for 58 yards. He was a useful dump-off option for Fajardo, and was able to tack on extra yards when he got the ball in his hands. His lone touchdown came on the ground however, as he ran in from six yards out as part of a drive in which he had 44 yards.
1 – LATE SCORING DRIVE
It seems as though no lead is safe after the three-minute warning in the CFL but on Friday night, the Elks ensured that they wouldn’t give Ottawa a chance tie the game with the final possession. Edmonton scored on their final drive to put the game out of reach and not let there be any hope of a late twist.
Fajardo and the Elks’ offence travelled 55 yards across eight plays on their final series, leading to a Vincent Blanchard field goal which put Edmonton up by 10. One of those eight plays was a 38-yard toss from Fajardo to Kurleigh Gittens Jr. which put the Elks into field-goal range. Fajardo rushed for 12 yards and a first down to kill some more clock and make the kick even easier for Blanchard.