Mitchell tosses three TDs in Ticats’ 37-27 win over Blue Bombers
Written by The Canadian Press on June 11, 2026
WINNIPEG — Bo Levi Mitchell threw a pair of touchdown passes to Kiondre Smith as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats spoiled the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ home opener with a 37-27 victory on Thursday.
The Ticats were coming off an overtime loss to Montreal and moved to 1-1, the first time the team hasn’t opened a season 0-2 since 2019.
Winnipeg (1-1) was playing in front of a 15th consecutive capacity crowd of 32,343 at Princess Auto Stadium in a game that featured on-and-off downpours.
Mitchell completed 19 of 24 pass attempts for 287 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
Hamilton also got touchdowns from receiver Max Mang and backup quarterback Jake Dolegala pushed in for one more. Marc Liegghio was good on field goals from 53, 46 and 23 yards and hit four converts.
Winnipeg squeezed the score 34-27 with 2:12 remaining in the game, but the Ticats marched down the field for a Liegghio 23-yarder to seal the victory with 35 seconds left on the clock.
Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros was 28-of-35 passing for 421 yards, two TDs and one interception.
Receivers Nic Demski and Ontaria Wilson scored for Winnipeg and backup quarterback Bryce Perkins plunged over the goal line. Sergio Castillo connected on field goals from 19 and 45 yards, but missed from 43 yards out. He made three converts.
Bombers receiver Tommy Nield led all receivers with eight catches for 126 yards.
Hamilton rookie running back Larry Rountree III finished the game with 23 carries for 124 yards. Bombers veteran star Brady Oliveira was held to eight runs for 32 yards.
Winnipeg led 10-7 after the first quarter and the Tiger-Cats had a 24-10 edge at halftime that it carried into the fourth quarter.
Hamilton defensive back Jamal Peters was taken off the field on a stretcher almost nine minutes into the first quarter. He was tackling Nield and his helmet hit Nield’s knee. The Ticats announced on social media Peters was conscious and in good spirits on the way to hospital.
Castillo booted a 19-yard field goal to start the scoring at 9:44, but Hamilton replied with Smith’s 11-yard TD catch at 12:04. The drive was aided by a 48-yard Wheatfall catch.
Collaros’s 41-yard pass to a wide-open Demski gave Winnipeg the 10-7 lead with 45 seconds left in the opening quarter.
Hamilton owned the second quarter with 17 unanswered points.
Mitchell showed his legs on a 102-yard scoring drive when he ran 15 yards to keep the play alive before tossing a four-yard TD pass to Mang seven minutes into the second.
Castillo missed a field goal, then Wheatfall registered a 47-yard reception during Hamilton’s next TD drive, with a 23-yard catch by Smith with 2:26 left in the first half making it 21-10. Liegghio added his 53-yarder with 13 seconds remaining.
Winnipeg’s first drive of the third quarter ended with a 45-yard Castillo field goal to move the score 24-13.
Hamilton receiver Kenny Lawler couldn’t hang onto the ball in the corner of the end zone on the last play of the quarter, but the Ticats successfully challenged for pass interference. Dolegala then plunged in from the one-yard line to up the lead 13 seconds into the fourth.
The Bombers came back with Wilson’s five-yard TD catch five minutes later to squeeze the score 31-20, but Liegghio booted a 46-yarder at 10:29. Perkins one-yard plunge made it 34-27 with 2:12 left.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2026.
Judy Owen, The Canadian Press