TORONTO - Ricky Ray hit Chad Owens on a 69-yard TD strike to rally the Toronto Argonauts to a stunning 34-33 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday night.
Ray found the wide-open Owens to cap a 21-point fourth-quarter comeback as Toronto erased a 30-13, third-quarter deficit.
Hamilton took over at its 51-yard line following Terrell Sinkfield's 45-yard kickoff return but the Ticats couldn't mount the comeback. The third-down snap sailed past quarterback Zach Collaros in shotgun formation, forcing the turnover on downs with 38 seconds remaining.
The loss tarnished a solid showing by Collaros, who finished with two TD passes and ran for another.
Collaros's pinpoint 22-yard touchdown strike to Luke Tasker at 11:34 of the third staked Hamilton to a commanding 30-13 lead. It came a play after Toronto's Branden Smith dropped a sure pick-six when he couldn't corral Collaros's pass in the flats.
The contest involving arch rivals battling for top spot in the East Division drew a sparse but energetic gathering of 17,811 at Rogers Centre with the roof closed. By comparison, 16,279 fans watched the Toronto Raptors play the Boston Celtics in their first home pre-season game at the Air Canada Centre.
