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Reilly shines as Eskimos defeat Winnipeg for first home win

Sep 15, 2013 - 1:46 AM Edmonton, AB (Sports Network) - Mike Reilly passed for 196 yards and three touchdowns as the Edmonton Eskimos collected a 25-7 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a crossover divisional clash at Commonwealth Stadium.

Reilly finished with 16 completions on 25 pass attempts and also led Edmonton (2-9) in rushing with a career-high 113 yards on nine carries. Adarius Bowman made seven receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown while Fred Stamps reeled in four catches for 56 yards and two scores. Rennie Curran paced the defense with seven tackles and a sack as the Eskimos earned their first home win of the campaign and snapped an eight-game losing slide.

Justin Goltz started the game under center for the Blue Bombers (2-9), but was replaced after going 5-of-10 for 54 yards with an interception. Max Hall stepped in to complete 15-of-22 attempts for 160 yards with an interception. Will Ford led Winnipeg on the ground with 61 yards on 12 carries. Terrence Edwards tallied a team-best 66 yards on five catches.

The Eskimos' defense made a big play the first time it took the field as J.C. Sherritt recovered a fumble by Goltz. Reilly's fifth consecutive completion to begin the game resulted in an eight-yard touchdown catch by Stamps and Hugh O'Neill's successful extra-point conversion gave the hosts a 7-0 lead at the 9:13 mark of the first quarter.

Reilly led another drive into Winnipeg territory the next time Edmonton had possession, but could not avoid the pass rush on second down and was penalized for intentional grounding. The Eskimos still managed to add three points as O'Neill chipped in a 25-yard field goal.

Goltz continued to struggle as he was intercepted by Chris Rwabukamba on the ensuing Blue Bombers' drive. Edmonton took advantage of the miscue and short field as Reilly completed a 16-yard pass to Bowman for a major four plays later to give the hosts a 17-0 lead with just over a minute left in the first period.

Winnipeg got on the board with just under two minutes left before the half as Sandro DeAngelis chipped in a 17-yard field goal attempt. The Eskimos quickly responded as Reilly rushed 45 yards into Blue Bombers' territory to set up his 25-yard touchdown pass to Stamps. Neither side managed to score again before the end of the second stanza and Edmonton took a 24-3 lead into the break.

Hall took over at quarterback for Winnipeg after halftime, but his presence was not enough to turn around the struggling offense. The only point of the third quarter came on a single after DeAngelis missed a 55-yard field goal try.

Edmonton scored a single at the 12:35 mark of the fourth quarter when Shaw had a 56-yard punt downed in the end zone.

Winnipeg added to its total as DeAngelis made a 22-yard field goal try three minutes later, but it could not overcome the significant deficit as Hall fumbled in the red zone to end its most promising drive.

Coming into the game, the Blue Bombers were the best in CFL in the red zone , scoring on 17-of-22 opportunities. They were unable to score on any of their four red zone trips against Edmonton.

Game Notes

The Eskimos had not won at home in almost a calendar year...Edmonton is now 6-0-1 against Winnipeg at Commonwealth Stadium over the past seven meetings there...Rwabukamba left the game with an injury to his left knee...Bowman's major was his first touchdown since Nov. 4, 2012...Reilly had never surpassed the century mark in rushing yards before in his career.