The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are getting a big boost ahead of their matchup with the Toronto Argonauts on Friday, as star Canadian defensive back Tunde Adeleke will make an early return from the six-game injured list.
The 27-year-old has missed the past two games with a hamstring injury but has recovered faster than expected. Placing him on the six-game provided some financial benefits, as Adeleke is the CFL’s highest-paid defensive back.
Through six CFL seasons, four of them with the Ticats, Adeleke has started 63 of his 81 appearances and amassed 225 defensive tackles, five sacks and five interceptions. In three games thus far this season, he has collected 13 defensive tackles.
The Carleton product will not be returning to his regular spot at safety, however, with Stavros Katsantonis remaining in that role. Instead, he is scheduled to start at fieldside halfback, with veteran Richard Leonard bumping over to cornerback in order to remove returner Lawrence Woods from the defensive lineup.
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Missing from the defensive side of the ball will be veteran defensive end Ja’Gared Davis, who has been placed on the one-game injured list despite not being listed on this week’s injury report. The 32-year-old has yet to record a sack in five games this season but has 260 tackles and 49 sacks in 94 career appearances with the Stampeders, Ticats, and Argos.
Second-year defensive end Tre’ Crawford will dress for the first time in 2023 and take his place in the lineup. He collected five tackles and a sack in three games last season.
Quarterback Matthew Shiltz (hip) and Canadian receiver Tyler Ternowski (ankle) have both been placed on the six-game injured list, while recently signed quarterback Antonio Pipkin draws into the lineup as the third-stringer.
The game will mark the first career start for rookie quarterback Taylor Powell, who completed two-of-four pass attempts for 47 yards and one touchdown following Shiltz’s injury a week ago.
The six-foot-two, 207-pound passer signed with the Ticats in May. He completed 64.6 percent of his passes for 2,111 yards, 16 touchdowns, and eight interceptions at Eastern Michigan University in 2022. Powell played at Troy University in 2021 and completed 66.1 percent of his passes for 1,251 yards, seven touchdowns, and six interceptions.
The Fayetteville, Ark. native’s collegiate career started at the University of Missouri where he played 15 games over three seasons (2017-19). He completed 46 percent of his pass attempt with the Tigers for 431 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.
The Ticats (2-3) will host the Argonauts (4-0) on Friday, July 21 at 7:30 p.m. EDT. They are currently [metabet_core_dynamic_odds market=”spread-home” query=”531029″ site_id=”3downnation”] point underdogs.
Photo courtesy: Hamilton Tiger-Cats
