The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will host the CFL Eastern Final for the first time since 2019.
Hamilton’s secondary left no doubt with an incredible six interceptions to help spur the Tiger-Cats to a 35-15 victory over the Redblacks in their final game of the 2025 regular season. The win secures Hamilton’s spot atop the East Division with a record of 11-7. They await the winner of the East Semi-Final. Hamilton will host the East Final on November 8.
Here are my thoughts on the Tiger-Cats’ division-clinching win.
Defence wins divisions
No nonsense is the best way to describe the performance by the Tiger-Cats’ defence against the Redblacks. DaShaun Amos started the interception party in the first quarter, and the rest of the secondary kept it going for four quarters. Braxton Hill and Amos both had two interceptions. Reggie Stubblefield and Jamal Peters had one each.
The secondary and the defence as a whole set the tone, keeping the Redblacks off the scoreboard in the first quarter.
Sure, Ottawa was already eliminated and, for all intents and purposes, the Ticats were expected to win this game. But you can only beat who is put in front of you. Whether it was Tyrie Adams or Matthew Shiltz in his nightmare of a farewell game, the Tiger-Cats’ secondary gave the Redblacks no path to victory.
White hot
Tim White catching two touchdown passes is the scariest thing any team in the CFL is going to see all October. The Bo Levi Mitchell to Kenny Lawler connection is one of the most feared in the league, Kiondre Smith is having a career year, and the Ticats’ depth at receiver is unmatched. I have not even mentioned Shemar Bridges or Brendan O’Leary-Orange yet.
White has had to accept a reduced role with the spotlight on Lawler. Still, he’s racked up 1,016 yards receiving and seven touchdowns on the year. In fact, White is only 100 yards off his 2024 stats and just over 200 fewer than his career high of 1,265 yards. As he showed last night, White is every bit as dangerous as any of the other receivers in black and gold.
He had a great night getting open, finishing the contest with four receptions for 69 yards and two touchdowns. He also added one carry for 17 yards. If Hamilton can get White going in the playoffs, they will be a tough offence to get off the field.
1,000 hard-earned yards
The running game is always highly scrutinized in Hamilton, so it’s important to give credit where it is due. Greg Bell has been everything the Tiger-Cats need in this offence. The second-year running back surpassed the 1,000-yard mark on the season last night with 15 carries for 94 yards. He’s been excellent in both the running game and as a receiving back.
I’ve said plenty of times, for the Tiger-Cats’ passing attack to operate at full capacity, they need the running game going too. Bell has given the Cats what they need and more.
Bad snap blues
It has to be said at this point. I have never seen a professional football team struggle to snap the football as often as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats do. Coulter Woodmansey needs to be better. Multiple times a game, Bo Levi Mitchell is straining himself to catch a snap, and, at least once a game, a ball ends up in the turf because of it. This time around, Hamilton was up 13 and had the chance to turn this one into a laugher early in the second quarter.
A lost fumble by Mitchell due to a bad snap led to a touchdown by the Redblacks and the contest being closer than it was at any other point in the night. The bad snap problem is akin to the Ticats’ kick coverage issues. It may look small but it can cost them a Grey Cup. Woodmansey needs to clean up his snaps.
Still the champion
Kenny Lawler will have to play another season (or more, we would not mind) in Hamilton if he wants to surpass Tony Champion’s single-season franchise touchdown record. Lawler finishes the season one short of Champion’s 15. Still a remarkable campaign from the first-year Tiger-Cat, just not quite the best ever.
Lawler had four receptions for 43 yards in the win over the Redblacks.
Prime Bo
Did anyone in the world think Mitchell would surpass the most touchdowns he had ever thrown in a CFL season when he signed in Hamilton?
Mitchell threw his 36th touchdown pass of the season against Ottawa, surpassing his previous career high of 35 set in 2018 when he was a member of the Calgary Stampeders. Mitchell has racked up 5,296 yards on the year with 36 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. Regardless of what happens in the playoffs, Mitchell put together one of the best single seasons by a Ticats QB in the last quarter-century.
Regular-season mission accomplished
There is legitimate worry among the Tiger-Cats fanbase thanks to the way the last few weeks have shaken out. Hamilton had multiple chances to wrap up the East Division. They laid an absolute egg against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, barely squeaked by an admittedly resurgent Elks team, then lost in underwhelming fashion to the Calgary Stampeders. A win in either of those two losses would have meant the backups saw the majority of the snaps against Ottawa.
Dominant performance over the Reblacks aside, it can certainly be said that the Ticats are limping into the East Final when you compare their play in October to their most dominant stretch.
None of it will matter if they can find a way to string two more wins together. The CFL season is a long, intense grind. Paul LaPolice and Marshall Ferguson alluded to this on the Friday Night Football broadcast when they mentioned Devin Veresuk, noting he never really understood how long an 18-game season is.
Injuries, travel, fatigue on any given week, and the fact that any team can win on any given Friday or Saturday mean even the best of teams are going to go through their share of adversity. Though there are no excuses in professional football, securing a bye week and earning the right to host the East Final eliminates travel and gives Hamilton time to rest, recover, and be at their best.
We can debate whether or not they would be in the same spot in the West, or whether or not they left wins on the table later. For now, it is regular-season mission accomplished, regardless of how they got there.
Thanks for reading!
On a more personal note, covering the Tiger-Cats every week has been an incredible experience. It was my first time stepping out of fan shoes and looking at Hamilton from an analytical standpoint.
After 18 games, I 100 percent still feel like I’m learning the ropes when it comes to analyzing a CFL game, and I sincerely appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read one of these recaps. Feel free to reach out on X with any feedback you might have at @joshthomasrepex.
My goal in this role is to deliver professional, analytical recaps, with a little extra attention to the fan perspective, because the fans are what makes football special. If there’s anything you feel I miss, or an area I need to focus more attention on, please feel free to reach out.
Thank you again, and see you at the East Final.
Josh Thomas is the editor of the Spruce Grove Examiner and the Stony Plain Reporter, an active three down football player, and a father to four beautiful girls.
