CALGARY — Reggie Begelton didn’t have to look far for motivation on Labour Day at McMahon Stadium.
After catching a pair of touchdown passes from Jake Maier to lead his Calgary Stampeders to a 26-18 victory over the Edmonton Elks, Begelton praised the 30,479 fans in the stands for their support.
“When you get the crowd in it, it makes it that much sweeter,” said Begelton, who caught five passes for 57 yards. “The juices get going. You don’t have to find it. It’s there already.”
Maier referred to Begelton as a “big-time player” who has worked hard this season and the Calgary quarterback was happy to see the talented receiver succeed on such a big stage as the Labour Day Classic.
“He hasn’t always had everything go his way this year,” said Maier, who completed 18 of 26 passes for 238 yards. “He hasn’t always had the ball come his direction. In one of our biggest games of the year on Labour Day, he shows up and scores two touchdowns.
“He’s just a real even-keeled guy, really unselfish. When you have those types of guys, these are the things that can happen for them. He’s a great leader for us and it was awesome to see.”
Calgary coach Dave Dickenson said he had a feeling that Begelton would come up with a big game against the Elks.
“I’m not surprised,” Dickenson said. “I just thought he’s been doing all the little things, all the hard work. I do think he’s one of our best workers. I think he’s a very unselfish person.”
Ka’Deem Carey had a rushing touchdown for the Stampeders (7-4), who avenged a 32-20 loss to the Elks a year ago during the annual Labour Day Classic contest.
Rene Paredes had a field goal and a single for the Stamps, who won their 400th home game in franchise history.
Quarterback Taylor Cornelius threw touchdown passes to Dillon Mitchell and Jalin Marshall for the Elks (3-9), who have lost two straight games and five of their past six.
“It’s just another right-there moment,” said Cornelius, who completed 22 of 33 passes for 257 yards. “It felt like we were hanging with them the whole game.
“Then (in) the third quarter we stalled out, had a lot of two-and-outs and couldn’t stay on the field long enough, left our defence out there and that’s when the game really seemed to shift into their momentum a little bit.”
Sergio Castillo kicked a field goal for Edmonton, while Jon Ryan booted a single.
On Edmonton’s first drive, Cornelius fumbled a snap at midfield and Stamps defensive lineman Derek Wiggan alertly recovered the ball to give Calgary good field position.
Four plays later, Carey ran for a three-yard touchdown to cap off a quick 51-yard drive.
The Elks responded late in the first quarter when Cornelius tossed a 48-yard touchdown strike to Mitchell to cap off a six-play, 90-yard drive.
Neither team could get anything going offensively in the second quarter as Ryan accounted for the only point with a 51-yard single to give the Elks an 8-7 lead heading into the halftime break.
Both teams had chances to score points off turnovers but neither could capitalize.
Early in the second quarter, Shawn Lemon stripped the ball out of the hands of Cornelius before Cameron Judge knocked it out of bounds to give the Stamps great field position at Edmonton’s 43-yard line. Three plays later, Maier was sacked by Jake Ceresna and the Stamps were forced to punt.
On Calgary’s next possession, Mark McLaurin picked off an errant pass by Maier, but all the Elks could muster on their drive was the single by Ryan.
Maier tossed an eight-yard TD pass to Begelton at 6:29 of the third quarter to give Calgary the lead. After Malik Henry caught a pass from Maier in the end zone for a two-point convert, the Stamps went up 15-8.
After Edmonton’s third straight two-and-out to start the second half, the Elks’ woes continued when Romeo McKnight blocked Ryan’s punt and Isaac Adeyemi-Bergland picked up the loose ball at the 12-yard line.
Two plays later, Begelton made a diving catch in the back corner of the end zone to haul in a 12-yard TD pass from Maier.
“Ah man, the excitement, the rush that just went through my body, all glory to God on that one,” said Begelton in regards to his highlight-reel play. “I just felt really blessed on that one.”
On the ensuing kickoff, the ball hit returner Peyton Logan in the face mask and bounced right to Edmonton’s Jeremie Dominique, who was brought down on Calgary’s 35-yard line.
Five plays later, the Elks had to settle for a 15-yard field goal by Castillo.
After Paredes kicked a 25-yard field goal to give Calgary a 25-11 lead, Cornelius led the Elks on a 10-play, 70-yard drive that he finished by throwing a five-yard TD pass to Marshall in the back of the end zone.
Paredes then missed a 40-yard field goal wide to the left, but the ball went through the end zone for a 53-yard single for the final point of the game.
“It’s what Labour Day is, you play someone and then you turn around and play them five days later,” said Elks coach Chris Jones, whose team will host the Stamps in a rematch at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on Saturday. “It’s a good thing to get this taste out of our mouth.
“We’re going to take good care of our players this week. I don’t think we’ve got anybody nicked up, thank goodness.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2022.
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
Alabama’s Mark Sears and North Carolina‘s RJ Davis looked into the possibility of leaving for the NBA before deciding to return for another college season.
Their decisions helped their teams earn top-10 rankings in the AP Top 25 and earned both players some preseason honors, too.
Sears was a near-unanimous selection for The Associated Press preseason All-America men’s basketball team released Monday, earning all but one vote from a 55-person national media panel. Davis was right behind him, nabbing 51 votes.
They were joined by Kansas big man Hunter Dickinson, Auburn forward Johni Broome, Arizona guard Caleb Love and Duke freshman Cooper Flagg. Love and Flagg tied for the final spot, creating a six-man team that includes only the ACC, Big 12 and SEC.
Alabama twin bill
Sears was a key cog in the Crimson Tide’s first trip to the Final Four a year ago, orchestrating one of college basketball’s highest-scoring teams.
The 6-foot-1 guard was named a second-team AP All-America after averaging 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He was the first Division I player in 31 years to have 795 points, 150 rebounds, 145 assists and 95 three-pointers in a single season while breaking the Alabama single-season record with 26 games with at least 20 points.
Sears worked out for NBA scouts during the offseason before deciding to return to Alabama, earning the Crimson Tide a No. 2 ranking in the preseason AP Top 25.
“I saw the team that we had and I wanted to be a part of it, and bring home Alabama’s first national championship in basketball,” Sears said.
Across the state at rival Auburn, Broome made a quick decision about his future, announcing in April that he would be back for a fifth season.
The 6-10 forward was a third-team AP All-American last season after averaging 16.5 points and 8.5 rebounds while shooting nearly 55% from the floor. With an eye on an NBA future, Broome worked hard on his perimeter shooting during the offseason and his return earned Auburn a No. 11 preseason ranking.
“My main goal is a team goal, which is to win the national championship, to make it as far as I can in March Madness,” Broome said. “When a team shines, everyone shines individually.”
Along Tobacco Road
Like Sears, Davis has similar aspirations after opting to return for his fifth season at North Carolina.
The 6-foot guard was an AP All-American last season and the ACC player of the year after averaging 21.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists on a team that reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Davis enters this year within reach of former North Carolina big man Tyler Hansbrough’s all-time ACC scoring record.
“I know there’s more work to be done,” Davis said. “I know my jersey’s not going up until I leave. So there’s some more records to break and some more work to be done. I’m satisfied but I’m not satisfied, if that makes sense.”
Up the road at Duke, Flagg was the only underclassman on the preseason All-America team after arriving with tons of hype. The 6-9 swingman was the No. 1-rated high school recruit out of Newport, Maine and has been projected as the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft.
Flagg has the skills of a guard, but can also play inside and has worked hard on his perimeter shooting, giving him the potential to be one of college basketball’s most versatile players. He’s part of a stellar recruiting class that has No. 7 Duke eyeing a deep March run.
Big 12 duo
Dickinson was the biggest move in the transfer portal last spring after leaving Michigan for Kansas. The 7-2 center lived up to the billing, averaging 17.9 points and 10.9 rebounds while leading the Jayhawks back to the NCAA Tournament.
Love’s decision to return for a second season at No. 10 Arizona has ratcheted up expectations in the desert for the Big 12 rival of Kansas.
The athletic 6-4 guard had a high-scoring career at North Carolina and continued it after transferring to Arizona last season. He was the Pac-12 player of the year and a third-team All-American after averaging 18 points per game and making 92 3-pointers.
Love tested the NBA waters this summer before deciding to return.
“He’s had a very successful college career thus far,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. “He’s kind of this last generation of player that’s going to get better with this extra year, and so I just encourage him to take advantage of it.”
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CLEVELAND (AP) — Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will miss the rest of Cleveland‘s season after rupturing his right Achilles tendon on Sunday against Cincinnati, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Monday.
Watson will soon undergo surgery, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the results of imaging tests taken on his leg.
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year.
The 29-year-old Watson went down without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson collapsed to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
As he laid on the ground, there was cheering by some Cleveland fans, leading to some of Watson’s teammates criticizing that behavior during the team’s fifth straight loss.
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s divisive stay with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks to Houston and signed him to a fully guaranteed $230 million in 2022. The deal came amid Watson being accused by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions. He settled civil lawsuits in all but one of those cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games with the Browns and then made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
