Alouettes look to build on momentum for pivotal game vs. Tiger-Cats

The Montreal Alouettes found themselves back in the win column on Sunday by defeating the Calgary Stampeders 25-18, snapping a three-game losing streak.

The win was a breath of fresh air for the Alouettes who hadn't tasted victory since they defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 38-12 on June 23.

"Football is one of those sports where you only play once a week," Alouettes head coach Jason Maas told TSN690 on Wednesday. " If you lose a couple of games in a row, or three in our case, it's almost a month before you taste that victory. If you throw a bye week in there, it feels even longer."

One of the major differences for the Alouettes this week was an improvement in the defence, particularly the pass rush. The team entered Week 8 with a league-low seven sacks on the season and responded by sacking Stampeders quarterback Jake Meier three times.

The defence did a good job of bending without breaking, allowing 256 passing yards but keeping the Stampeders out of the end zone.

"Our defence in the last minute stood on their heads, which was tremendous," said Maas. "We changed some things up over the bye week, where we looked at some of the things we could do systematically wise, and we played to our players' strengths. [Defensive coordinator] Noel Thorpe came up with a great scheme, the coaches coached it, and the players executed it."

Maas singled out defensive end Kabion Ento as a difference maker in Sunday's win over the Stampeders with his three tackles. He also scored the game's only touchdown on his first interception of the season in the second quarter.

"Ento made the most of his opportunities [in the game] by changing positions and making the pick-six." said Maas. "There were a lot of positives coming from that game."

While the defence stepped up against the Stampeders, the offence struggled to convert in the red zone. The Alouettes were forced to rely on kicker David Cote's six field goals and Ento's touchdown to provide all the offence in the victory.

Starting quarterback Cody Fajardo threw for 158 yards with 16 completions and no interceptions, but Maas felt that the one-time passing yards leader and all-star wasn't at his best.

"There were some execution things that we could be better at, particularly in the red zone to score touchdowns," said Maas. I think in the red zone there were a couple of plays where if [Fajardo] is a little more accurate, they'd be touchdowns. He'd tell you the same thing. At the end of the day, I'm very pleased with him, how he leads our team, and what we get out of him."

The Alouettes hope to continue to build momentum as they travel to Tim Hortons Field to take on the Tiger-Cats on Saturday. 

The game has a considerable impact on playoff positioning with the Alouettes sitting in second place with a 3-3 record while the Tiger-Cats and Ottawa Redblacks are hot on their heels with a 3-4 record.

A win on Saturday would give the Alouettes the season series over the Tiger-Cats.

"It's a tight race in the east, so we need those series to be won," emphasized Maas. "We don't always put ourselves in position to win a season series and we have an opportunity to go in there in do it. It's all all business this this week, our guys’ mindsets are going to ramp up and the focus and intensity this week are going to go to a different level."

Hamilton is coming off a 16-12 victory over the Redblacks on Friday despite quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell throwing five interceptions. Mitchell threw for 353 yards with two touchdowns in the win but suffered a fracture to his lower left leg at the end of the game, leading him to be placed on the the six-game injured list.

Rookie quarterback Taylor Powell is expected to get the start against the Alouettes on Saturday. The 24-year-old pivot made his first-career CFL start during Week 7's 31-15 loss to the Toronto Argonauts, throwing for 282 yards with a rushing touchdown and one interception.

"[Hamilton] is a tough environment to play in," said Maas. " They have great fans. They show up, and the Tiger-Cats are a tough team coming off a win. We both have momentum on our sides, so we'll clash for 60 minutes and hope we'll have enough to come up with a victory."