Tiger-Cats ready to become road warriors against host Alouettes in Eastern Semi-Final

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats hit the road to visit the Montreal Alouettes at Percival Molson Stadium for Sunday’s CFL Eastern Semi-Final in a rematch of the 2021 semifinal played at Tim Hortons Field.

Watch the Eastern Semi-Final LIVE on Sunday at 1pm ET/ 10am PT on TSN1, TSN4 and streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.

Ahead of their game, Tiger-Cats head coach Orlondo Steinauer spoke Wednesday about what’s in store for his team on Sunday.

"Definitely there's going to be a different intensity and that sort of thing," said Steinauer on comparing the Ticats' last regular-season game against the Ottawa Redblacks to the Eastern Semi-final.

"But the game is always going to come down to execution and our preparation. And so that'll ramp up. It won't be extremely different from anything we've done all season, but the consequences are just greater now."

Being familiar with the nature of single-game elimination games, Steinauer knows he can't be married to a game plan as how the game unfolds will dictate how he and his team plays and how they respond.

"We've played to win all year long and we'll do the exact same thing," said Steinauer. “We'll expect to win and we'll play to win, whatever that means. You've got to be flexible, you can't be lock-knee, you've got to be able to bend and move. That'll unfold the game within the game, but playoffs, everyone knows what it is."

Steinauer's quarterback Dane Evans, who has accompanied him on those deep playoff runs culminating in Grey Cup appearances, echoed the sentiments of his coach, noting how different the playoffs are to the 18-game regular season.

"It gets a little more intense, but also, you just got to play. You've got to do what got you there," said Evans on Wednesday. "You don't have to do like what Tommy [Condell] (offensive coordinator of the Tiger-Cats) said in our team meeting, 'You don't have to go into a phone booth and change into Superman, you just got to be you. You've got to do what got you here. We've got to do what got us here, we're on a good little roll here and we've just got to keep it rolling.'"

After getting off to a slow start in the regular season and missing time due to an injury, Evans has been at the centre of a recent hot streak for the Ticats. In Week 15 against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the 28-year-old threw a season-high five touchdowns in a 49-38 win.

Since then, the Ticats have won four of their last five, but Evans knows they can't rest on their laurels and have to take it one game at a time.

"We're only worried about this first one, we're ready to get after Montreal; I know they're ready to get after us again, too. We've had three close games with them this year – even the one we won and the two we dropped – so we're fully expecting a dog fight and I think that's what they're expecting, too."

The two games Evans references were both losses at Percival Molson Stadium in Weeks 11 and 16. And while Evans only played in one of those contests, he is looking forward to being back and the opportunity that comes with it.

"Obviously, we'd love to be here at Tim Hortons [Field] in front of our fans," said Evans. "But the great [thing] about our fans is that they're going to make the trip to Montreal. I know there is going to be a lot of black and gold in the stands. It's going to be loud, whether that's our fans or their fans, it's just loud there always. And we're fully embracing it because a month, a month and a half ago, no one even thought we'd be here."

In Montreal, much like Evans, Alouettes quarterback Trevor Harris spoke Wednesday about his excitement for Sunday.

"We had a great meeting yesterday with the players and guys got to just say what's on their minds, say how they feel. We've got an excited bunch. We're fired up," said the 36-year-old veteran.

Also, much like Evans, Harris had a strong finish to the regular season. It’s something he's hoping continues into the playoffs.

"I think we're hitting our stride, and that's really what it's about. It's about playing your best football late into the year, and we finished the year 7-3 and, obviously, we wanted to be 10-0 to finish, so it wasn't good enough...We're just going to go out there, tee it up and see what we've got this week and we know it's going to be a dog fight, it's going to be a fun one."

Having played the Tiger-Cats in last season's Eastern Semifinal and thrice this season, Harris talked about what he and the Alouettes need to ensure they do come kickoff.

"We've got to make sure we stay ahead of the chains, and not to be cliché, but stay out of second and extra-long, make sure we're handling their pressure, being able to run the football. I think we've got three quality backs."

With the Alouettes hosting the Tiger-Cats, Harris talked about the benefits of having home-field advantage.

"There's a reason people play so hard for home-field advantage and if there's a home game on the line in Game 18 in the regular season, guys play their guys. They don't rest because home-field advantage is a real thing and being able to sleep in your own bed, being able to practice here where we're going to play [Percival Molson Stadium]. And, obviously, having that home-field advantage of the crowd being behind you, we know they're going to have the Nest rocking on Sunday, and we're fired up about it."