Head coach Scott Milanovich seeks his first win with Hamilton on Saturday when the Tiger-Cats host his former team, the Toronto Argonauts.
Milanovich coached the Argonauts from 2012-16, guiding them to victory in the 100th Grey Cup championship in his debut campaign.
His first season as the sideline boss in Hamilton has not gone nearly as well, with the Tiger-Cats (0-5) stuck in a seven-game losing streak dating back to last season.
With every other team in the East Division already sitting on at least three wins, including Toronto (3-2), the season is slipping away from the Tiger-Cats.
“We talked today about how are we going to change the narrative and offered potential answers to how we’re going to climb out of this hole we’re in,” Milanovich told Sportsnet on Sunday as his team returned from a bye week.
“It starts with any time you’re in a hole, you (have to) stop digging first. That’s part of what’s gone on, we’re hurting ourselves. Secondly, we’ve tried to take ownership as coaches for what we’ve done that hasn’t helped, and players have to take ownership of what they’ve done that hasn’t helped because we’re in this together. The only way we get out of this is together. I’m looking for that kind of unity going forward.”
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell has played well in his ninth CFL campaign, entering the week ranked second in passing yards (1,671) and touchdown passes (11).
The two-time CFL Most Outstanding Player will face a Toronto defense that limited previously unbeaten Montreal to three second-half points in a 37-18 victory on July 11.
The Argonauts got a 9-yard pick-six from Wynton McManis and a 103-yard kickoff-return TD from Janarion Grant. Cameron Dukes passed for 131 yards and a score against the Alouettes.
“It’s the ultimate team game that we play,” Dukes told TSN on Tuesday. “When you get help from all sides in scoring, it takes a lot of pressure off the offense and makes you more comfortable on the field, knowing that you’ve got more leeway to play with.”
The Argos and Ticats renew their Battle of the Queen Elizabeth Way rivalry on Sept. 2 in Hamilton and meet for the final time on Sept. 20 in Toronto.
–Field Level Media
