Edmonton Elks find a way with walk-off field goal over Saskatchewan Roughriders (& eight other thoughts)

Photo courtesy: Arthur Ward/CFL.ca

In the last few years, walk-off winning field goals have usually gone against the Edmonton Elks.

Not this time, as the visitors found a 57-yard score to win the heavyweight battle for first in the West. An incredibly entertaining game with continuous knockout blows ended in a 36-34 win for Edmonton over Saskatchewan.

Here are my thoughts on the game.

What a kick

Third-year kicker Vincent Blanchard has been mentioned a lot this year, going from a 78 percent accuracy last season to missing only one field goal so far in 2026. The Laval product entered this game at 95 percent, having hit eighteen of his nineteen attempts. His longest this year had been 50 yards, but on the last play of the game, head coach Mark Kilam showed faith in his young kicker, and it paid off.

“We’ve always believed in Vin,” Kilam said post-game. “We maybe haven’t trotted him out there for some big ones, but he’s more than capable. He’s got a huge leg. I’m just happy for them. Brad Hladik snapped it, and Jake (Julien) held.”

Huge leg is an understatement for this one. Not only did it go through at 57 yards, but it cleared the top of the upright. I heard the officials talking coming off the field, and they were saying it would have been good at almost 70 yards. Not only was it a massive game-winning field goal, but Blanchard had to be on the field for almost a minute prior to the kick due to a player injury. That’s a lot of time to think, but it still didn’t faze the 28-year-old.

Sticking with a young kicker can be tough for a coach, but with all of Kilam’s experience with special teams, there was going to be a good reason. The rewards are paying off now as the Quebecer is not only hitting field goals, but is also in the top spot for CFL kickoff average. I also appreciate that he is wearing Dave Cutler’s old number and doing it proud.

Three-phase football

Kilam has been preaching all year that Edmonton needs to be a three-phase football team and pick each other up as needed. The highs and lows of each phase came and went on this night, but the highs outshone any mishaps.

When a defence gives up 448 yards, you may ask why I would include them in this three-phase football segment. Well, Edmonton turned the ball over three times in the final frame, and the defence held  Saskatchewan to field goals. That was a major factor in being able to have the chance at the walk-off. After a spectacular outing last week against B.C., the challenge was on for J.C. Sherritt’s group to keep a high-powered Riders offence in check. A sack, an interception and five knockdowns is a good night even with the total yards surrendered.

The offence was clicking in the pass game. Cody Fajardo has said all year that they were waiting to break out with this group. Seven different receivers with catches and 510 passing yards qualifies as quite the breakout. That is the veteran’s highest passing total of his career. Austin Mack gathered 173 yards and two touchdowns. T.J. Luther wrangled 157 yards, with two of those catches being in the dying minute to get the field goal set up. Saskatchewan was prepared for Rankin, so offensive coordinator Jordan Maksymic directed the air attack, and Fajardo delivered.

Besides the obvious game-winning kick, special teams found highlight moments throughout the game. Jake Julien had a 62-yard average on punts, with one going 79 yards. As I mentioned before, Blanchard was perfect on field goals and converts, and boasted a 72-yard average in kickoffs. The cover and return teams were efficient and, other than the one return that came back on a penalty, held the Roughriders to minimal gains. It was the most complimentary football we have seen Edmonton play this year.

Touching tributes

I commend the Roughriders for their handling of the tragic events of this week prior to the game starting. Starting by honouring 22-year-old Bhishma Rajyaguru was not only the right choice, but incredibly well done on short notice. There was definite effort put into doing that right.

I thought the tribute to Jayden Dalke was also done well and gave the teammates, fans, and his family something to acknowledge their loss. An incredibly bad situation was handled properly by the team. Coach Mace having only eleven players on the field for the first Rider punt and taking a time-count violation was another acknowledgement of their loss. Edmonton declining was a great show of respect. Classy on both coaches to pay that kind of tribute.

I thought Cody Fajardo did a great job tackling the moment after the game too.

“We tried to put ourselves in their shoes if we had lost one of our teammates,” the former Rider QB said. “You know just how much you want to rally around each other. It’s just an unfortunate event with two people losing their lives. I told the guys to take the field with gratitude that we have the opportunity to. My prayers go out to both families.”

Knockout blow after knockout blow

I cannot remember the last time I was at an Elks game where the back-and-forth momentum and points were so constant. There were eight lead changes in the game, with four of those in the fourth quarter. That is CFL football.

Trevor Harris threw for 386 yards and four touchdowns, with four different receivers recording majors. On most nights, that closes out the other team. Insert Fajardo and this Elks receiving corps. Between the teams, they had four touchdowns that were answered back with another touchdown.

Harris throws a 56-yard pass for a touchdown. Fajardo comes back in the final two frames with 81-yard and 37-yard strikes. This wasn’t just jabbing out a few points here and there. They were both throwing haymakers. With both teams struggling to get any running game going, the air show was spectacular.

Kudos need to go to both offensive lines for giving their quarterbacks time to get those balls thrown downfield. Edmonton’s Brett Boyko returned from the broken hand he suffered in the first preseason game. The six-year CFL vet came back to play left guard, which is a big switch from his normal right tackle spot. I thought he played admirably in his first action of the year. Being such a big dude should help that left side as they await the return of Carter O’Donnell.

Mack attack

Austin Mack signed in Edmonton on January 29 this year, just a few days after being released from the Montreal Alouettes. The reconnection with Fajardo has been growing since day one of camp, and it came to fruition this game. The 28-year-old caught four passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns. An 81-yard scamper, after a fingertip catch, in the final quarter completed the full return.

“I wasn’t worried about nothing but the ball in that situation,” Mack said of the adjustment. “Feels great to catch the ball with nobody around. More than anything, it was the right spot at the right time and Cody getting a great ball. It takes a lot of people doing their job for me to be able to do mine, and everything worked out.”

Not to be totally outdone, rookie receiver T.J. Luther, who has been making waves, continued to put up numbers. Ten catches on twelve targets for the Gardner-Webb product led both teams. Putting up 51 yards after the catch led to his 157 total. The young guys continue to step up, as these were not just small catches. He got popped a couple times and hung on for the gain. I have seen some people drawing the comparison to Derel Walker. Although I don’t see the exact same speed, the precision catching and toughness at the catch point are very comparable.

You did what now?

This has to be one of the most bizarre plays I have seen.

Third-and-one from the gun (thank you, Reklaws) and the snap came before Fajardo is set. The ball bounced off his hand. A quick scoop brought it back, but then the pressure was on. Instead of taking the sack, he tossed it up in an effort to get it to Justin Rankin. It missed… by a lot. It was snagged by Antoine Brooks Jr. and run back to the Elks’ 24-yard line.

To top it off, this all happened in the fourth quarter of a tight game. I get that the effort is there to not take the loss, but that play immediately put Sask in scoring position. If not for the amazing kick at the end, I feel like this play would be talked about a lot more.

Do we call it Fajoink?

There is history between the uprights in Mosaic Stadium and Cody Fajardo, especially those in the north end zone. In the Western Final seven years ago, a pass was knocked down by the uprights and played a factor in the home team’s loss. The upright defender got involved again this week.

Going for a two-point conversion early in the fourth quarter, the pass was knocked down again by the almost the same spot on the upright. Fajardo took it in stride and even tried to pump up the crowd to give him the gears about it. He will be happy when they move the posts to the back of the end zone, at least when he visits Mosaic again.

The rematch

Edmonton heads back home to take on these same Riders one week from now. With the Elks sitting at 6-1 and the Roughriders at 4-2, the game isn’t exactly for first place, but it might as well be.

I am interested to see the draw for this game with a winning team and a high entertainment value between these two competitors. It would be a crime to have less than 30,000 out to support a team that just finds a way to win week after week.

Andrew Hoskins is a lifelong Edmonton resident and the host of the Turf District Podcast.