Heading into the Western Final, Brady Oliveira told me, “big time players have to show up in those big games.”
Well, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers showed up and showed out on Saturday night at Princess Auto Stadium, as the team dominated the Saskatchewan Roughriders to punch their ticket to the 111th Grey Cup.
From the quarterback and his favourite receiver to a shutdown defender and a group that doesn’t get enough love, here are four of the biggest performers from the Western Final.
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EVAN HOLM | DEFENSIVE BACK
The entire Blue Bombers secondary had a fantastic game in the Western Final but Evan Holm seemed to be on another level at Princess Auto Stadium.
Winnipeg’s field halfback tallied four tackles, two on defence and two on special teams, and had a game-high four pass breakups.
His first knockdown was in the second quarter, with Trevor Harris and the Rider offence trying to move the chains. Holm flew in and was in perfect coverage, breaking up the pass intended for Samuel Emilus to bring up third down and a punting situation.
The next knockdown was in the third quarter, once again breaking up a pass intended for Emilus and forcing the Riders to a two-and-out.
Later in the fourth quarter, Holm was still ready for anything thrown Emilus’ way, batting down another pass intended for the Rider receiver to force another punt. After that punt was fumbled by Lucky Whitehead, the Bomber defence bailed him out by not allowing a single point on the drive. Holm had the dagger, knocking away a Harris pass to KeeSean Johnson in the end zone on third down to force the turnover on downs.
His only miscue on the night was taking a pass interference penalty in the first quarter to bring the Riders into Bomber territory. Saskatchewan would finish the drive with three points off the foot of Brett Lauther to get their first score of the ball game.
OFFENSIVE LINE
This may be kind of cheating by lumping all five of the members of the Bombers offensive line into one but they deserve their credit for their contributions to the win.
As a unit they were excellent in pass protection, not allowing a single sack on Zach Collaros on the evening and giving him plenty of time to find his receivers down field.
They also opened up holes for Brady Oliveira to find space to run, while also releasing and running with him to make key blocks when called upon. Winnipeg finished the night with 194 yards on the ground, 119 of those from Oliveira, who also had a rushing touchdown in the victory.
ZACH COLLAROS | QUARTERBACK
Speaking of Zach Collaros, the veteran pivot saved his best game of the 2024 season for the most important moment. Collaros connected on 19 of 26 passes (73.1%), 301 yards, four touchdown passes, and no interceptions. He finished the night with a perfect passer rating as well (158.3).
Collaros also used his legs when he needed, calling his number on a 10-yard pick up for a first down midway through the first quarter and wasn’t afraid to scramble out of the pocket to extend plays to find his receivers.
It was a vintage Zach performance and one of his best in the post-season in recent memory. The last time Collaros threw a touchdown pass in the post-season was in the 2022 Western Final. He did not have a passing major in the 109th Grey Cup, 2023 Western Final or the 110th Grey Cup.
KENNY LAWLER | RECEIVER
Save the best for last here, right?
Kenny Lawler was sensational on Saturday night, finding holes in the Roughriders secondary for massive gains.
Lawler hit 177 yards on just four catches and three of those receptions turned into six points. He averaged a whopping 44.3 yards per catch, his longest going for 65 yards. That big play was the first of a two-play scoring drive, one that he finished himself with his second touchdown of the game in the first quarter to put the Bombers up 14-0. His third major was a 57-yard strike in the third quarter to increase the Bombers lead to 31-16.