Ticats dump Eskimos in East final, earn 1st Grey Cup berth since 2014

All season the Hamilton Tiger-Cats have been the class of the Canadian Football League, and Sunday was no exception.

In front of a raucous crowd at Tim Hortons Field, the Ticats booked a trip to the 107th Grey Cup with a resounding 36-16 win over the Edmonton Eskimos in the East final.

The Ticats, a team trying to end a 20-year championship drought, will be making their first Grey Cup appearance since 2014 and their 22nd in the franchise's modern history (since 1950). With their East final win, the Tabbies - who went 15-3 in the regular season - improved to a perfect 10-0 at home in 2019.

Brandon Banks, the East's MOP finalist, led the way for Hamilton with four receptions for 100 yards, including a spectacular 47-yard touchdown grab. It was Banks' first career playoff game with 100-plus receiving yards, according to CFL Football Operations.

Quarterback Dane Evans, making his CFL playoff debut, torched Edmonton's secondary while throwing for 386 yards and completing nearly 60% of his pass attempts.

It was a rough day all around for the Eskimos, as the club couldn't repeat its magic from last week's semifinal stunner in Montreal. Although quarterback Trevor Harris threw for 319 yards and a touchdown, he was also picked off twice and rushed for only 26 yards. Hamilton didn't struggle while getting to Harris, sacking him three times in the fourth quarter.

The Ticats essentially buried Edmonton midway through the opening quarter when head coach Orlondo Steinauer's gutsy call to go for it on third-and-goal was successful. The resulting two-yard rush from backup QB David Watford put the Ticats up 10-0, and they never relinquished their double-digit lead en route to the victory.

Hamilton will face either the Saskatchewan Roughriders or Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the two teams set to square off in the West final later Sunday, in next week's Grey Cup.