Toronto Argonauts' quarterback Zach Collaros, looks for a receiver during first quarter CFL football action against the Calgary Stampeders in Calgary, Alta., Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.JEFF MCINTOSH/The Canadian Press
After tossing the eventual game-winning touchdown pass to Mike Bradwell in the fourth quarter, Zach Collaros suffered through a few nervous moments.
"It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium.
Late in the fourth quarter with Toronto clinging to a 32-26 lead, Brad Sinopli caught a pass from Calgary quarterback Kevin Glenn and appeared to run for a 57-yard touchdown, but the play was called back after Arthur was flagged for offensive pass interference.
"It's just kind of unfortunate that we were on the wrong side of the call," said Arthur, who finished the game with seven catches for 68 yards and a touchdown. "It's definitely a little bit frustrating. It's a play that's called 100 times a game. I thought it was good."
In the game's final seconds with the Argos leading 33-26 and Bo Levi Mitchell in at quarterback for the Stamps, Calgary receiver Anthony Parker hauled in a pass that was tipped at the goal line, but officials deemed that he fell out of bounds as time expired.
The Argos were assessed an offside penalty on the play, so Calgary was given one more shot to tie up the game with no time left on the clock. Mitchell completed a pass to Arthur, who booted the ball into the end zone. A chase for the ball ensued, but Toronto's Alonzo Lawrence got to it first and smothered it to preserve the victory.
"I was wishing I was still in college so we could just take a couple knees and run the clock out," said Collaros, who completed 24-of 36 passes for 330 yards. "That doesn't happen up here."
Toronto coach Scott Milanovich praised his team for finding a way to win their third straight road game with Collaros in at quarterback for Ricky Ray, who's out with a shoulder injury.
"We showed a lot of character," Milanovich said. "You don't just win these games. Teams don't just — on the road with back-up players — win them without character and resolve and belief in the guys next to them. We're proud of them."
Collaros also threw TD passes to John Chiles, Andre Durie and Dontrelle Inman as Toronto halted Calgary's four-game winning streak overall and 10-game streak at home.
"We take care of each other and we want to play for each other," Collaros said. "That in itself is special and we believe in each other. We're going to have to continue to do that down the stretch here."
Swayze Waters added a field goal and a pair of singles for the Argos.
After watching Calgary's previous two games from the sidelines with a knee injury, Glenn returned to throw a pair of touchdown passes to Arthur and Marquay McDaniel.
"As a team we can't get complacent and just keep riding the wave," Glenn said. "We've got to make sure that we come out every week and get better and we didn't do that tonight."
Back-up quarterback Drew Tate also ran for a one-yard TD, Rene Parades kicked a field goal and a single, and Rob Maver booted a single. Arthur was also credited with a single for kicking the ball into the end zone on the final play.
Early in the first quarter, Glenn was intercepted by Pat Watkins, who ran the ball back to the Calgary three-yard line. Two plays later, Collaros tossed a four-yard touchdown pass to Chiles to give Toronto an early 7-0 lead.
The Stamps answered right back with a 52-yard field goal by Parades, before Glenn threw an 11-yard strike to Arthur in the end zone to give the Stamps a 10-7 lead.
Rob Maver kicked a 59-yard single for Calgary late in the first quarter, before Waters responded right back with an 80-yard single for Toronto early in the second.
After Tate ran for a one-yard touchdown, Collaros responded by engineering a six-play, 65-yard drive that he capped off by tossing a two-yard touchdown pass to Durie to pull the Argos within three points.
Larry Taylor ran the opening kickoff of the second half back 34 yards to give the Stamps great field position at their own 54-yard line. Calgary took advantage as McDaniel caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Glenn just four plays later to put the Stamps up 25-15.
The Argos responded right back on their next drive as Collaros threw a 28-yard pass to Inman, who was wide open in the end zone.
The Stamps had a great chance to extend their lead, but Watkins hauled in his second interception of the game when he picked off a pass by Glenn that was intended for Kenny Stafford.
Waters then kicked a 40-yard field goal late in the third quarter before Collaros led the Argos on a four-play, 70-yard drive that he finished off by throwing the game-winning touchdown to Bradwell.
"We're kind of rolling right now," Bradwell said. "These last few wins we've had in a row, it's just something to build on. We've just got to keep getting better every week and keep rolling."
Notes: Parades had kicked 15 straight field goals until he missed a 34-yarder late in the fourth quarter that went through the end zone for a 47-yard single. a Argos running back Chad Kackert missed the game with a concussion he suffered during Toronto's 31-29 road win in Regina over the Saskatchewan Roughriders last Saturday. Kackert also missed the six games leading up to the win over the Riders with a knee injury. a The Stampeders honoured former owner Sid Gutsche, who passed away last week at the age of 64, with a moment of silence before the game. Players also wore memorial decal on their helmets. a The Stamps and Argos now have all-time records of 42-42-1 against each other. a The Argos were also the last team to beat the Stamps at home when they won 22-14 on Aug. 18, 2012.