HAMILTON — Vernon Adams Jr. threw his CFL-best 21st touchdown pass of the season as the Calgary Stampeders defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 44-20 on Saturday afternoon. Adams connected with Dejon Brissett in the first quarter as Calgary (4-4) earned its second straight win. The veteran quarterback managed to keep his interception-free streak this season alive, but needed a Hamilton penalty to nullify a pick in the game. Adams was 18-of-25 passing for 252 yards and ran twice for eight yards. Brissett had six catches for 109 yards. Quincy Vaughn’s four-yard TD run at 12:04 of the fourth quarter put Calgary ahead 37-20, capping a 78-yard, eight-play march. Then Derrick Moncrief returned an interception 25 yards for the touchdown at 12:35. The Ticats (3-5) suffered a second straight loss and fifth in six games. Rookie Harrison Frost, who replaced starter Tre Ford late in the first half, finished nine-of-20 passing for 165 yards with a touchdown and interception and also lost a fumble. Jude McAtamney’s 48-yard field goal at 2:04 put Calgary ahead 27-19. Mitch McCarthy boomed a 77-yard punt single at 3:40 but McAtamney’s 29-yard boot at 7:10 gave the Stamps a 30-20 lead. Former Ticats Tyreik McAllister and Kyle Wilson scored Calgary’s other touchdowns. McAtamney kicked three field goals and four converts. Kenny Lawler scored Hamilton’s touchdown. Marc Liegghio kicked four field goals and a convert. Liegghio’s 28-yard field goal at 14:54 of the third pulled Hamilton to within 24-19. Frost found Lawler on a 24-yard touchdown pass at 1:49 after Ticat Destin Talbert steered George Idoko’s fumbled kickoff return out of bounds at the Calgary 35-yard line. Liegghio’s 35-yard field goal to end the second quarter cut Calgary’s halftime lead to 24-6. It came after McAllister and Wilson scored touchdowns 45 seconds apart. McAllister scored on a 15-yard run at 13:28 before Wilson returned Frost’s fumble 28 yards for the score at 14:13. McAllister’s TD came after Hamilton’s Jamal Peters intercepted Adams — which would’ve been Adams’ first pick the year — but Hamilton was flagged for roughing the passer. The Ticats lost a challenge of the call. Ford falters Ford made his third start for Hamilton. The Niagara Falls, Ont., native was four-of-10 passing for 58 yards while rushing four times for 52 yards with a fumble before leaving the game. Liegghio’s 41-yard field goal at 14:29 of the first cut Calgary’s lead to 10-6. McAtamney put Calgary up 10-3 with a 53-yard field goal at 11:55. It was set up by Anthony Johnson’s 32-yard return of Ford’s fumble that was forced by Wilson. That happened just two plays after Ford ran 10 yards on a third-and-five gamble. A wide-open Brissett put Calgary ahead 7-3 with a 43-yard TD grab at 6:26. It followed Liegghio’s 50-yard boot at 4:47 to open the scoring. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2026. Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press
