EDMONTON — Tyrrell Pigrome’s first taste of CFL action was pretty sweet.

The rookie quarterback recorded a pair of touchdown runs, including a game-winning 46-yard sprint into the end zone, as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers survived a comeback attempt to open the CFL’s preseason game with a 25-23 win over the Edmonton Elks on Saturday afternoon.

Pigrome, a Birmingham, Alabama native who went to Towson, made a good case for himself in his debut as he tries to land the third-string QB role in a perceived battle with Josh Jones.

“He can really move, he’s very athletic,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “When he decides to take off, he will be difficult to handle.”

Pigrome is happy to make an early impact.

“I’m blessed to be here, blessed for this opportunity,” he said. “For those things to happen to me in my first match, it’s a blessing. This is just the beginning. I still have to make the team and I still have to keep working and pushing and trying to improve.”

Edmonton fell to 0-2 in exhibition action.

“We took a bit of time to get going but once we started everyone was moving in sync, we were moving together and I thought the offense moved the ball pretty well,” said Elks backup QB Tre Ford, who scored one of Edmonton’s goals. touchdown.

The Elks scored on their opening drive, earning a 35-yard field goal by Dean Faithfull.

Winnipeg responded quickly, as veteran quarterback Zach Collaros found Kenny Lawler on a 67-yard touchdown pass.

Edmonton got one touchdown on Faithfull’s failed 44-yard try.

The Blue Bombers started the second quarter with a one-yard TD jump from Pigrome.

Faithfull completed a long drive engineered by reserve QB Ford with a 31-yard field goal before kicker Winnipeg hit a 34-yard hit to put the Bombers up 17-7 at halftime.

Ford continued to look good behind the Edmonton center as he started the third quarter with another strong push, ending with a seven-yard rush and a huge dive into the end zone to bring the Elks to within three.

Edmonton would later draw even early in the final frame with Faithfull’s 19-yard field goal.

Pigrome displayed several legs of his own four minutes into the fourth quarter, putting his team back in front with a 46-yard touchdown run.

The Bombers get bonus points on punt singles.

Edmonton bounced back with 1:54 to play third string QB Kai Locksley found CJ Sims on a 44-yard passing play, setting up another pitch for a TD to Raphael Leonard. However, the two-point conversion attempt to equalize was incomplete.

Faithfull’s 52-yard field goal attempt with time out for the win was blocked.

“We had to find a way not to shoot ourselves early in the game and we’d probably be in a much different situation,” said Elks head coach Chris Jones. “But we went scratch and claw and gave ourselves a chance to win the game late and unfortunately we came out a bit short.”

NOTES

The Elks, who finished last in the CFL West with a 4-14 record last season, have finished their preseason, losing 29-24 en route to the Calgary Stampeders in their first preseason game on Monday… The Blue Bombers went 15-3 last season and making it to the Gray Cup for the third year in a row before losing to Toronto… The Edmonton Elks’ CFL regular season home losing streak stood at 17 games, going all the way back to their last win at Commonwealth Stadium on October 12, 2019… Leaving home in Winnipeg was veterans Dalton Schoen and Jake Thomas. Bomber midfielder Adam Bighill, defenseman Jackson Jeffcoat, running back Brady Oliveira, and defensive backs Winston Rose and Desmond Lawrence are all out injured… Among those out for the Elks are defensive back Aaron Grymes, defensive back Scott Hutter and defensive tackle J- Min Pele.

NEXT

The Bombers conclude their pre-season schedule at home to the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday before also opening the season at home on June 9 against Hamilton. The Elks are off until June 11, when they play host to Saskatchewan in their close-season lifter.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on May 27, 2023.