On a hot summer night, with 32,422 fans and SwiftEEs in attendance, the tradition known as The Labour Day Rematch gave everyone watching a roller coaster of emotions when the Edmonton Elks managed to defeat their rivals, the Calgary Stampeders.

   In this edition of The Turnover, we'll break down the critical win for the Elks in what was a second consecutive victory at home.

GAME DAY VIBES   

The City of Edmonton has come alive on Labour Day for every year that we've participated in the long-standing traditional Game Day. The Elks came close to a win on Monday against their provincial rival, so you can't blame the Green and Gold faithful for believing this team could get the win. Our Game Day started with smoking slider patties for the Tailgate Party, followed by arriving at Commonwealth Stadium early to ensure we had some downtime to enjoy the environment and celebration before doing our regular fan services in providing food, pictures, freebies and of course, having conversations with our fellow fans. Saturday's Tailgate Party was busier than usual, partially due to the Taylor Swift prize package giveaway provided by the Elks. Once we wrapped up our Tailgate, we posted the EE Roll Call and settled in for what would be a critical game for both teams from Alberta.

GAME TIME   

The game opened up with Elks punter Jake Julien booting the ball into the Stampeders endzone, resulting in Calgary being hemmed close to their goal line. Without a successful drive, the Elks regained possession and managed to get the ball to running back Kevin Brown, who pinballed his way into the endzone for a touchdown early. 7-0 Elks with a Dean Faithfull PAT. Calgary would answer back with a field goal shortly after, courtesy of kicker Rene Parades. Once the ball was back in the hands of Elks quarterback Tre Ford, he put his legs to use with a run that resulted in an Elks first down at the Stampeders 35 yard line. Unfortunately, that run wouldn't mean much due to a Kevin Brown fumble on a nasty hit. Calgary's Johnathan Moxey recovered the ball and danced around before being taken down.

   The second quarter saw quarterback Jake Maier hurt the Elks with tempo and finesse. After a failed drive by the EE, the Stamps came back with a successful drive resulting in a touchdown caught by reciever William Langlais. 10-7 the bad guys. Kevin Brown charged down the field to get the Elks close to field goal position, however Ford was injured during a play, so the Elks conceded possession with a punt and returned the ball to the ever-hot team from the "Town By The Bow". With momentum on their side, the Stampeders charged down the field to repeat the performance from their last drive, this time a touchdown caught by reciever Reggie Begelton. 17-7 with 5 seconds left in the half.

   The third quarter came with anxiety and stress for fans that have watched this team struggle in most of their games after halftime. With the weight of Edmonton on their shoulders, the Elks would try to mount a comeback but instead, they dug a deeper hole. Tre Ford was intercepted early in the third, with the Stampeders inflicting a three-point drive off of the mistake. On the next Elks drive, again Ford was intercepted. Again, the Stampeders added another 3 points to the scoreboard, courtesy of Calgary running back Kadeem Carey and kicker Parades. 23-7 with time running out for the Elks. That's when Tre Ford took matters into his own hands with some steady plays and a run that saw the Elks down at the Stampeders 2 yard line.  

  The Edmonton Elks comeback started in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Taylor Cornelius put his lanky body to the test with a huge jump that got the Elks back onto the scoreboard, however Faithfull would miss the PAT, concerning many. 23-13 with the clock ticking.

   This is when the Elks defense woke up. Safety Scott Hutter stopped an aerial assault when he blocked a ball that was targeted for the steady-handed Begelton. With momentum on their side, the Elks regained possession and executed an aerial assault of their own with Ford throwing the ball down the field to star reciver Eugene Lewis for some much needed positive passing yardage. After that, Ford launched another ball well down the field, this time into the endzone for reciever Dillon Mitchell. After a failed 2-point conversion, the score would be 23-19 with less than 10 minutes remaining.

   Between penalties and good defensive play from the Elks, the Stampeders could not string together a successful drive, a directly opposite result of Monday's game. After another Geno Lewis catch, Ford would take a hit to the head during a slide that gave the Elks even more positive yardage. However, the drive would stall, putting fate in the hand of Faithfull once again. A field goal later and the Elks were now within one point of a tie, two points away from a win. Commonwealth Stadium began to boom, bringing the noise for the Elks defense. Defensive back Ed Gainey shut down a critical pass that saw the Stamps punt the ball yet again in the fourth, adding fuel to the fire that was already burning hot in the Elks. With some help from a pass interference call and one last steady-handed catch from Lewis, Dean Faithfull kicked the ball into the endzone for the most important field goal of his career, and he knew it based on his Queen Wave celebration. The Elks would win 25-23 in what was the best win of the season for Edmonton Elks fans. The Labour Day Rematch is always a passionate, meaningful game, and Saturday's result sent Elks fans home with great memories and a sense of pride.

3 THOUGHTS FROM SATURDAY:

1. I apologize for thinking this team would lose. Myself and many other fans thought Tre Ford may be benched for the bad performance. Instead, Tre Ford faced adversity and brought the team and city a win. It was great to be wrong.

2. What a bad 1st Half. The Elks sputtered and couldn't seem to find any traction in the passing game. The rushing game was the only real threat to Calgary which was puzzling.

3. WHAT A 2ND HALF EDMONTON!!! That third quarter was awful until the very end. Unfortunately Edmonton still needs to solve the third, but fortunately Edmonton didn't give up and they managed to exploit Calgary the exact same way Calgary did to them on Monday.

FOR FANS FROM FANS

   I think all EE fans can agree; Does it ever feel great to get a walk-off win against Calgary. After being soured on Monday in a dramatic loss, watching the Elks perform a similar operation against the Stamps shows this team is finally competitive again. This team has a swagger and can do a bit of everything, which is something that has been missed for the past 3 seasons. As per Dave Campbell at 630 CHED, many believe Tre Ford has "It", which is a certain factor that determines if a quarterback can lead your team under any circumstance. For example, Chad Kelly has "it" based on how he trains, prepares and leads his men on and off the turf. While I thought Ford was close to being benched, I'm sure happy to be wrong in this instance as a win trumps any opinion. We celebrated the win after the game with our fellow tailgaters in The Korte Crew, as well as Superfan Mike, Chris A and Colin with his Herd. Overall, this team has given themselves a chance of playoff contention and the fanbase lasting memories and ever-growing hope of returning back to glory days.

ON TAP: EDMONTON ELKS @ SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS

  The Edmonton Elks are returning to Saskatchewan to take on the Roughriders at Mosiac Stadium on September 15th. Kickoff is at 7:30 PM Mountain, with the game being aired on TSN and 630 CHED. This game is yet another crucial game for the Green and Gold as they try to keep their playoff hopes alive. Antler Up, Edmonton!

For more Edmonton Elks talk, tune in to The Elks Call Podcast on YouTube Wednesdays or Thursdays LIVE at 8:30 PM, and the rewind on Edmonton Sports Talk on Fridays at 8 PM!