Blue Bombers Dominate Fourth Quarter, Remain Undefeated With Victory Over Alouettes – TSN.ca

MONTREAL — In a 14-14 fourth-quarter draw, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers dug deep to keep their unbeaten season intact.

The Blue Bombers (9-0) prevailed with three touchdowns and clinched a 35-20 win over the Montreal Alouettes at Percival Molson Stadium on Thursday.

Dakota Prukop restored Winnipeg’s lead with a one-yard sneak. Janarion Grant then threw a cold shower on the home crowd with a 57-yard punt return. Brady Oliveira sealed the win with a late six-yard rush.

“I think this is the toughest situation our boys have ever been in,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “Full marks for Montreal, they took the ball away early and often and our boys just kept grinding and digging.

“I think Janarion’s punt return touchdown, the timing for that is spot on.”

Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros threw for 210 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. The back-to-back Gray Cup champions suffered a double losing streak in Montreal.

Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris threw for 127 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Dominique Davis added a late touchdown pass.

After six away games in the first nine and without a bye week, the Bombers were expecting a physical game in Montreal. The Alouettes defense got quarterback Zach Collaros, limiting the Bombers to just seven points in the first half.

“It was physical. It was just as tough a competition as it was then,” said O’Shea. “It was muggy, hot. They were very physical. They brought it and our guys responded very well, which is what you can expect from our guys. They really expect that of themselves.”

Oliveira described the game as “a dogfight,” adding that all three stages in which the team contributed were a major factor in Winnipeg’s unbeaten record remaining intact. For the running back, “the grind” has been a motivating factor for the team as they seek a third straight Gray Cup.

“It was definitely a grind,” he said. “It was a close game. For most of the game on the sidelines, there was just so much believing and that word grind, like just falling in love with the grind, embracing the grind. And that’s exactly what we did.”

The Alouettes (2-6) held off the Bombers with physical strength, but the loss still hurt.

“Of course this loss hurts. It hurts how we reacted after the touchdown when it was 14-14,” said Alouette’s head coach Danny Maciocia. “We are not able to deal with small adversities and we look for problems.

“I think we need to get back to work and look at everything and make decisions that will give us a chance to fix those issues and have some success.”

Montreal have a shot at making amends next week when they travel to Winnipeg to face the Bombers in their second straight matchup.

“We’re expecting the same kind of football, we’re expecting a physical rematch at IG Field,” said defenseman Willie Jefferson. “We know they will try to get us back for beating them at home. It’s going to be a tough game.”

The Alouettes shocked the Bombers on the first drive of the game when Wesley Sutton intercepted Collaros and immediately put Montreal in goal position.

However, the Winnipeg defense limited the damage to a field goal when David Cote placed a 24-yard try through the post for an early 3-0 lead.

Winnipeg took the lead in the second quarter when Montreal’s Rodney Randle Jr. put the visitors to the nine-yard line with a 39-yard pass interference penalty. Collaros found Dalton Schoen for Winnipeg’s first touchdown.

Cote followed with a 49-yard field goal to reduce the Bombers’ lead to one.

The Alouettes gave Winnipeg a chance for a touchdown with a pyramiding penalty on a field goal attempt, giving the Bombers a new set of downs. Collaros scored his second TD of the night with a five-yard pass to Rasheed Bailey.

Tyson Philpot helped Montreal tie the game on the next drive. The rookie returned Winnipeg’s kickoff 60 yards and two plays later caught Harris’ pass in the backfield and lurched through defense to score Montreal’s first touchdown. Dominique Davis rushed into the end zone for the two-point conversion to make the score 14-14.

Second-line quarterback Dakota Prukop helped Winnipeg regain their lead with a one-yard score.

Grant returned Montreal’s punt 57 yards into the end zone for the visitors’ fourth touchdown of the night.

The Bombers ended their dominance in the fourth quarter with a six-yard rush from Oliveira.

The Alouettes added a late touchdown when Davis found Reggie White Jr. on a 20-yard pass.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 4, 2022