The Montreal Alouettes (10-8) visited Hamilton Stadium on Saturday against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (11-7) in the Eastern Final. The Alouettes were missing a few players, including defensive lineman Mustafa Johnson (Shoulder) and defensive back Ciante Evans (Knee).
For Hamilton, they were also missing a few players, including defensive backs Patrick Burke Jr. (Shoulder) and Lawrence Woods III (Shoulder).
First Quarter:
In the first quarter, it was a defensive battle. Hamilton’s offense had 98 yards (67 yards passing, 31 yards rushing), while Montreal’s offense had 77 yards (39 yards passing, 38 yards rushing).
Late in the first quarter, Hamilton running back Greg Bell rushed for five yards, followed by Bo Levi Mitchell throwing two passes for 25 yards. Greg Bell ended the first quarter with a 15-yard run to the 43-yard line. The game was scoreless after one quarter of play.
Second Quarter:
Two plays into the second quarter, Bo Levi Mitchell’s pass to Kenny Lawler was underthrown and intercepted by Montreal defensive back Wesley Sutton on the four-yard line. Montreal quarterback Davis Alexander started the drive with a six-yard run to the 10-yard line.
On the next play, Hamilton defensive lineman Julian Howsare sacked Alexander for a five-yard loss to force third down. Hamilton’s offense had the ball on the 46-yard line. Wide receiver Tim White rushed for two yards, and that was all they got. Hamilton punted the ball back to Montreal with 11:39 left.
Montreal running back Travis Theis started the drive with a one-yard run, followed by Davis Alexander throwing an 11-yard pass to Tyson Philpot. On the next play, Hamilton got called for a defensive pass interference penalty, placing the ball on the 24-yard line. Travis Theis rushed for five more yards while catching a pass from Davis Alexander for a one-yard loss to the 20-yard line. On third down, kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 29-yard field goal. The Alouettes took a 3-0 lead with 8:12 left.
Late in the second quarter, Hamilton’s offense moved the ball to the 21-yard line. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 29-yard field goal, and the game was tied 3-3 with 38 seconds left. Montreal’s offense quickly moved the ball with Davis Alexander throwing two passes for 31 yards and rushing for 11 yards to the 28-yard line. Kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 36-yard field goal. The Alouettes led the Tiger-Cats 6-3 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
Montreal’s offense had 153 yards (80 yards passing, 78 yards rushing, 5 yards lost), 9 first downs, 0 and 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized one time for 10 yards. Quarterback Davis Alexander completed 9 of 13 passes (69.2%) for 80 yards and five carries for 48 yards.
Running back Stevie Scott III had three carries for 17 yards. Wide receiver Tyler Snead made two catches for 29 yards, while Tyson Philpot made three catches for 21 yards. The defense made one sack and one interception.
Hamilton’s offense had 167 yards (119 yards passing, 54 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 8 first downs, no red zone opportunities, and the team was penalized five times for 81 yards.
Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed 12 of 15 passes (80%) for 119 yards and one interception. Running back Greg Bell had six carries for 47 yards and two catches for 16 yards. Wide receiver Kenny Lawler made six catches for 70 yards, while Tim White made one catch for 12 yards. The defense made one sack.
Third Quarter:
Montreal’s offense started the third quarter on the 47-yard line. Running back Stevie Scott III started the drive with a nine-yard run, and Shea Patterson picked up the first down with a three-yard run to the 51-yard line. Quarterback Davis Alexander threw two passes for 14 yards, and Stevie Scott III rushed for three yards to the 28-yard line.
Two plays later, Hamilton’s defense pressured Alexander, forcing him out of the pocket. He ran to his right side before throwing a touchdown pass to Tyler Snead. The Alouettes extended their lead to 13-3 with 9:59 left to cap off an eight-play drive for 63 yards.
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell started the next drive by throwing two passes for 13 yards to the 46-yard line. Running back Greg Bell had two carries for eight yards, and Mitchell threw five more passes for 53 yards to the three-yard line. On the next play, Mitchell threw a touchdown pass to Shemar Bridges. The Tiger-Cats trailed the Alouettes 13-10 with 3:22 left to cap off a 10-play drive for 77 yards.
Montreal’s offense had the ball on the 30-yard line. On the next play, Davis Alexander’s pass intended for Charleston Rambo was intercepted by Hamilton defensive back Destin Talbert on the 39-yard line.
Hamilton’s offense moved the ball to the 48-yard line before the drive stalled. Montreal’s offense got the ball on the 25-yard line to begin the fourth quarter with a 13-10 lead.
Fourth Quarter:
Montreal running back Travis Theis got in a lot of work to start the fourth quarter. He caught two passes for 48 yards, including a 40-yarder, rushed for six yards, and caught another pass for five yards to the 26-yard line. Stevie Scott III rushed for 10 yards, but limped to the sidelines, and Davis Alexander rushed for 10 yards to the six-yard line.
Travis Theis rushed for two more yards before Davis Alexander was sacked by Devin Veresuk for a five-yard loss. Kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 17-yard field goal for a 16-10 lead with 9:17 left.
Hamilton quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw two passes for 29 yards to the 41-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 48-yard field goal. The Tiger-Cats trailed the Alouettes 16-13 with 7:32 left in the game.
Montreal’s offense went two-and-out, and Hamilton got the ball back on the 39-yard line. Bo Levi Mitchell threw five passes for 54 yards to the 15-yard line. Kicker Marc Liegghio made a 23-yard field goal, and the game was tied 16-16 with 1:47 left.
Late in the game, Montreal’s offense moved the ball to the 50-yard line. On the next play, Hamilton linebacker Reggie Stubblefield had an interception in his hands, but dropped it. Davis Alexander threw a 19-yard pass to Charleston Rambo, and Stevie Scott III had two carries for five yards to the 36-yard line with two seconds left.
Kicker Jose Maltos Diaz kicked a game-winning 45-yard field goal, and the Montreal Alouettes punched their ticket to the 112th Grey Cup with a 19-16 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. It is Montreal’s second Grey Cup appearance in three seasons.
Final Stats:
Montreal’s offense had 340 yards (210 yards passing, 140 yards rushing, 10 yards lost), 19 first downs, 0 and 2 in the red zone, and the team was penalized twice for 25 yards. Quarterback Davis Alexander completed 19 of 26 passes (73%) for 210 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and seven carries for 64 yards.
Running back Stevie Scott III had nine carries for 48 yards, while Travis Theis had five carries for 18 yards and four catches for 52 yards. Wide receiver Tyler Snead made three catches for 57 yards and one touchdown, while Charleston Rambo made three catches for 34 yards. The defense made 43 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception.
Hamilton’s offense had 338 yards (269 yards passing, 75 yards rushing, 6 yards lost), 18 first downs, 1 for 2 in the red zone, and the team was penalized five times for 81 yards. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell completed 29 of 36 passes (80.5%) for 269 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
Running back Greg Bell had 10 carries for 66 yards and two catches for 16 yards. Wide receiver Kenny Lawler made nine catches for 117 yards, while Kiondre Smith made four catches for 41 yards. The defense made 44 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and one interception.
The 112th Grey Cup from Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba, will air next Sunday at 6 pm on TSN, CTV, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+.
