The Montreal Alouettes (2-0) hosted the Toronto Argonauts (0-1) on Friday night from Percival Molson Memorial Stadium. Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly made his first start since the 2024 Eastern Final against the Alouettes.
In the first quarter, Montreal returner Phillip Brooks III returned the opening 26 yards to the 35-yard line. Running back Travis Theis rushed for eight yards, and Alexander threw a 22-yard pass to Jerreth Sterns to the 45-yard line. On the next play, Alexander handed the ball off to Travis Theis. Theis tossed the ball back to Alexander, who then threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Tyson Philpot for a 7-0 lead with 12:57 left.
Toronto got the ball on the 23-yard line. Quarterback Chad Kelly threw three straight passes for 40 yards to the 47-yard line. Kelly rushed for 12 yards and threw a 12-yard pass to Samuel Hicks to the 23-yard line. Hicks would get four more yards before kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 45-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Alouettes 7-3.
Later, Toronto had a chance to make it a one-point game, but Hajrullahu missed a 45-yard field goal wide left. Montreal returner Phillip Brooks III returned the missed field goal for 35 yards to the 27-yard line. Quarterback Davis Alexander threw two passes to Tyson Philpot for 51 yards to the 32-yard line. Kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 40-yard field goal. The Alouettes led the Argonauts 10-3 heading into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, Montreal moved the ball to the 33-yard line. On the next play, Alexander completed a pass to Tyson Philpot. Toronto defensive back James Ceasar punched the ball out, and Da’Marcus Johnson recovered it, but the ref ruled it down by contact. Toronto challenged the play for a fumble and won. Toronto’s offense moved the ball to the five-yard line, where kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 12-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Alouettes 10-6 with 5:24 left.
Davis Alexander threw three passes for 42 yards to the 28-yard line. Running back Travis Theis had two carries for 16 yards before Alexander was sacked by Adarius Pickett for a two-yard loss. Kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 22-yard field goal for a 13-6 lead with 2:16 left.
Late in the second quarter, Toronto quarterback Chad Kelly threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to David Ungerer III to tie the game 13-13 with 1:18 left, which took six plays for 70 yards. With under a minute left, Montreal punter Joseph Zema punted the ball 64 yards into the endzone, where Toronto returner Janarion Grant conceded the single point. The Alouettes led the Argonauts 14-13 at halftime.
Montreal wide receiver Tyson Philpot had a nice first half with seven catches for 136 yards and one touchdown, while Toronto wide receiver David Ungerer III made two catches for 32 yards and one touchdown.
Toronto got the ball to start the third quarter on the 41-yard line. Wide receiver Kevin Mital made a big impact to start the second half. He rushed for six yards, and on the next play, caught a 63-yard touchdown pass from Chad Kelly. The Argonauts took a 20-14 lead with 13:47 left.
For the rest of the third quarter, Toronto had a chance to extend its lead, but kicker Lirim Hajrullahu missed a 31-yard field goal wide left, and Montreal kicker Jose Maltos Diaz made a 33-yard field goal. The Alouettes trailed the Argonauts 20-17 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Toronto kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 31-yard field goal for a 23-17 lead with 14:53 left. Montreal quarterback Davis Alexander threw six passes for 69 yards; four of those went to Jerreth Sterns to the one-yard line. Quarterback Dustin Crum came in and scored the touchdown. The Alouettes took a 24-23 lead with 10:13 left to conclude a seven-play drive for 70 yards.
The turning point of the game came when Toronto was set to punt on third down. Montreal linebacker Micah Awe blocked the punt. The ball rolled into the endzone, where it was recovered by Alexandre Gagne for the touchdown. Jose Maltos Diaz missed the extra point. It was now 30-23 with 2:19 left.
Toronto would go two-and-out on its next drive. They caught a break when Montreal returner Phillip Brooks III had the ball ripped out by Owen Goss and recovered by Derek Slywka on the 55-yard line. Despite the second chance, Toronto went three-and-out. Montreal put the game away when quarterback Davis Alexander threw a 56-yard touchdown pass to Tyson Philpot for a 37-23 lead with 1:13 left.
Toronto had the ball for the rest of the game. Quarterback Chad Kelly threw six passes for 74 yards to the nine-yard line. On the next play, Kelly threw a touchdown pass to Tyler Kahmann. The drive took seven plays for 53 yards. The Alouettes defeated the Argonauts 37-30. Montreal quarterback Davis Alexander is now 13-0 in the regular season as a starter.
Montreal’s offense had 486 yards (441 passing yards, 51 rushing yards, 6 yards lost), 22 first downs, 1 for 2 in the redzone, and the team was penalized three times for 30 yards. Quarterback Davis Alexander completed 30 of 42 passes (71.4%) for 44 yards, two touchdowns, and one carry for one yard. Running back Travis Theis had eight carries for 43 yards.
Wide receiver Tyson Philpot made nine catches for 193 yards and two touchdowns, while Jerreth Sterns made nine catches for 114 yards. The defense made 38 tackles, one sack, one interception, and one forced fumble.
Toronto’s offense had 480 yards (445 passing yards, 71 rushing yards, 36 yards lost), 23 first downs, 2 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized three times for 25 yards. Quarterback Chad Kelly completed 28 of 46 passes (60.8%) for 445 yards, three touchdowns, one interception, and one carry for 12 yards. Running back Samuel Hicks had nine carries for 53 yards and three catches for 29 yards.
Wide receiver Kevin Mital made seven catches for 109 yards and one touchdown, while Tyler Kahmann made six catches for 106 yards and one touchdown, and David Ungerer III made five catches for 65 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 36 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Next Saturday, the Toronto Argonauts visit the Ottawa Redblacks at 1 pm on TSN and CFL+, followed by the Montreal Alouettes visiting the Edmonton Elks at 4 pm on TSN and CFL+.
