Caleb Evans couldn’t have asked for a better result against his former side. The Montreal Alouettes quarterback scored the game-winning touchdown, helping the Alouettes come from behind to defeat the Ottawa Redblacks 25-24 on Saturday.
Evans, who played for Ottawa in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, had a tough first half but tipped the scales in important moments.
Trailing 24-19 in the fourth quarter, the Alouettes took the ball at their 38-yard line. Evans found Hergy Mayala for 51 yards on third down. Near the goal line, it was also on a third down that Evans reached the end zone.
“I wanted to throw the ball but they just kept coming back,” Evans said. I told myself that I could run. So my intention changed to go for the touchdown. »
Evans finished the day with 24 of 36 completions for 333 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Rouge et Noir won the draw and decided to postpone their decision in the second half. The Alouettes, who wore their red uniform for this duel, went to midcourt in their first sequence, experiencing a difficult start to the game.
Mustafa Johnson netted the game’s first sack, forcing a seven-yard loss to the Rouge et Noir, who then returned the ball to the opposition.
While near the end zone, Evans attempted a pass which was easily intercepted by Damon Webb.
In the dying seconds of the first quarter, a fine pass from quarterback Dustin Crum to Shaquelle Evans allowed the Rouge et Noir to settle within a yard of the end zone.
Tyrrell Pigrome then scored his first career touchdown in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and his team led 7-0 after one quarter.
David Côté put the Alouettes on the scoring with a three-point field goal from 10 yards.
Evans, who had started the game well with six completions on his first seven attempts, then lost momentum, completing just two of his next six.
Pigrome then took advantage of a scramble by the Alouettes quarterback, who lost the ball while trying to run with it. The Rouge et Noir recovered the loose ball and Pigrome scored his second touchdown of the game on the first play in attack.
The Rouge et Noir only needed four offensive sequences to lead 14-3.
Bryce Carter got his sixth sack of the quarter late in the first half for the Rouge et Noir.
With 37 seconds left in the first half, the Rouge et Noir added a field goal of 39 yards. Sherrod Baltimore made his third interception shortly after the field goal, to make sure the Alouettes didn’t score before returning to the locker room at halftime.
Wide end Tyler Snead gave hope to his team by catching his quarterback’s pass to score the first touchdown of the game for the Alouettes, at the start of the third quarter. Côté confirmed the seven-yard touchdown by kicking the ball between the posts, and the score was 17-10.
The Rouge et Noir quarterback, however, dealt a heavy blow to the visitors in the fourth quarter. Crum made the touchdown running the 13 yards to the end zone.
With just under six minutes to play, Côté helped the Alouettes close the gap to 24-13 with a three-point field goal from 50 yards.
Snead scored his second touchdown of the game with 2:33 to go. The latter gained 20 passing yards before ending his run in the end zone. The Alouettes, however, did not succeed in their conversion by two points.