The Blue Bombers (9-0) scored three touchdowns to beat the Montreal Alouettes 35-20 at Percival Molson Stadium on Thursday.
Dakota Prokop restored Winnipeg’s lead on a one-yard slide. Janarion Grant then gave the home crowd a cold shower with a 57-yard punt return. Brady Oliveira sealed the win with a six-yard rush.
“I think this is the toughest situation our guys have been in,” Bombers coach Mike O’Shea said. “Full marks to Montreal, they got the ball early and often and our guys kept grinding and digging.
“I think Janarion’s comeback strike, the time for it is the right time.”
Winnipeg quarterback Zach Kolaros threw for 210 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. The back-to-back Gray Cup champions snapped a two-game 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 games on the road in their first nine and without a bye week yet, the Bombers expected a physical game in Montreal. The Alouettes defense got to quarterback Zach Collaros, limiting the Bombers to just seven points in the first half.
“It was physical. It was as tough a competition as there is,” O’Shea said. “It was humid, hot. They were very physical. They brought it and our kids responded really well, which is what you would expect from our kids. That’s what they expect from themselves, really.”
Oliveira described the game as “a dogfight” adding that all three of the team’s contributions were a big factor in keeping Winnipeg’s unbeaten record intact. For the run, “the grind” has been a driving factor for the team seeking a third straight Gray Cup.
“It was definitely a trophy,” he said. “It was a tight game. For most of the game on the sidelines, there was so much faith and that word grind, just like I fall in love with the grind, embrace the grind. And that’s exactly what we did.”
The Alouettes (2-6) were physical against the Bombers, but the loss stung nonetheless.
“Obviously this loss hurts. It hurts the way we reacted after the touchdown when it was 14-14,” Alouettes head coach Danny Maciocia said. “We can’t handle a little adversity and we’re looking for trouble.
“I think we have to get back to work and look at everything and make decisions that will give us a chance to fix these problems and get some wins.”
Montreal will have a chance to redeem themselves next week when they travel to Winnipeg to face the Bombers in the second game of a back-to-back.
“We’re expecting the same kind of football, we’re expecting a physical rematch at IG Field,” defensive lineman Willie Jefferson said. “We know they will come trying to get us back because we beat them at home. It will be a difficult game.”
The Alouettes shocked the Bombers on the first drive of the game when Wesley Sutton stuck Collaros and immediately put Montreal in scoring position.
However, Winnipeg’s defense limited the damage to a field goal as David Cote put a 24-yard attempt through the uprights for an early 3-0 lead.
Winnipeg took the lead in the second quarter when a 39-yard defensive pass interference penalty on Montreal’s Rodney Randle Jr. put the visitors at the nine-yard line. Collaros found Dalton Schoen for Winnipeg’s first touchdown.
Cote followed that with a 49-yard field goal to cut the Bombers’ lead to one.
The Alouettes gave Winnipeg a chance at a touchdown with a pyramid penalty on a field goal attempt, giving the Bombers another set of downs. Kolaros scored his second TD of the night on 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 then two plays later caught Harris’ pass in the backfield and drifted through the defense for Montreal’s first touchdown. Dominique Davis rushed into the end zone for the two-point conversion, tying the score at 14-14.
Sophomore quarterback Dakota Prukop helped Winnipeg regain the lead with a one-yard score.
Grant returned Montreal’s punt 57 yards to the end zone for the visitors’ fourth touchdown of the night.
The Bombers capped their dominance in the fourth quarter with a six-yard run by Oliveira.
The Alouettes added a late touchdown when Davis found Reggie White Jr. on a 20-yard pass.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on August 4, 2022
