MONTREAL — In his second season in the Canadian Football League, David Cote had few opportunities to score a game-winning field goal.
On Saturday afternoon against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the Montreal Alouettes player got his opportunity in the final game of the game – a home game in front of 20,048 at Percival Molson Stadium.
The Tiger-Cats (3-7) pulled away by 14 points in the third quarter, but the weak Alouettes (4-6) regained the lead with 2:18 left in the game. Hamilton kicker Seth Small tackled a late 53-yard field goal, setting up Cote’s late heroics.
The Als’ kicker sealed the deal with a 48-yard field goal as time expired and his teammates stormed the field in celebration.
“A lot of head banging and people jumping around, I didn’t know where I was, but it was really good,” Cote said, describing the feeling after the game. “All the lads come on the pitch, we’re all really happy and so is the crowd. They made a huge difference and we heard it at the end, it was very loud.”
“I hadn’t felt that energy, that electricity in the stadium since, I don’t know, maybe the last time I was here in 1999 and 2000 with (Anthony Calvillo), Mike Pringle and Ben (Cahoon),” coach Danny said Masiosia. “There was a lot of energy and the players fed off of it.”
The Alouettes were just as pleased as their crowd with the midseason-clinching final score.
Montreal began a four-game homestand with its first back-to-back wins of the year and is now 2-2 at Percival Molson Stadium. With the win, the Alouettes still have control of their tiebreaker with the Ticats and remain in contention for the top two spots in the Eastern Division, which could earn them a home playoff game in the Eastern Conference.
“First of all, we all know that all the games in the East now are huge for all the teams in the East, so we know how critical this is,” Eugene Lewis said. “We know the situation we are in. We know our future is defined by us and the way we go out and play and the things we do.”
On the other side of the net, the Tiger-Cats were disheartened by the setback. Seconds after what could have been their first road win and first back-to-back wins, they fell to 0-5 on the road.
“It’s just tough, it was one of those games,” Ticats head coach Orlondo Steinauer said. “We had an opportunity to hold them there. I’m proud of the way we fought but I believe we had opportunities but in all three phases and ultimately defensively to at least keep them at bay for a longer opportunity but it didn’t happen.
“We had the whole game in front of us, we had a lead with seconds left and we fell short.”
Lewis emphasized that the Alouettes need to “be more disciplined” to win consistently. Montreal was flagged twice for roughing the kicker in punt situations, giving the ball back to the Tigercats.
“We’re getting better, we’re a better team. “I’m still not going to say, ‘We’re the best team, we’re a great team,'” Lewis said. “We are a team that keeps getting better. I have confidence in this team and we found ways to win in the last two weeks and now we have to keep doing that.”
Montreal’s Trevor Harris passed for 346 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
Quarterback Matthew Schiltz has returned to Montreal after playing four seasons with the Alouettes. Schiltz passed for 303 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Tim White scored two TDs.
The Tiger-Cats grabbed an early lead when Shiltz found White with a 10-yard pass. White was tackled but put out his arm to put the ball over the goal line.
The Alouettes tried to answer with a touchdown on the next drive, but were stopped in the red zone by Hamilton’s defense. Cote scored his first field goal of the game.
Small’s first punt attempt missed but left the end zone for a one-goal score.
The Alouettes took their first lead of the game when Harris found Eugene Lewis on a 23-yard pass. Both players combined for the two-point conversion, putting the Alouettes ahead 11-8.
Small converted a 13-yard field goal to tie the game at 11-11 at halftime.
Kaion Julien-Grant singlehandedly regained the lead for Montreal in the third quarter. The receiver caught Harris’ pass in the backfield and made his way 54 yards and into the end zone.
A defensive pass interference by Alouettes cornerback Mike Jones brought Hamilton to the one-yard line. Jamie Newman got the QB to sneak in to tie the game once again.
The Ticats added another touchdown to end the third quarter. Schiltz passed to White, who weaved his way through Montreal’s defense for a 64-yard touchdown.
Montreal regained the lead with 2:18 left in the game. Harris threw to Reggie White Jr. for a 45-yard touchdown. Cote added the one-point conversion to put Montreal up 26-25.
GAUGES: Montreal receiver Tyson Philpott went down hard after one play in the second quarter. The rookie did not return to the game in the second half and entered the protocol with a concussion.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 20, 2022.
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