The Toronto Argonauts (4-3), led by McLeod Bethel-Thompson, topped the (2-4) Montreal Alouettes 30-27 at home in a thrilling back and forth game at BMO Field, which saw several big plays and standout performances from both sides.
The crucial victory by the Argos puts them at 4-3, tied for first-place with Hamilton. Toronto is now 2-1 in the East and has a bye next week. The Boatmen will return to BMO in week 10, on Wednesday, October 6th against the Ottawa Redblacks. The Double Blue are 3-0 at home this season.
The Montreal Alouettes will head to Hamilton to square off with the Tiger-Cats next Saturday night.
EAST DIVISION
| RK | TEAM | GP | W | L | T | PTS | F | A | HOME | AWAY | DIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamilton | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 136 | 119 | 2-0-0 | 2-3-0 | 3-1-0 |
| 2 | Toronto | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 142 | 168 | 3-0-0 | 1-3-0 | 2-1-0 |
| 3 | Montreal | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 158 | 154 | 0-2-0 | 2-2-0 | 1-2-0 |
| 4 | Ottawa | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 87 | 179 | 0-3-0 | 1-2-0 | 0-2-0 |
Montreal Alouettes @ Toronto Argonauts Week 8 Game Highlights/Recap
1st Quarter
Before the game started, the Argos announced that WR Eric Rogers wouldn’t be able to play due to a hamstring injury. Damon Jeanpiere replaced Rogers in the starting lineup.
Toronto’s offense led by McLeod Bethel-Thompson at QB would get off to a slow start with a quick two and out to start the game.
Montreal’s first possession on offense would start with three straight William Stanback runs for 26 yards. Two Vernon Adams completions would get the Als to the midfield stripe, but the Argos defense would force Montreal to punt the football away.
The Boatmen would take over on their second possession at their 16-yard line. Former Alouette QB Antonio Pipkin would come into the game to help Toronto convert a 2nd and short for a first down on a zone-read play. The Argos would pick up two more first downs on the ground. However, a holding penalty on Dejon Allen would push Toronto back to a second and long. But Bethel-Thompson would convert a 2nd and 17 on a thirty-yard completion to Jeanpiere.
Toronto would draw a 34-yard pass interference penalty two plays later on a deep pass intended for Dejon Brissett. On the very next play, the Boatmen would cash in their first score of the game with a 15-yard touchdown pass from Bethel-Thompson to Kurleigh Gittens Jr. Boris Bede would connect on the extra point to give Toronto an early 7-0 lead.
Montreal’s offense would get things going on their next offensive series. The Alouettes would close out the first quarter by marching across midfield, picking up three first-downs with four quick completions underneath and a Vernon Adams 1st down conversion on the ground.
2nd Quarter
Montreal would open the second quarter in Toronto territory at the 36-yard line. Vernon Adams would immediately get the Als into the red zone with a 17-yard completion on a rollout pass to Eugene Lewis. But a fumbled snap exchange on the next down would lead to Adams being sacked by Charleston Hughes. It would set up a 2nd and 16. Adams would connect with Quan Bray for 15 yards. Montreal would opt to go for it on third and short, and Adams would easily convert on a quarterback sneak.
Eugene Lewis would catch a crosser from Adams on the next play from scrimmage and raced into the end zone for the tying score.
On the ensuing kickoff after Montreal’s score. Chandler Worthy would fumble the football away on the return. Montreal would recover the miscue at Toronto’s 42-yard line.
The Als offense would stay hot with the momentum now on their side. Despite a holding penalty, Montreal, behind CFL leading rusher William Stanback, would drive the short field deep into the red zone. However, Shawn Oakman would get to Adams and sack him to keep Montreal out of the end zone on a second and goal from the seven-yard line.
Kicker David Cote would come on to put three on the board from 17-yards out to give Montreal a 10-7 lead.
Toronto’s offense would fail to respond to the Montreal score with a quick two and out.
The Als would take over on their 16 up 10-7. They’d pick up one first down on an 11-yard William Stanback run, but Toronto’s pass rush would hold up and force Montreal to punt the football away.
Toronto would get the football back at their 34-yard line. As the game approached the three-minute warning, Antonio Pipkin would come on again to convert two separate first downs on 2nd and short, bringing the Boatmen to mid-field.
With 1;26 left in the half, McLeod Bethel-Thompson would connect with Chandler Worthy on a pretty 25-yard pickup near the sidelines. On the next play, Ricky Collins would catch a slant over the middle of the field and break tackles down to the Als three-yard line.
Pipkin would make his way back on the field in the first and goal situation. And the read action would help the Argos into the end zone, as DJ Foster would score a touchdown right up the gut to put Toronto up 14-10.
With under a minute left in the half. Montreal’s offense would decide to try and cash in some quick points. But it would backfire as a Vernon Adams pass was picked off at midfield by Chris Edwards. The turnover would put Toronto in a position to score more points, and that’s exactly what they did.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson would make Montreal pay almost immediately with a 45-yard touchdown go-route to Chandler Worthy. The quick-strike would catch the sleeping Als off guard and lead to a 21-10 Toronto lead at halftime.
3rd Quarter
The Alouettes would get the football to start the second half. A 25-yard romp by Vernon Adams would swiftly get Montreal into Toronto territory at the 37. The Vernon Adams-Eugene Lewis would continue to stay hot as the duo would connect on a 35-yard completion down to the 18-yard line.
But a delay of game on Montreal would lead to another Als’ turnover, as Shaq Richardson would punch out the football, causing receiver BJ Cunningham to fumble. Crezdon Butler would recover the loose ball giving the Argos possession.
However, Montreal’s pass rush would help force a quick two and out. The story, however, was McLeod Bethel-Thompson injuring his right knee on an Almondo Sewell sack on second down. MBT got up, hopping to the sidelines, but Toronto’s trainers would immediately take a look at the injury.
Looking to turn the game back into their favor. Montreal would lean on William Stanback and Vernon Adams running to pick up three first downs, getting them into Toronto territory at the 21.
However, a holding penalty on Montreal would push them back to Toronto’s 31-yard line. On a key second and long. An illegal contact penalty on Shaq Richardson would keep Montreal’s clock chewing five-minute drive alive.
A first down completion to Jake Wienicke would set up Montreal with a first and goal at the 6. Two plays later, William Stanback would punch the ball across the goal-line to pick up the major. Cote would connect on the PAT to cut Toronto’s lead to 21-17.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson would come back onto the field to lead the Argos offense after an injury scare on their last series. Chandler Worthy would set up the Boatmen’s offense nicely with a 33-yard kick return to the 43.
John White would pick up 32 yards on the next play, thanks to a 17-yard run and a 15-yard facemask penalty. Antonio Pipkin would come back into the game to help convert another first down with a completion to Gittens Jr., followed by a short run.
Facing a 2nd and ten at Montreal’s 22-yard line with time running out in the 3rd quarter. The Argonauts would fail to convert as the quarter came to a close.
4th Quarter
Boris Bede would come on to attempt a 29-yard field goal. The former Alouette would connect to give his team a 24-17 lead.
The Argos defense would pressure Vernon Adams and force Montreal’s offense to a quick two and out. The Alouettes first of the game. Adams appeared to aggravate a rib injury during the series. The training staff would tend to VA on the sidelines by giving him extra padding.
Toronto’s next series on offense would start with Bethel-Thompson taking a shot down the field that the Alouettes would nearly intercept. However, Montreal would be called for a contact penalty away from the play, netting Toronto a first down.
DJ Foster would be tackled behind the line of scrimmage for a ten-yard loss. The negative play would put the Boatmen in a 2nd and 20, but McLeod Bethel-Thompson would convert the first down on a 24-yard completion to Damon Jeanpiere.
Antonio Pipkin would come on again and convert another first down run on second and short. Montreal would commit a major foul penalty on Pipkin’s run to set up Toronto at Montreal’s 17-yard line. However, DJ Foster would once again lose yardage behind the line of scrimmage. This time, to the tune of seven yards. The negative play would take the Argos out of the red zone and ultimately would halt their drive.
Boris Bede would give his team a two-score lead of 27-17 by connecting on a 32-yard field goal.
Down 10, with under eight minutes left in the game. A battered and bruised Vernon Adams would stay in the game and help lead his team into Toronto territory, thanks to the thunderous running of William Stanback. But Montreal’s drive would stall at Toronto’s 31-yard line.
David Cote connected on a 38-yard field goal to get Montreal within 7 points of Toronto, 27-20.
Up by one score with under six minutes left in the game. Montreal’s defense would force a quick two and out on Toronto’s offense. Getting their offense the ball back with a chance to tie the game.
Montreal would pick up a first down on Adams completion to Eugene Lewis. But on the ensuing play, the Argos would send a blitz off the edge, which would lead to Shaq Richardson intercepting Vernon Adams.
The turnover would give Toronto excellent field position at Montreal’s 52-yard line. But Jamal Campbell would be called for holding, pushing Double Blue back to their 53. On 1st and 20, McLeod Bethel-Thompson would get some of the yards back with a 13-yard completion to Damon Jeanpierre.
At the 3-minute warning, facing a 2nd and 7, Antonio Pipkin would convert the first-down on a 29-yard completion to Jeanpiere. DeVaris Daniels would be called for holding, keeping the play at Montreal’s 30. Pipkin would finish the series. But the Boatmen would not gain another yard. Boris Bede would come on to kick a 37-yard field goal to extend Toronto’s lead to 10 with two minutes remaining.
After a holding penalty on the kickoff return, Montreal would have to start their potential rally down two scores from their 5-yard line.
The Alouettes would drive six plays for 105 yards in a shocking turn of events, using up less than one minute on the clock. Thanks to a third-down conversion to BJ Cunningham and two big pass plays to Jake Wieneke. One for 49-yards, followed by a 27-yard touchdown pass from Vernon Adams. The score would cut the Argos’ lead to 30-27.
Following the Alouettes score. Montreal would attempt an onside kick, but Toronto would recover. However, the Argos were unable to pick up the first down. After flirting with going for it on third and short at Montreal’s 43. The Argos up by 3 with 19 seconds left opted to punt the ball away.
Montréal would get the ball inside their own 10 with only 11 seconds left. Vernon Adams would complete two passes to Montreal’s 46, but time would run out on their rally chances.
Final Score: Toronto Argonauts 30 Montreal Alouettes 27
PASSING
| PLAYER | CP/AT | % | YDS | TD | INT | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30/39 | 76.9% | 382 | 2 | 2 | 49 |
RUSHING
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | 133 | 7.0 | 23 | 1 | |
| 5 | 38 | 7.6 | 25 | 0 | |
| 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 7 | 0 |
RECEIVING
| PLAYER | REC | ATT | YDS | YAC | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 9 | 117 | 42 | 19.5 | 49 | 1 | |
| 8 | 12 | 112 | 30 | 14.0 | 27 | 1 | |
| 6 | 7 | 66 | 22 | 11.0 | 16 | 0 | |
| 4 | 4 | 48 | 13 | 12.0 | 19 | 0 | |
| 4 | 4 | 21 | 16 | 5.2 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2 | 3 | 18 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 |
FIELD GOALS
| PLAYER | FGA | FG | LG | S | YDS | FG MISS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 2 | 38 | 0 | 55 |
PUNT RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | 24.0 | 24 | 0 | |
| 4 | 12 | 3.0 | 11 | 0 |
KICKOFF RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 105 | 21.0 | 29 | 0 |
FG MISSED RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|
PUNTING
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | S | NET | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 139 | 46.3 | 51 | 0 | 125 | 41.7 |
KICKOFFS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 200 | 50.0 | 65 | 0 |
DEFENCE
| PLAYER | DT | ST | QS | INT | FR | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
PASSING
| PLAYER | CP/AT | % | YDS | TD | INT | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13/19 | 68.4% | 210 | 2 | 0 | 45 | |
| 2/3 | 66.7% | 34 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
RUSHING
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 44 | 4.9 | 17 | 0 | |
| 8 | 15 | 1.9 | 9 | 1 | |
| 4 | 13 | 3.2 | 5 | 0 |
RECEIVING
| PLAYER | REC | ATT | YDS | YAC | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 | 91 | 29 | 22.8 | 30 | 0 | |
| 4 | 4 | 85 | 13 | 21.2 | 45 | 1 | |
| 4 | 5 | 38 | 18 | 9.5 | 15 | 1 | |
| 1 | 3 | 22 | 14 | 22.0 | 22 | 0 | |
| 1 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 | |
| 1 | 2 | -1 | -1 | -1.0 | -1 | 0 |
FIELD GOALS
| PLAYER | FGA | FG | LG | S | YDS | FG MISS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 37 | 0 | 98 |
PUNT RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 14 | 4.7 | 5 | 0 |
KICKOFF RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 76 | 25.3 | 33 | 0 | |
| 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 |
FG MISSED RETURNS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|
PUNTING
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | S | NET | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 254 | 50.8 | 55 | 0 | 218 | 43.6 |
KICKOFFS
| PLAYER | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 368 | 73.6 | 79 | 0 |
DEFENCE
| PLAYER | DT | ST | QS | INT | FR | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Boxscore
MTL
| Player | Position | Pass. CMP | Pass. ATT | Pass. YDS | Pass. TD | Pass. INT | Rush. ATT | Rush. YDS | Rush. TD | Rec. Targets | Rec. YDS | Rec. | Rec. TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
TOR
| Player | Position | Pass. CMP | Pass. ATT | Pass. YDS | Pass. TD | Pass. INT | Rush. ATT | Rush. YDS | Rush. TD | Rec. Targets | Rec. YDS | Rec. | Rec. TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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