REGINA — Montreal captured the football championship on Saturday as the Carabins captured their 60th Vanier Cup with a 30-16 victory over the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
The University of Montreal's victory came six days after the CFL's Montreal Alouettes lost their 112th Gray Cup to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Carbine offense, led by U Sports Rookie of the Year Pepe Gonzalez, continued for much of the day.
Gonzalez passed for 344 yards and touchdowns to Brandon Gurgon, Hassan Dosso and Simon Larose, giving Montreal its third national title and second in the last three years. Carbines also won in 2023.
Gonzalez said the 6 C weather, unseasonably warm for Regina, likely helped.
“Coming to Saskatchewan, we didn't know what to expect,” Gonzalez said during the on-field celebration after being named the game's MVP. “We trained in the cold and the rain. We were prepared for any weather that we had to face here, and yes, I think we were lucky that we had such amazing weather, that's for sure.”
The Carabins' defenseman looked right at home in the CFL stadium as he dominated the game, with head coach Marco Iadeluca, fresh from a Gatorade side shower, grinning from ear to ear like a proud papa.
“We were hoping he would have his best game of the season today, and I think he did,” Iadeluca said. “This guy has ice in his veins. Our defense is our DNA and we shut it down in the second half.”
The game at Regina Mosaic Stadium was almost a home date for the Huskies, just two-and-a-half hours from their Saskatoon campus, in Regina's first-ever Vanier Cup and just their second provincial game.
The Carabines' victory marks the third straight national championship for the Quebec-based program. Laval won in 2024 and 2022.
The victory in Montreal was not without controversy.
With 1:45 remaining in the first half and the Carabins facing a 2nd-and-7, Gonzalez appeared to cross the line of scrimmage before throwing first down, drawing the penalty flag for an illegal pass.
After a lengthy discussion by the judges, the flag was raised and hoisted into place, drawing the ire of Saskatchewan head coach Scott Flory, CBC broadcaster Mark Lee and others.
The drive continued until the final play of the first half, when the Carabins added a nine-yard Philip Boyer field goal, part of a two-for-three play of the day for the Montreal kicker, extending their lead to 15–11.
After that, a Lucas Scott field goal was all the Huskies offense could do as Montreal outscored Saskatchewan 15-5 in the second half.
“I’m not a referee,” Flory said after the game. “We don’t have a replay. You need to be sure that they chose both of them for a reason. I'm not going to whine and complain.
“You've got to get it right the first time, but in the second half we just didn't do enough. It didn't feel like we had any traction. Kudos to them (Montreal). Our defense fought hard and everyone played so hard.”
The Huskies' forwards had been playing with backup guard Jake Farrell since mid-season, when then-Canada's leading passer Anton Amundrud fell ill and was later diagnosed with lymphoma.
On Saturday it turned out that it was smoking. Farrell was intercepted twice and sacked three times while completing 20 of 31 attempts for 229 yards and no touchdowns.
Heck Creighton nominee and Huskies leading receiver Daniel Wiebe was in walking boots all week and mostly quiet, making four catches for 48 yards.
A small but vocal group of Carbine fans cheered behind the home bench as they celebrated their first championship won in Western Canada. Montreal also avenged its loss to Saskatchewan in the 2021 national semi-finals.
It was the Huskies' seventh straight loss in Vanier Cup appearances since their last championship win in 1998. The loss also denied Saskatchewan the opportunity to become Canada's first-ever tri-championship after the Roughriders and Saskatoon Hilltops won their championships earlier this month.
