The Montreal Alouettes avoided an epic collapse and advanced to the CFL East Division finals.
Davis Alexander threw for one touchdown and rushed for another in a 42-33 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Eastern semi-finals on Saturday. Montreal pulled out the win after blowing a 22-point lead early in the game.
The Alouettes led 25-3 in the second quarter and had a 25-6 advantage at halftime.
The scenario quickly changed early in the third quarter when Winnipeg stunned Montreal with three straight touchdowns to take the lead.
Montreal regrouped and reached the division finals for the third year in a row.
A 12-yard field goal by Jose Maltos Diaz, after consecutive rushes by Alexander and Stevie Scott III to gain first downs, sealed the win for Montreal with 33 seconds left.
The Alouettes travel to Hamilton to face the Tiger Cats on November 8th. The winner will advance to the Gray Cup in Winnipeg on November 16th.
The Gray Cup Series is over
The Blue Bombers' streak of five straight trips to the Gray Cup came to an end.
Winnipeg moved up to the East after finishing fourth in the West this season with a 10-8 record. No crossover team has reached the Gray Cup in 13 attempts.
Alexander, who set a CFL record early in his career with 11 straight wins as a starting quarterback (including seven this season), remained undefeated in his first playoff start.
Montreal's Tyson Philpot scored two touchdowns — one rushing, one receiving — while Scott ran for two touchdowns in front of an announced crowd of 19,785 on a windy 7-degree day.
Several empty seats lined the stands at Molson Stadium, largely due to a transit strike that shut down all public transportation except for adapted transportation on Saturday.
Maltos Diaz went 1-for-2 from the field using the blush. Winnipeg forward Sergio Castillo was 4-for-4.
Bomber raid in 3rd quarter
Terry Wilson got the Bombers started in the third quarter. He punted the ball into the end zone from one yard out with 2:16 left in the quarter after Wesley Sutton's pass interference put Winnipeg at the goal line.
Winnipeg defenseman Cam Allen then picked off Alexander. On the next play, Collaros connected with Ontaria Wilson on a 54-yard pass to cut the lead to 25-20.
And the hits kept coming. Alexander threw a long pass to Philpot on the next drive, but Jamal Parker forced a fumble and Winnipeg's Evan Holm recovered. The turnover led to another one-yard score from Terry Wilson as the Bombers took a 27-25 lead just 6:13 into the quarter.
The Alouettes retook the lead with 6:37 remaining when Scott burst into the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown to make it 32-27.
After Castillo kicked a field goal early in the fourth quarter, Montreal's Corey Roberson Jr. picked off Canada's Brady Oliveira, whose fumble was recovered by Marc-Antoine Dequois.
The Alouettes extended their lead to 39-30 with 8:53 remaining in the game after Scott, with help from his offensive line, rushed into the end zone for a seven-yard gain.
Winnipeg responded quickly as Collaros hit Kerik Whitfall for a 53-yard gain to put the Bombers at the Montreal 12. The Bombers settled for the shot, cutting the Alouettes' lead to 39-33 with seven minutes left. Montreal's defense kept Winnipeg off the board for the rest of the match.
The Alouettes jumped out to a 17–0 lead with 34 seconds left in the first quarter, the most points in the first quarter of a playoff game since Montreal also scored 17 points in the 2010 East final. The Bombers, meanwhile, ran just seven plays and recorded just one first down in the final seconds of the quarter.
Montreal maintained control of the game in the second when Alexander rushed for a three-yard touchdown to give the Alouettes a 24-3 lead. The defense continued to put pressure on Collaros, sacking him three times and forcing two fumbles, one recovered.
