Edmonton Eskimos 47, Montreal Alouettes 28 (September 14, 2007)

by Silencer76

EDMONTON (CP) -- Quarterback Ricky Ray passed for five touchdowns and set a team record for career passing yards as the Edmonton Eskimos stopped the bleeding on Friday night, snapping a three-game losing skid with a 47-28 victory over the Montreal Alouettes.

It was just the second win in their last seven for the Esks (4-6-1) who moved two points back of the third place Calgary Stampeders in the CFL’s West Division and one up on Toronto for a potential cross-over spot through the East.

Montreal, winners of five of their last six before encountering Edmonton, dropped to 6-5 on the year and remained one point behind first place Winnipeg in the East.

The Eskimos came out with authority in this one as Ray hit Jason Tucker with the long bomb and he outran the pursuit for a 62-yard TD on the first play of the game. Edmonton was up 7-0 just 31 seconds into the contest.

Montreal’s first possession wasn’t nearly as successful as kicker Damon Duval was forced to concede a two-point safety.

The early Edmonton assault continued on their second possession as the Esks engineered a 65-yard drive, finished off by a 28-yard passing major to Kamau Peterson to put the hometown team ahead 16-0 before five minutes had come off the clock.

After a Sean Fleming single on a missed 21 yard field goal attempt, the Als finally woke up, going 75 yards down field as QB Marcus Brady found Eric Deslauriers for a 38-yard passing TD to close the score to 17-7 after the eventful first quarter.

The scoring parade continued to start the second as the Eskimos regained their 17-point advantage, with another long drive finished off by a five-yard pass into the endzone to Andrew Nowacki.

The Eskimo defence got in on the action as well before the half was out, as defensive back Jason Goss stepped in front of a Brady pass and blazed it back the other way, sidestepping Brady himself at the 15 for a 82-yard interception return for the touchdown. Edmonton led 31-7 at the mid-mark.

And unlike Edmonton’s last few games, there would be no second half collapse this time around.

Just over a minute in Goss had his second pick of the night, returning the ball 17 yards to the Montreal 17 yard line. The interception quickly led to a 17-yard TD pass from Ray to T.J. Acree and a 38-7 Edmonton advantage.

Following a Fleming single off a kickoff, Montreal got a defensive break of their own as Mark Estelle intercepted a Ray pass and took it back 33 yards for the major to cut into Edmonton’s lead. Duval added a punt single to make it 39-15 after the third.

Newly acquired QB Jason Maas came in to replace Brady for Montreal in the fourth and was picked off on his second pass by Shannon Garrett who took the ball 32 yards to the Alouette three. The Esks converted on the next play with a passing TD to fullback Mike Maurer.

Maas was able to engineer a scoring drive on Montreal’s next possession however, capped off when Jarrett Payton took it in for the major from one yard out.

Stefan LeFors came in to replace Ray with five minutes to go. Ray ended up passing for 322 yards with 20 completions on 29 attempts.

Montreal salvaged some pride with just over a minute left on a one-yard TD run by Payton. The two point convert attempt failed. Fleming added a single on the final play of the game to make for a final score of 47-28.

The two teams play each other again next Sunday in Montreal.

Notes: This is a crucial stretch of games for the Eskimos whose playoff hopes likely lie through the East Division through the cross-over rules. After the home-and home set against the Als, the Esks then play back-to-back games against the team they most likely have to pass in the East, the Toronto Argonauts... Edmonton QB Ricky Ray had a milestone night, eclipsing Hall-of-Famer Warren Moon’s 21,228 yards passing mark in the first quarter to capture the Eskimos all-time record for career passing yards. It’s only Ray’s fifth season in the CFL... Receiver/returner Brian Bratton returned to the Montreal lineup after missing two games with a knee injury. The Alouettes also activated Canadian receiver Brad Smith and Canadian safety Joel Wright to play on special teams.

courtesy of CFL.ca

'DATE:

September 14, 2007