OTTAWA — Vernon Adams Jr. passed for a career-high 327 yards and two touchdowns to help the Montreal Alouettes come back on the road to defeat the Ottawa REDBLACKS 36-19 on Saturday. The versatile quarterback also added two touchdowns and 41 rushing yards on the ground to lead the Als to their second straight win.
Als running back William Stanback had another solid performance despite a strong defensive showing from Ottawa, finishing with 100 rushing yards on 18 carries.
Receiver Quan Bray led Montreal with six catches for 134 yards, including a 75-yard touchdown that gave Montreal its first lead of the game.
Defensive back Tommie Campbell had a big game for Montreal with an interception on the opening drive and a fumble recovery.
Ottawa quarterback Dominique Davis completed 23 of 37 pass attempts for 268 yards, while also adding a pair of rushing touchdowns.
It was a tough start for Davis and the REDBLACKS’ offence, as the quarterback was intercepted on the very first drive of the game by Campbell while trying to complete a short pass to receiver Brad Sinopoli. The Als managed to convert the turnover into points with a 16-yard field goal from Bede.
Bede later added a 26-yard field goal to extend Montreal’s lead near the end of the first quarter after Stanback helped put the team in position to score with a bruising 17-yard run. But Ottawa’s defence did a good job containing Stanback in the opening half, holding the running back to just 48 yards.
Campbell notched another turnover for Montreal when REDBLACKS receiver R.J. Harris fumbled the ball directly into the defensive back’s hands while attempting to gain extra yards after the catch. Bede added his third field goal of the day off the turnover, knocking the 34-yard kick through the uprights to put Montreal up 9-0.
Montreal RB William Stanback rushed for 100 yards Photo: The Canadian Press
Davis began to get things going on offence for Ottawa towards the end of the first half, getting into a rhythm with six consecutive completions to put his team in field goal range. Lewis Ward kicked the 25-yard field goal to cut the Als’ lead down to six points.
Davis then threw his best pass of the half on the next drive, hitting Harris with an accurate strike down the field for a big 42-yard gain that put the offence in position to take the lead. After some strong defensive stops from Montreal, Davis finished off the drive with a one-yard quarterback sneak touchdown run to tie the game at nine apiece. The REDBLACKS went for the two-point convert to follow it up, but receiver Seth Coate lost the ball just before he could cross the goal line.
Davis helped his team grab its first lead of the game after his 11-yard run set up a successful 50-yard field goal from Ward. But the Als immediately came storming back on the following drive when Adams threw a 75-yard touchdown bomb to Bray. Bede missed the extra point attempt, leaving the score at 15-12 for Montreal.
The Als continued to shine on offence after that, and Stanback began to find space on the ground against the REDBLACKS’ defensive front. Stanback put together solid runs of 11 and 21 yards before receiver Eugene Lewis made an incredible 39-yard catch to put Montreal in scoring range. Lewis went up high to grab the ball away from the Ottawa defender.
Adams capped off the solid and lengthy drive with a six-yard touchdown pass to Jake Wieneke in traffic, and Bede added the extra point to give Montreal a 22-12 lead near the end of the third quarter.
The Als quickly got the ball back on offence and Adams continued firing the ball with confidence, hitting receiver B.J. Cunningham for 28 yards and Bray for 19 yards. Adams then showed off his athletic side by juking REDBLACKS linebacker Avery Williams for a 12-yard touchdown run, and Bede kicked the convert to put Montreal up 29-12.
Ottawa kept things interesting in the fourth quarter when Davis connected on short and intermediate passes to move the chains and lead a scoring drive. Davis finished the drive off himself with a five-yard rushing touchdown, and Ward added the extra point to make the score 29-19 with five minutes to play.
Adams added a one-yard rushing touchdown with under two minutes remaining to seal the 36-19 victory for Montreal.
Up next for the Ottawa REDBLACKS is a road game against the undefeated Winnipeg Blue Bombers next Friday night, while the the Montreal Alouettes will play a home game against the Edmonton Eskimos next Saturday in Week 6 action.