Canadian Football League: The Montreal Alouettes defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 27-12

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In a repeat of the last Gray Cup Final, which Montreal won 28-24, the Alouettes again defeated the Blue Bombers, this time by a score of 27-12, Thursday night in Winnipeg.

The Blue Bombers were hoping to start the new season strong in front of their home fans, having gone 31-3 at home in the last four seasons.

Tyson Philpott scored twice for the Alouettes. Cody Fajardo completed 20 of his 28 pass attempts. He racked up 254 yards, including 141 yards on a catch from Philpot.

“I have to give credit to my teammates. The offensive line covered everything and Cody threw some excellent passes. I did my job. We want to be the team to beat this year,” Philpott told teammate Didier Ormegost after the game.

Fajardo's touchdown passes were also to Philpot.

“It's easier (with Tyson). The way we finished last season and the relationship we developed the last six or seven games…we've continued that this year. Losing Tyler Snead is big, but Philpott is capable of making big plays.”

For the Blue Bombers, Zach Collaros completed 20 of 33 passes but did not complete a single touchdown pass. He showed an aerial gain of 209 yards.

“Our defense has played very well for a long time,” Jason Maas admitted. We have many good players who are well trained. They're all playing for each other, it's clear. They are very competitive. »

During the Blue Bombers' second offensive sequence, defensive end Shawn Lemon made a sack on second down, and then Winnipeg had to punt again.

Culross got back on the field quickly, as Brian Cole intercepted a pass from Fajardo on second-and-10 yards.

After two failed touchdown attempts, the Blue Bombers scored the first three points of the game on a field goal.

Bryce Cosby recovered the ball after a turnover during an Alouettes punt to allow Fajardo's offense to get down the field near the end zone.

Philpott, who scored the final touchdown in the 2023 Gray Cup game, then caught a touchdown pass. The Alouettes led 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.

The Alouettes added another touchdown six minutes into the second quarter.

During third downs and goals, Caleb Evans slid between players to score the middle finger.

The Alouettes led 14-3 after the conversion.

The Blue Bombers looked to have had a good attacking lead at the end of the first half, but Marc-Antoine Dequoy came to interrupt everything by intercepting a pass from Collaros.

Winnipeg missed a field goal with less than 20 seconds left in the first half, but the sequence continued and they got a safe touchdown. The score was 14-5 at halftime.

Another loose ball by the Blue Bombers allowed the visitors to get back on the attack. David Coote added three more points with a field goal the next minute for the Alouettes.

With 35 seconds left in the third quarter, Reggie Stubblefield had to leave the field with the help of a stroller. Stubblefield wanted to head towards Collaros, but apparently lost his balance and fell awkwardly after coming into contact with a Blue Bombers player.

Cote kicked another field goal with less than 10 minutes left and the Alouettes took a 21-6 lead.

Philpott scored his second goal of the match, increasing his team's lead to 27-6. His second major was a 76-yarder. But Cote missed the mark by one point.

The Blue Bombers scored their first touchdown with 1:08 remaining. Johnny Augustine worked his way through the Alouette players at the goal line and made the score 27-12. Sergio Castillo, who only made one field goal on three occasions, missed the mark.