Jordan Lynch scored from a 1-yard sneak with 3:17 left as the Edmonton Eskimos rallied to beat the Ottawa Redblacks 26-20 on Sunday for their 14th Canadian football Grey Cup title.
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Shavers’ first touchdown of the game capped off a 10-play, 88-yard drive by the Eskimos. A Whyte convert made it 13-10, Ottawa, and that’s how the first quarter wrapped up.
Jones has a well-earned reputation as a defensive guru and somewhat of a riverboat gambler, having won three Grey Cups as a defensive co-ordinator before assuming the top job in Edmonton in 2014. The Eskimos got a single point when Sean Whyte missed a 45-yard field goal with just under five minutes left in the first half.
To make it this far after only two years in the CFL is a dream come true, he said.
Allowing teams to use their own balls on offence gives quarterbacks a chance to play with balls that are familiar to them, as long as they meet standards.
“I had been in the league for half a season before 2011 and when we got to the Grey Cup and win it you just kind of assume that’s just how it is, it’s not hard to get there”, Reilly said. The CFL on TSN panel discusses how his return to the Eskimos lifted their season and take a closer look at the defensive pass interference that effectively ended the game.
Burris gets most of the credit for Ottawa’s remarkable turnaround from a 2-16 season previous year, but the team made several additions. Ottawa Redblacks fans gathered for a photo, booing a heavily painted Edmonton Eskimos fan who photobombed the group.
Jones compiled a 26-10 regular-season record over his two seasons as Edmonton’s head coach.
“I’m ready to guarantee that I know we’re going to come out here and play the type of football we’ve been playing all year”, Price said Saturday following the Redblacks’ final walk-through practice of the year. A Dexter McCoil sack of Burris (thanks primarily to great downfield coverage) forced the Redblacks to punt inside the final two minutes and hope their defence could get a stop. But we had ample opportunities to go down and put this game out of reach.
“It’s been nothing but an Ottawa love-fest for four days straight and the Eskimos are getting no respect”, said Matthew Machado, 28.
The 2012 Grey Cup Festival generated $133 million in economic activity in Ontario and $94.7 million in Toronto, according to research from the Canadian Sports Tourism Alliance.
Ottawa got the ball right back after recovering a fumble on the ensuing kickoff at the Edmonton 40-yard line.
Reilly finished 21-of-35 passing for 269 yards and two touchdowns.
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Following Whyte’s 24-yard field goal at 9:14, Reilly hit Bowman with a 23-yard touchdown pass 12:41.
