Alouettes hold – Davis Alexander threw for 345 yards and two touchdowns and Tyson Philpot delivered 198 yards on 12 catches as the Montreal Alouettes held off the Ottawa Redblacks 37-35 on Sunday night, surviving a late Ottawa comeback to keep their momentum moving.
When the Montreal Alouettes finally found their rhythm, they didn’t get a comfortable cushion. They just got enough. Davis Alexander connected with Tyson Philpot again and again. and even after Ottawa stormed back late. Montreal ran out the final seconds following a recovered onside kick to escape with a 37-35 win over the struggling Redblacks at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.
Alexander finished 22-of-30 passing for 345 yards and two touchdowns. The CFL starter’s regular-season record improved to 15-1 as he leaned heavily on his favourite target. Philpot. who hauled in 12 receptions for 198 yards. That included 125 yards in the first half, before the day drew an attendance of 17,138.
Philpot’s work gave Montreal the offensive edge early, but it was short-yardage quarterback Dustin Crum who made sure the scoreboard kept moving. Crum rushed for a pair of touchdowns, while kicker José Maltos Diaz went 1-for-2 on field goals, snapping a streak of 25 consecutive successful attempts.
Ottawa’s offence came from a different place at different times. Jake Maier was 27-of-38 passing for 336 yards. with three touchdowns and one interception. but the Redblacks were still searching for their first win under head coach and general manager Ryan Dinwiddie as they dropped to 0-3. Ottawa managed just 76 yards of net offence across the first two quarters, and they went into halftime trailing 21-6.
The turning point for Ottawa arrived early in the third quarter. when Maier started carving up a disjointed Alouettes defence that had surrendered 89 points in its first three games combined. After building momentum. Maier found Justin Hardy on a 29-yard touchdown pass 4:37 into the second half. cutting the deficit to 21-12. A failed two-point conversion kept Montreal ahead, but Ottawa didn’t stall.
Maier then connected with Keelan White on a four-yard touchdown with 4:15 on the clock to pull the score to 21-18. The answer from Montreal came in the fourth quarter, and it started with Alexander. Under pressure. he scrambled outside the pocket and later connected with Tyler Snead on a nine-yard toss with 10:57 remaining. pushing the Alouettes ahead 28-18.
Ottawa had one more surge left. White found the end zone again, reaching around Alouettes defensive back Faion Hicks for his second touchdown to make it 28-25 at 7:26. Kalil Pimpleton’s 43-yard return set up the score, and suddenly the deficit that looked settled was back within reach.
Montreal responded just enough to keep the pressure on. Travis Theis ran in a five-yard touchdown after a 31-yard rush by Stevie Scott III with 4:31 left, making it 34-25. After Brett Lauther’s field goal narrowed the gap. Maltos Diaz restored a nine-point cushion with a 25-yard kick with 56.4 seconds remaining—coming after Alexander. limping from an earlier tackle. went deep up the middle to Snead on a 46-yard heave.
Ottawa’s reply was immediate and dramatic. With 42 seconds left, Pimpleton returned the ensuing kickoff 94 yards to make it 37-35. The Alouettes still had to finish the job, and they did—retrieving Ottawa’s onside kick to run out the clock.
Montreal opened the scoring in the first quarter at 6:33. Alexander moved out of the pocket and threw a 53-yard pass into the end zone for a wide-open Alexander Hollins. Montreal stretched the lead to 14-3 at 12:15 in the second quarter after Alexander scrambled and then found Philpot on a 32-yard throw that pushed the Alouettes to Ottawa’s five-yard line. Crum capped the drive with a one-yard sneak.
Late in the first half, Alexander and Philpot connected again with two minutes left. The wideout made a catch under coverage to set up another score for Crum, giving Montreal a 21-6 advantage. Maier, though, led Ottawa to the Montreal 36 before Alouettes defensive back Wesley Sutton picked off his end-zone throw.
Ottawa will regroup quickly, with the Redblacks set to host the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday. The Alouettes get a bye week before they host the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday, July 11.
Montreal Alouettes Ottawa Redblacks Davis Alexander Tyson Philpot CFL 37-35 Percival Molson Memorial Stadium Dustin Crum Jake Maier Keelan White José Maltos Diaz Brett Lauther