Win or lose, Als able to prevail

REGINA — You have to hand it to the Montreal Alouettes ... and the Saskatchewan Roughriders almost did.

The Roughriders fumbled away the football four times one week ago against the Alouettes. The last of those fumbles — by quarterback Darian Durant — was scooped up by Montreal’s Jerald Brown and returned 54 yards for a go-ahead touchdown with 1:45 left in the fourth quarter.

Undaunted, Saskatchewan scored the final 10 points and the knockout punch. Durant’s 65-yard touchdown bomb to Taj Smith with 1:02 remaining propelled the Roughriders into a 21-21 tie. Chris Milo’s 36-yard field goal as time expired gave Saskatchewan a 24-21 victory and a CFL-best 6-1 record.

But in many ways, it felt like a defeat.

Pointed questions were raised concerning how the Roughriders could have struggled so mightily against an Alouettes team that had hobbled out of Mosaic Stadium at 2-5.

Some answers were provided on Thursday, when the Alouettes shocked the visiting B.C. Lions 39-38.

B.C. entered the game at 5-2, having just defeated the Calgary Stampeders, who were coming off a convincing victory over previously unbeaten Saskatchewan.

Logically, the Lions should have encountered little difficulty in disposing of the Alouettes — especially since Montreal began Thursday’s game without its starting quarterback (future Canadian Football Hall of Famer Anthony Calvillo) and finished the contest with third-stringer Tanner Marsh under centre.

Marsh served up four interceptions — part of a seven-turnover day by the Alouettes — for a home side that trailed 38-27 midway through the fourth quarter.

Montreal responded with a 90yard kickoff-return touchdown by Tyron Carrier, followed by back-to-back field goals from Sean Whyte. The latter field goal, a chip shot from 14 yards away, was preceded by a desperation 57-yard pass from Marsh to Eric Deslauriers, who was tackled with one second remaining.

To a considerable degree, the Alouettes mirrored the manner in which their opponents had triumphed five days earlier.

Like Saskatchewan, Montreal withstood a torrent of turnovers before connecting on a gamechanging bomb and settling matters with a field goal as the clock struck 0:00.

Such is the beauty of the CFL, which can deliver frantic finishes that captivate the fans and exasperate the coaches.