On Thursday night at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, the Edmonton Elks took on the Montreal Alouettes. This was the first game for the Alouettes under new leadership when head coach Khari Jones and defensive coordinator Barron Miles were fired last week. General manager Danny Maciocia will coach the team for the rest of the season.
Elks’ quarterback Taylor Cornelius made his first start of the season. In the first quarter, he led Edmonton down to Montreal’s five-yard line before running back Sherman Badie rushed up the middle for a touchdown.
Unfortunately, Sergio Castillo missed the extra point, and it was 6-0 Elks with 10:25 left. Sherman Badie led the rushers with ten carries for 39 yards and one touchdown. Alouettes’ kicker David Cote made a 19-yard field goal, and Edmonton led 6-3 after one quarter.
Montreal had the ball to begin the second quarter. Alouettes’ quarterback Trevor Harris threw three huge passes to get Montreal to the six-yard line. Then, out of the shotgun, Harris faked a handoff and found rookie wide receiver Tyson Philpot for the touchdown, putting Montreal up 10-6 with 10:51 left. Trevor Harris went 19/26 for 241 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
After the Elks’ offense went three-and-out, Montreal returner Chandler Worthy returned a punt for 44 yards to Edmonton’s 31-yard line. Two plays later, Harris pump-faked before scrambling around to find Eugene Lewis for a 16-yard touchdown, extending their lead 17-6 with 6:24 left. Eugene Lewis had six catches for 78 yards and one touchdown.
On Edmonton’s next possession, Taylor Cornelius’s pass hit the hands of Kai Locksley before being intercepted by Antoine Marc-Dequoy and returned for 50 yards down to the Elks’ one-yard line. The Alouettes’ defense allowed 312 yards, 48 tackles, two pass breakups, and one interception. Then, backup quarterback Dominique Davis rushed in for the touchdown, and it was 24-6 with 5:15 left in the second quarter. Just before halftime, Elks’ kicker Sergio Castillo made two field goals, one from 21 yards and the other for 46 yards. Montreal led 24-12 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Elks’ kicker Sergio Castillo attempted a 48-yarder but missed. The Alouettes marched down to the Elks’ two-yard line when Dominique Davis went into the endzone with a quarterback sneak, extending their lead 31-12 with 7:25 left. The Alouettes succeeded on an on-side kickoff to keep the ball. However, Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris completed a pass to Reggie White Jr., but White fumbled the ball recovered by Edmonton.
The Elks’ defense allowed 321 yards, 36 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, and one fumble recovery. Edmonton marched down to the Alouettes’ one-yard line before Kai Locksley rushed in for the touchdown. They went for a two-point conversion but failed, and it was 31-18 with 3:03 left. After the Alouettes went three-and-out, the Elks got the ball heading into the fourth quarter.
Taylor Cornelius, Kia Locksley, and Kenny Lawler led the Elks’ offense down to the two-yard line before Kia Locksley rushed in for a touchdown, cutting Montreal’s lead 31-25 with eleven minutes left in the game.
On Montreal’s next possession, they moved the ball towards the Elks’ 30-yard line. On 2nd and 15, Trevor Harris dropped back and threw a long pass, only for Elks’ defensive back Ed Gainey to intercept the ball. Elks’ quarterback Taylor Cornelius led the offense down to Montreal’s ten-yard line. Then, he threw a dart up the middle to Kenny Lawler for the touchdown, putting Edmonton up 32-31 with 4:20 left in the game. Taylor Cornelius was 19/31 for 230 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and four carries for 20 yards. Meanwhile, wide receiver Kenny Lawler led the receivers with seven catches for 92 yards and one touchdown.
When Montreal got the ball back, they reached their own 43-yard line. On 3rd and 4, they punted the ball to the Elks,’ and Charles Nelson fumbled the ball but recovered it. The Elks had the ball for the rest of the game and came away with a 32-31 win. It was Edmonton’s second win of the season. They are now 2-4, while the Alouettes are now 1-4 for the season.
This was the second time this season that Elks came back to win a game against East teams. Edmonton came back from 13 down to beat Hamilton 29-25 a couple of weeks ago and on Thursday came back from 19 down to beat Montreal.
Edmonton fought hard in the second half. Taylor Cornelius played well enough that he should be the starter for now. If Edmonton were in the East Division, they would be in first place. Edmonton hosts the Winnipeg Blue Bombers next Friday at 9 pm on ESPN2.
For Montreal, they should’ve won this game being up by 19 points. Let’s face it, the East Division is terrible, and no one wants to step up and take command. This is unsettling for Montreal after losing a head coach and defensive coordinator.
While they can still win the division, they need a lot of work, and with general manager Danny Maciocia at the sidelines, everyone needs to play better, or else they may not be with the team much longer. Montreal will play the Ottawa Redblacks next Thursday at 7 pm on ESPN+.
