Redblacks start well but fade in Grey Cup

Lynch, showing the toughest he frequently displayed in black and red, punched in the go ahead touchdown securing a 26-20 Grey Cup win for the Eskimos.

It was a dramatic finish in Winnipeg before a sellout crowd of 36,634, the second-smallest Grey Cup attendance since 1975.

Shavers’ first touchdown of the game capped off a 10-play, 88-yard drive by the Eskimos.

But that’s life in the technology age, and there wasn’t any doubt about it: the play was a big enough moment that Edmonton Eskimos head coach Chris Jones took a time out to give his spotters in the press box time for a good, long look.

That brought the ball to the Ottawa 10-yard line.

It was a bitter ending to the season for Ottawa, appearing in its first Grey Cup since a 26-23 loss to Edmonton in 1981.

Edmonton’s winning five-play, 78-drive was aided by Eskimos coach Chris Jones’ successful challenge of an incompletion that was changed to pass interference against Ottawa’s Brandon Sermons.

The Redblacks advanced to the big game in just their second year in the league.

Edmonton crawled back from an early 13-0 deficit to take a 17-16 lead into halftime.

Jordan Lynch scored on a 1-yard sneak with 3:22 left and the Edmonton Eskimos rallied to beat the Ottawa Redblacks 26-20 on Sunday night for their 14th Grey Cup title. He also ran for 66 yards on 10 carries.

Hearty Grey Cup fans bundled in their seats, prepared for a relatively mild November evening at around -5C in Winnipeg – a city better known for its frigid temperatures and high wind-chills. I’ll see how I heal up in the off-season, see how the ankle is feeling and we’ll go from there.

It’s not the first time a Grey Cup team has had to do without a touchdown celebration.

“It’s not about what I’ve been through personally, it’s what our team has been through”, Reilly said. All I wanted to do was to win a championship and that’s all that mattered.

An educated guess is that 14 of 46 players on the Redblacks’ active roster for the Grey Cup game can become free agents if they’re not re-signed by mid-February, including Lavoie, defensive tackle Shologan and eight others claimed in the December 2013 expansion draft. On Thursday, head coach Rick Campbell (coach of the year), quarterback Henry Burris (outstanding player), receiver Brad Sinopoli (top Canadian) and SirVincent Rogers (lineman) were honoured at the league’s awards banquet.

“We knew within one or two points, if we could get it that close, it was our game”, he said. “They found ways to make plays and to get us off the field…”

While we’re at it, let’s review every down of football ever played and we will find numerous holding and DPI penalties.

Eskimos general manager Ed Hervey said Monday that he’s “most proud that our culture of the Edmonton Eskimos is back”.

But Jones says he’s not worrying about that now. I’ll fight to the death for that man and everyone in that locker-room will to.