Alouettes Shut Out Argos 25-0
Posted August 7, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Defensive tackle Eric Wilson had a touchdown and tailback Avon Cobourne scored two while the Montreal Alouettes registered their first shutout in 33 years in a 25-0 victory over the Toronto Argonauts on Friday night.
The sellout crowd of 20,202 at Percival Molson Stadium had little to cheer in a mostly uneventful game other than the defence, which blanked an opponent for the first time since Montreal beat Toronto 28-0 at Olympic Stadium on September 5, 1976. The Argonauts were shut out for the first time since losing 31-0 at home to Calgary on Sept. 13, 1992.
The Alouettes improved to 5-1 while Toronto, reeling from injuries to its receiving corps, fell to 2-4. The Argonauts have scored only 40 points in their last four games.
Their best chance to score came late in the fourth quarter, when backup quarterback Cody Pickett hit Cory Rodgers on the Montreal six-yard line, but could not get it in the end zone on three tries – the last a pass that dropped behind receiver Chad Lucas, giving Montreal a turnover on downs.
The Alouettes sacked starting quarterback Kerry Joseph five times, and Pickett went down once when he took over in the fourth quarter.
Montreal slotback Ben Cahoon caught seven passes for 97 yards in the first half alone to put him past the 12,000 mark in career receiving yards. He also passed former Argonaut Derrell Mitchell for seventh place all-time in that category.
The Alouettes had been held to pair of Damon Duval singles until quarterback Anthony Calvillo closed the first half by completing 13 straight passes to put Montreal ahead 16-0.
Calvillo was 8-for-8 to set up Cobourne’s TD on a one-yard run at 11:01 of the second quarter. He was 5-for-5 on Montreal’s next possession, plus a pass interference call on the Argo’s Willie Middlebrooks gave them the ball on the one.
Backup quarterback Adrian McPherson went into the game, rolled right and found Wilson, who had lined up at fullback, in the end zone for the lineman’s first career TD on the final play of the half.
After a scoreless third quarter, Calvillo hit Kerry Watkins with a 44-yard pass to the Toronto one and Cobourne took it over for his seventh TD of the season.
The first quarter saw each team give the ball away twice, once each on downs, and the only scoring was on Duval’s 70-yard punt into the end zone.
A drive to start the second quarter stalled at the Toronto 18, but Duval’s field goal attempt went wide left for another single.
