Kevin Sousa/CFL.ca
MONTREAL — The Montreal Alouettes raised a championship banner before bringing down the house Thursday night.
Cody Fajardo led an explosive offence, with help from a strong Als front, to defeat the Ottawa REDBLACKS 47-21 win at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.
The reigning Grey Cup champions bookended the 2024 home opener with two 17-point quarters. Montreal’s air attack was on full display with three passing touchdowns, including a 51-yard major to Tyson Philpot.
Ottawa’s offence, led by quarterback Dru Brown, had a stronger showing in the second half, but could never overcome the deficit.
Here are CFL.ca’s three key stats in the Alouettes win over the REDBLACKS.
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393 – PASSING YARDS FOR FAJARDO
Fajardo showcased the depth of Montreal’s passing game by making all manner of completions and explosive chunk plays.
He completed 28 of 35 passes for 393 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Philpot had one touchdown reception with Reggie White Jr. getting the other two majors through the air in the fourth quarter.
Fajardo’s favourite target was Kaion Julien-Grant, who led the game with eight receptions for 116 yards, including a 49-yard catch.
Ottawa’s Dru Brown completed 21 of 35 passes for 292 yards, one touchdown and one interception. His longest of the night was a 52-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hardy.
17 – POINTS IN BOTH 1ST AND 4TH QUARTERS
A dominating first quarter set the tone for a game that was never in doubt.
Montreal put up 17 unanswered points off two touchdowns and a field goal in the first quarter for a lead that never slipped. By the half, the Als were up 30-1.
Despite a lull in the third, the Alouettes offence repeated a 17-point performance in the fourth, also off two majors and a field goal.
4 – MONTREAL TURNOVERS
The Alouettes never gave the ball away and instead took what they could with four turnovers that ultimately added 17 points to their total.
Three of the four came in the first half: linebacker Tyrice Beverette recorded an interception, a sack and a fumble recovery in those efforts, while teammate Darnell Sankey contributed with a fumble recovery and forced fumble.
Beverette’s pick came off Brown’s opening pass for a 37-yard return. The interception was Brown’s first in 138 passing attempts and third of his CFL career.
In the fourth quarter, Brown was sacked twice on one drive by Montreal defensive linemen Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund and Mustafa Johnson, respectively, for a turnover on downs. That was the only turnover that did not result in points for Montreal.
