48th McCallister Cup
Here's a new field graphic for the game:
Buffalo Blue Wings VS. Montreal Rouge - Anderson Stadium - Toronto, ON - October 2, 1966 - 6 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 10ºC | 50ºF
1st Q
The crowd in Toronto might go down as one of the loudest in league history. With the combination of fans from Buffalo and Montreal, the stadium would not get quiet throughout the opening quarter. It would cause some troubles for the Rouge offence early with a miscommunication almost leading to an interception on the second play from scrimmage. The struggles were not the same for the Blue Wings who came out of the gate using every inch of the playbook. The lesser-used plays by the Blue Wings would fool the Rouge and help Buffalo get down to the 12-yard line. From there, QB Charles Lemieux would hit WR Daniel Irons for a touchdown to make it 7-0 for Buffalo. Montreal was able to get their communication straight, however, the offence was facing pressure. DL William Sanderson was hungry to make an impression and was all over the Montreal backfield having 2 tackles for loss and a sack in the opening quarter. Buffalo’s offence did get slowed down by the Rouge, but they still came away with a K Ryan Perch field goal near the end of the quarter.
BUF 10-0 MTL
2nd Q
The second quarter would begin to have a bit more of a normal flow. Both teams were finding it a bit easier to move the ball down the field. However, they were not moving it far enough to score until Montreal’s WR Taylor Karis broke a tackle and put Montreal at the 24-yard line. Buffalo stood strong on defence, only allowing the Rouge to get a field goal. There was a bit more hope in Montreal now, however, Buffalo was able to counter the field goal with of their own, allowing them to regain their 10-point advantage. Both defences shut down the other team to make it to the break.
BUF 13-3 MTL
3rd Q
The Rouge were hoping for better in the second half. They opened up being a little more aggressive on offence. However, this meant QB Gene Bishop was holding onto the ball a little longer and would lead to another sack from DL William Sanderson. Buffalo’s offence, on the other hand, was able to make a march down the field. RB Jimmy Golden would eventually break through a wide-open hole and bolt into the secondary. The running back looked to have a wide-open field but was stopped at the 8-yard line by S Garet deVale, who never gave up on the play. The play by deVale kept Montreal’s hopes up and they would be able to keep Buffalo out of the endzone. K Ryan Perch made it a 13-point game after that. It still was tough for the Rouge offence, but there was some fight left in them and they would score a field goal to keep the game at 10 points. QB Charles Lemieux certainly understood the situation after not being able to break through to the endzone on the previous drive. Despite being up by 10 they needed to have another strong drive to really put the Rouge on their backs. Lemieux would deliver a beautiful drive that would seem unstoppable. The pinnacle of the drive was when Lemieux would hit WR Zachariah Pembroke for a 46-yard play while escaping player after player of pressure. A few players later Lemieux connected with WR Julius Drake for a huge touchdown to get them up by 3 scores.
BUF 23-6 MTL
4th Q
The Rouge were now truly desperate. They needed to score quickly or else it would be too late. Unfortunately, they still had issues with getting out of pressure. It seemed that any play was being blown up or Bishop was scrambling for his life. Bishop seemed to be both very frustrated but almost scared on every play, certainly a side effect of his injuries in the last two years. It would cost Montreal a lot when Bishop threw an interception right to S Wesley Jones. Jones almost found a break to the endzone but was stopped by RB Scott Mallard-White. It only took a couple of minutes for the Blue Wings to add to their lead with RB Jimmy Golden scoring the touchdown to make it 30-6. Beyond desperate would describe Montreal, as HC Jimmy Sargent had finally started to get OC Tim Bakersfield to dig up the deep playbook. Montreal was trying everything. Eventually, one play would hit with WR Yahui Sun breaking away on a jet sweep. Sun got Montreal within 35 yards for the first time in the quarter. Bishop would inch them closer with a couple of completions. Eventually, Buffalo’s defence would force a 3rd down for the Rouge. Montreal had to go for it. Bishop would drop to pass and this time he connected with WR Taylor Karis who had made a great move on DB Ezra Power and would scramble away into the endzone. Montreal would go for two to keep the dream alive, but Buffalo ended that hope with DL William Sanderson tipping Bishop’s pass attempt and forcing it incomplete. Montreal was still down by 18 and had no hope. Buffalo would manage the clock well and would close out their 4th McCallister Cup win, joining Ottawa with the most championships in the NAAF.
BUF - 7 QB Charles Lemieux
MTL - 21 S Garet deVale
MTL - 21 S Garet deVale
Injury Report
None
McCallister Cup MVP
Sanderson played an unreal game, he had fallen behind the scenes a bit this season, however, in his first McCallister Cup appearance, he knew exactly what to do. He finally grabs his first title playing one of the best defensive games by any defensive lineman ever.
I also created a graphic to show off a bit of what Anderson Stadium may look like overall aha, I hope it looks cool, might be something I do more of down the line.
1966 NAAF Champions
No comments:
Post a Comment