QUÉBEC — The Rouge et Or de l’Université Laval scored 17 consecutive points in the second half and won the Dunsmore Cup for the 17th time in its history with a 22-17 victory over the Carabins de l’Université de Montréal on Saturday afternoon at Telus Stadium.
Next week, in the Mitchell Cup final, the Rouge et Or will face the University of Regina Rams, who beat the University of Saskatchewan Huskies 19-14 on Saturday in Saskatoon.
Faced with a 10-5 deficit after 30 minutes of play, the Rouge et Or prevailed in the second half thanks to touchdowns from Olivier Cool, on a 41-yard pass from Arnaud Desjardins (27 for 37, 259 yards, one touchdown, one interception) at the start of the third quarter, and William Tremblay, on a three-yard run in the fourth quarter.
This last touchdown followed a key defensive play by Loïc Brodeur, who tackled quarterback Jonathan Sénécal behind the line of scrimmage and caused a fumble the Rouge et Or recovered at the Carabins 10-yard line.
Kicker Félipé Forteza contributed to the victory with field goals of 33 and 32 yards and two conversions. The other two points were the result of a safety in the second quarter.
In the defeat, Sénécal (21-for-38, 233 yards, no interceptions) threw touchdown passes to Brandon Gourgon, in the second quarter, and to Simon Riopel, near the end of regulation time. Étienne Jacques made a 42-yard field goal and two conversions.
The Carabins and the Rouge et Or faced each other for the third time this season. On Sept. 7 at Telus Stadium, the Rouge et Or won 23-22 thanks to a long field goal from Forteza on the last play of the game. On Oct. 12 in Montreal, it was the Carabins’ turn to snatch a victory by a margin of one point, 32-31 in overtime.
The two teams completed the season with identical records of seven wins and one loss. The Rouge et Or was awarded first place in the ranking thanks to a lower total of points conceded than the Carabins.