View source for 97th Grey Cup

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{short description|2009 Canadian Football championship game}}
{{Infobox Canadian football game
| number         = 97
| type           = Grey Cup
| image          = Grey Cup 09.svg
| image_size     = 200px
| date           = November 29, 2009
| stadium        = [[McMahon Stadium]]
| city           = [[Calgary]], [[Alberta]]
| visitor name   = Montreal Alouettes
| visitor colour = Montreal Alouettes
| home name      = Saskatchewan Roughriders
| home colour    = Saskatchewan Roughriders
| visitor coach  = [[Marc Trestman]]
| home coach     = [[Ken Miller (football coach)|Ken Miller]]
| visitor record = 15–3
| home record    = 10–7–1
| visitor1       = 0
| visitor2       = 3
| visitor3       = 7
| visitor4       = 18
| home1          = 10
| home2          = 7
| home3          = 3
| home4          = 7
| MVP            = [[Avon Cobourne]], RB ([[Montreal Alouettes|Alouettes]])
| MV2            = [[Ben Cahoon]], SB ([[Montreal Alouettes|Alouettes]])
| anthem         = [[Canadian Tenors]]
| referee        = Glen Johnson
| coin toss      = Lt.-Gov. [[Norman Kwong]]
| halftime       = [[Blue Rodeo]] [[Stereos]]
| attendance     = 46,020
| network        = [[The Sports Network|TSN]]/[[TSN HD]]<br />[[Réseau des sports|RDS]]/[[RDS HD]]
| announcers     = (TSN): [[Chris Cuthbert]], [[Glen Suitor]], [[Dave Randorf]], [[Jock Climie]], [[Matt Dunigan]], [[Chris Schultz]]<br />(RDS): [[Denis Casavant]], [[Pierre Vercheval]], [[David Arsenault]], [[Mike Sutherland]]
| ratings        = 6.1 million<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=300593 |title=Grey Cup delivers a record audience of 6.1 million viewers |access-date=December 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091204133751/http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=300593 |archive-date=December 4, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
}}
The '''97th Grey Cup''' was played on November 29, 2009, at [[McMahon Stadium]] in [[Calgary]], [[Alberta]], and decided the [[Canadian Football League]] (CFL) champion for the [[2009 CFL season|2009 season]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=235491&lid=headline&lpos=secStory_main |title=Grey Cup to return to Calgary in 2009 |website=tsn.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607001521/http://tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=235491&lid=headline&lpos=secStory_main |archive-date=June 7, 2011}} </ref> The [[2009 Montreal Alouettes season|Montreal Alouettes]] came from behind to defeat the [[2009 Saskatchewan Roughriders season|Saskatchewan Roughriders]] 28–27, on a 33-yard [[Field goal (American and Canadian football)|field goal]] by [[Damon Duval]] as time ran out. Duval had actually missed a first attempt, but Saskatchewan was penalized for having [[too many men]] on the field, allowing Duval a second field goal attempt.

Montreal running back [[Avon Cobourne]] was named the [[Grey Cup Most Valuable Player|Most Valuable Player]] of the game. Alouettes slotback [[Ben Cahoon]] received the [[Dick Suderman Trophy]] as the [[Grey Cup]]'s Most Valuable Canadian.

==History==
This was the fourth Grey Cup to be held in Calgary; the others were the [[63rd Grey Cup]] (1975), the [[81st Grey Cup]] (1993), and the [[88th Grey Cup]] (2000). The game featured the West Division Champion [[Saskatchewan Roughriders]] and the East Division Champion [[Montreal Alouettes]]. It was the first time that these two teams played each other for the [[Grey Cup]].

==Tickets==
The prices for tickets ranged from $195 to $370 (Canadian dollars) for the general public. Stampeders season ticket holders were eligible for reduced rates, with prices between $119 and $295.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/calgary-jacks-up-grey-cup-ticket-prices-1.801078|title=Calgary jacks up Grey Cup ticket prices|date=January 23, 2009|publisher=CBC Sports|access-date=January 26, 2009}}</ref>  The game sold out in August 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://leaderpost.com/sports/Grey+sold+tickets+still+attainable/2254332/story.html|title=Grey Cup sold out but tickets still attainable|date=November 23, 2009|publisher=Regina Leader-Post|access-date=November 23, 2009}}</ref>

==Events==
[[File:Elisha Cuthbert in Grey Cup 2009.jpg|left|thumb|[[Elisha Cuthbert]]]]
On September 21, 2009, the Calgary Grey Cup committee announced that the 97th Grey Cup would feature the return of an official Grey Cup parade.  They later named [[Elisha Cuthbert]] grand marshal of the parade, on November 13.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=292035|title=2009 Grey Cup to include the return of the Festival Parade}}</ref> On October 12, it was announced that [[Blue Rodeo]] would be the halftime show.  The week's festivities also included the [[ENMAX]] Street Festival and Stage on [[Stephen Avenue]]; the [[Calgary Herald]] [[Olympic Plaza (Calgary)|Olympic Plaza]] Family Fan Fest; the [[Molson Canadian]] Quick Six Saloon at the [[Telus Communications|Telus]] Convention Centre; the [[Scotiabank]] [[Grey Cup]] Gala Dinner and Contest at the [[Pengrowth Saddledome]], featuring [[Great Big Sea]]; and the [[McMahon Stadium]] Pre-Game Party with live entertainment featuring [[Stereos (band)]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=SW Calgary Dancers at the 2009 Grey Cup |url=http://www.puremotiondance.ca/southwest-calgary-dancers-performed-at-the-2009-grey-cup-festival/ |access-date=2024-09-04 |website=puremotiondance.ca}}</ref>

==Game summary==
'''Montreal Alouettes''' (28) – TDs, [[Jamel Richardson]], [[Avon Cobourne]], [[Ben Cahoon]]; FGs [[Damon Duval]] (2); 2-point cons., [[Kerry Carter]]; cons., Duval (1); singles, Duval (1).

'''Saskatchewan Roughriders''' (27) – TDs, [[Andy Fantuz]], [[Darian Durant]]; FGs [[Luca Congi]] (4); cons., Congi (2); singles, [[Louie Sakoda]] (1).

===Scoring summary===
;First Quarter
:SSK – FG Congi 40 (8:03) '''3 – 0 SSK'''
:SSK – TD Fantuz 8 pass from Durant (Congi convert) (13:43) '''10 – 0 SSK'''
;Second Quarter
:MTL – FG Duval 28 (2:23) '''10 – 3 SSK'''
:SSK – FG Congi 44 (13:28) '''13 – 3 SSK'''
:SSK – Single Sakoda 85 kickoff, Taylor conceded in end zone (13:34) '''14 – 3 SSK'''
:SSK – FG Congi 9 (15:00) '''17 – 3 SSK'''
;Third Quarter
:MTL – TD Richardson 8 pass from Calvillo (Duval convert) (7:13) '''17 – 10 SSK'''
:SSK – FG Congi 23 (14:09) '''20 – 10 SSK'''
;Fourth Quarter
:MTL – Single Duval 52 punt went through end zone (1:42) '''20 – 11 SSK'''
:SSK – TD Durant 16 run (Congi convert) (4:28) '''27 – 11 SSK'''
:MTL – TD Cobourne 3 run (2-point convert, Carter 5 pass from Calvillo) (8:14) '''27 – 19 SSK'''
:MTL – TD Cahoon 11 pass from Calvillo (2-point convert failed) (13:15) '''27 – 25 SSK'''
:MTL – FG Duval 33 (15:00) '''28 – 27 MTL'''

[[Montreal Alouettes|Montreal]] kicker, [[Damon Duval]] made good on his second opportunity to kick the winning field goal to give the Alouettes their first [[Grey Cup]] in [[2002 Grey Cup|seven years]] with a come-from-behind 28–27 victory over the [[Saskatchewan Roughriders]] at [[Calgary]]'s [[McMahon Stadium]].

From the start of the game, Saskatchewan dominated the game and led throughout the first 50 minutes. In the first quarter, Saskatchewan's quarterback, [[Darian Durant]] consistently moved the ball by mixing pass and run plays against Montreal's top ranked defence. The first Saskatchewan drive led to a [[Luca Congi]] field goal attempt that sailed wide, however, on their second possession, Congi was successful in his second attempt field goal attempt to give the Riders a 3–0 lead.  Furthermore, the Saskatchewan defence also came up with big plays when [[Marcus Adams (Canadian football)|Marcus Adams]] managed to strip the ball away from Montreal quarterback, [[Anthony Calvillo]], while [[Keith Shologan]] managed to pick up the ball and ran it to Montreal's 8-yard line late in the first quarter. On the next play, Durant found slotback [[Andy Fantuz]] open in the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown pass to give Saskatchewan a 10–0 lead.

In the second quarter, Montreal looked to have gotten their offence back on track as [[Anthony Calvillo]] threw a pair of passes to slotback [[Ben Cahoon]], which set up a 28-yard Damon Duval field goal to cut the lead to 10–3. Montreal would get another opportunity to gain more points, however, fullback [[Kerry Carter]] would turn the ball over when he fumbled the ball on the Saskatchewan 17 yard-line.  Then things would get worse for Montreal when Duval shanked two punts in a row, with the second punt only going for seven yards and out of bounds.

Due to the costly error, Saskatchewan would take advantage as [[Luca Congi]] was successful kicking a 44-yard field goal, which was followed by a [[Louie Sakoda]] single in the ensuing kickoff giving the Roughriders a 14–3 lead. On their next possession, Durant would complete a pass to Andy Fantuz on Saskatchewan's second-to-last play of the second quarter that was spotted on Montreal's 2-yard line. After a video review confirmed that Fantuz stayed in bounds to make the catch, Luca Congi kicked his third field goal to close the first half giving Saskatchewan a 17–3 lead.

In the third quarter, Montreal would force Saskatchewan to punt on their first possession of the second half, and then proceeded to drive down the field, with a key point being a play scrimmaging from the Saskatchewan 51-yard line where Calvillo received pass protection in the pocket and completed a pass to [[Jamel Richardson]] at the Saskatchewan 31-yard line. The Montreal Alouettes capped that 9-play drive with a touchdown when Calvillo completed an 8-yard pass to wide receiver [[Jamel Richardson]] midway through the quarter to cut the lead to 17–10.  However, nearly seven minutes later, Congi would kick his fourth field goal of the game to put Saskatchewan ahead 20–10. However, on the ensuing Saskatchewan kickoff, Montreal returner [[Brian Bratton]] evaded five would-be tacklers before getting pushed out of bounds by a sixth player of Saskatchewan's kick cover team at the Saskatchewan 50-yard line, giving Montreal a spark on special teams.

After a Damon Duval single 1:42 into the fourth quarter reduced the Saskatchewan lead to 20–11, Saskatchewan added to their lead in a drive that required less than three minutes of game time, completed when Durant rushed 16 yards for a touchdown. A successful single-point convert after the touchdown extended the Saskatchewan lead to 27–11. With the final 10:52 left in the fourth quarter, it looked like the Roughriders would secure their fourth championship as they were effectively running the ball at will against the Montreal defence. However, the Alouettes led by [[Anthony Calvillo]] would battle back to erase Saskatchewan's 16-point lead.

With less than eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter, and Montreal trailing 27–11, [[Anthony Calvillo]] threw from the Montreal-43-yard-line on a 2nd-and-10 attempt, and [[Brian Bratton]] caught the pass at the Saskatchewan 3-yard line. On the ensuing 1st-and-goal play, [[Avon Cobourne]] ran the ball into the endzone for a touchdown. Montreal attempted a two-point-convert, during which Calvillo stepped up in the pocket and successfully completed a pass to fullback [[Kerry Carter]] (with Saskatchewan linebacker Sean Lucas in close coverage of the Montreal fullback) to reduce the Saskatchewan lead to 27–19.

On a play scrimmaging from the Saskatchewan 33-yard-line with under six minutes left in the game, [[Darian Durant]] attempted a pass for [[Andy Fantuz]] that was intercepted by Montreal's [[Jerald Brown]]. On the ensuing Montreal possession, on a 2nd-and-10 from the Saskatchewan 32, [[Anthony Calvillo]] ran the ball to the Saskatchewan 25-yard-line, three yards short of a first down. This set up a 3rd-and-3 situation with 2:34 left to play. Down by eight points, the Alouettes would gamble on third down. Needing to reach the Saskatchewan 22-yard line for a first down, Calvillo completed a pass to [[Jamel Richardson]] in double coverage, and Richardson reached the Saskatchewan 15-yard line for a first down. With under two minutes remaining, on a play starting at the Saskatchewan 11-yard-line Calvillo stepped up in the pocket and threw to an uncovered [[Ben Cahoon]] for a touchdown, bringing Montreal to within a converted two-point attempt from tying the game. The two-point attempt was missed when [[Donovan Alexander]]'s pass interference on a Calvillo throw to [[Jamel Richardson]] was not called, and Saskatchewan maintained a 27–25 lead with just 1:45 remaining in the game. On the next Saskatchewan possession, the Roughriders could not manage a first down and were forced to punt after a two-and-out. On the [[Louie Sakoda]] punt, Montreal returner [[Brian Bratton]] fumbled the ball as he was hit by a Saskatchewan special teams player, but the football was recovered by Montreal's [[Etienne Boulay]], giving Montreal the chance to drive the field with less than a minute to go in the game. Montreal's task was made more difficult since the football went approximately ten yards towards the Montreal endzone before being recovered by [[Etienne Boulay]], meaning the Alouettes needed to drive down the field even further to be able to score.

With 0:31 remaining, on a 2nd-and-10 from the Montreal 34-yard-line, Calvillo completed a pass to [[Jamel Richardson]] that moved the Montreal offence to the Saskatchewan 53-yard-line with 0:24 left in the game. On the ensuing 1st-and-10 from the Saskatchewan 53-yard-line, Calvillo threw a pass to Montreal receiver [[Kerry Watkins]], which Watkins caught very close to the ground at the Saskatchewan 40-yard-line, that was ruled incomplete. The play was checked with video review and it was judged that there was not sufficient evidence to overturn the incomplete pass ruling, which set up a Montreal 2nd-and-10 attempt from the Saskatchewan 53-yard-line with 0:10 remaining in the game. Calvillo would again throw to receiver [[Kerry Watkins]], with Watkins catching the pass and getting tackled at the Saskatchewan 36-yard-line with 0:05 left in the game. With Montreal trailing 27–25, Montreal kicker [[Damon Duval]] missed wide right on a 43-yard field goal attempt that could have given Montreal the victory. Saskatchewan's [[Jason Armstead]] returned the missed field goal kick from inside the Saskatchewan endzone to the Saskatchewan 6-yard-line and kneeled to end the play, at which point Saskatchewan players began to celebrate what they thought was a win. However, Saskatchewan had thirteen players on the field during the Montreal field goal attempt, and referee Glen Johnson made the call of, "Illegal substitution, too many men on the field, Saskatchewan. It's a ten yard penalty, we'll repeat first down". With Saskatchewan's 10-yard penalty for [[too many men]] on the field, the Alouettes moved to the Saskatchewan 26-yard-line with 0:00 on the clock (a game cannot end with a defensive penalty) and attempted a 33-yard field goal for the win on the following play. Duval converted the 33-yard field goal to score three points on the final play and give Montreal the Grey Cup.

===Notable game facts===
* The '''97th Grey Cup''' was watched by 6.1 million Canadian viewers, making it the most-watched telecast in Canada for 2009.
* Both teams played in their 17th Grey Cup game.

==2009 CFL playoffs==

===Division Semi-finals===

====East Semi-Final====
Date and time: Sunday, November 15, 1:00 PM [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Standard Time]]<br />Venue: [[Ivor Wynne Stadium]], [[Hamilton, Ontario]]
{| class="wikitable"
! Team !! Q1 !! Q2 !! Q3 !! Q4 !! OT !! Total
|-style="background-color:#DDFFDD"
|[[BC Lions]] || 3 || 13 || 7 || 4 || 7 || 34
|-
|[[Hamilton Tiger-Cats]] || 3 || 3 || 10 || 11 || 0 || 27
|}

The [[BC Lions]] became the second [[CFL West Division|West Division]] team to win in the [[CFL East Division|East Semi-Finals]] by defeating the [[Hamilton Tiger-Cats]] 34–27 in overtime, earning the right to play against the [[Montreal Alouettes]] in the East Final.

Former Tiger-Cat [[quarterback]] [[Casey Printers]] threw for 360 yards, rushed for a [[touchdown]], and threw the winning eight-yard touchdown toss to [[Ian Smart]] in overtime to seal the win in his return to [[Hamilton, ON|Hamilton]].

Hamilton came into the game as one of the [[Canadian Football League|CFL]]'s hottest teams, having won three straight, whereas the Lions finished the regular season losing three straight and earning the crossover playoff berth only after the Tiger-Cats defeated the [[Winnipeg Blue Bombers]] 39–17 to clinch second in the East and eliminate [[Winnipeg]] from post-season contention.

Printers was masterful in leading the Lions on two long scoring marches from inside their own 10-yard line that not only resulted in 10 points for the Lions, but prevented the Tiger-Cats from getting the ball in good field position and kept Hamilton's defence on the turf for long stretches. Printers was also very effective at throwing the ball away whenever he came under pressure from the Tiger-Cat defence, despite being sacked four times.

The biggest question in this game was the Tiger-Cats' decision to not exploit the biggest weakness in the Lions' defence. [[BC Lions|B.C.]] came into the game having the CFL's worst run defence, averaging 138 yards per game. However, the Tiger-Cats ran the ball only seven times for 35 yards.  Hamilton running back [[DeAndra' Cobb]], who ran for 267 yards in the two regular-season games the teams played (with Hamilton winning both), had just six carries for 33 yards in regulation.

Still, after trailing 16–6 at halftime, Hamilton eventually tied the game at 16–16 on quarterback [[Kevin Glenn]]'s 28-yard touchdown pass to [[Dave Stala]], who made an amazing diving catch at 9:05 of the third quarter. It came after Hamilton had to settle for a [[Nick Setta]] field goal at 4:24, after a [[Chris Thompson (gridiron football)|Chris Thompson]] [[fumble]] recovery and return to the Lions' 20-yard line.

But the B.C. Lions would counter with [[Rolly Lambala]]'s one-yard touchdown run at 12:14, a major set up by a 34-yard pass interference call on Hamilton's [[Jykine Bradley]]. Printers then took the Lions on an 11-play, 71-yard drive that culminated in a 33-yard [[Paul McCallum (Canadian football)|Paul McCallum]] field goal that put the visitors ahead 26–16 at 3:05 of the fourth quarter.

Although B.C. led 27–16 with 5:00 left, Hamilton booted a field goal with 2:13 remaining to get them within reach.  On their next possession, Dave Stala pulled in a nine-yard touchdown pass from Glenn for his second touchdown reception.  After the touchdown, the Tiger-Cats scored on a two-point conversion attempt to tie the game when Glenn again threw a pass to wide-open receiver [[Marquay McDaniel]] in the end zone to send it to overtime.

After pulling off a last-minute miracle to tie the game, Hamilton fans became overjoyed as it seemed the momentum had switched to their home team. However, it was not to be.

Before overtime, Hamilton won the coin toss and elected for the Lions to have first possession of the football, which turned out to be a costly decision.  On their first possession, Casey Printers and the B.C. offence took two plays to score the winning touchdown when Printers tossed the ball to Ian Smart, putting the Lions ahead 34–27.

The Tiger-Cats had a chance to tie the game but were shut down by Lion defence, which proved to be the difference in the extra minutes of play following the B.C. touchdown.

[[Emmanuel Arceneaux]] was the top Lion receiver on the day, pulling in six receptions for a total of 120 yards, while Paul McCallum was good on all four of his field goal attempts, the longest a 43-yarder. B.C. generated 445 yards in total offence to Hamilton's 440, while the Tiger-Cats picked up 437 aerial yards.  Nick Setta was also good on all four of his field goal attempts for Hamilton.

The Lions then headed to [[Montreal]] to play against the Alouettes at the [[Olympic Stadium (Montreal)|Olympic Stadium]], for a chance to advance to the [[Grey Cup]].

====West Semi-Final====
Date and time: Sunday, November 15, 2:30 PM [[Mountain Standard Time]]<br />Venue: [[McMahon Stadium]], [[Calgary]], [[Alberta]]
{| class="wikitable"
! Team !! Q1 !! Q2 !! Q3 !! Q4 !! Total
|-
|[[Edmonton Eskimos]] || 0 || 7 || 7 || 7 || 21
|-
|-style="background-color:#DDFFDD"
|[[Calgary Stampeders]] || 0 || 9 || 7 || 8 || 24
|}

The Stampeders opened the post-season the way they ended the regular season in [[Regina, SK|Regina]] where they had three second-half drives and were within 20 yards of the end zone, but were only able produce two [[Field goal (American and Canadian football)|field goals]].  In the opening half, the Stampeders again squandered three chances to score [[touchdown]]s from inside the red zone and settled for three [[Sandro DeAngelis]] field goals. Three of those Stampeders drives in the second quarter ended with Calgary [[quarterback]] [[Henry Burris]] either shedding the ball under pressure or throwing an incompletion, which brought DeAngelis out onto the field.

On the other side, the Edmonton Eskimos were also unable to score a touchdown in the red zone as Stampeder [[cornerback]] [[Brandon Browner]] stopped Edmonton's [[running back]] [[Arkee Whitlock]] twice from within five yards early in the second quarter to prevent a touchdown.  The Eskimos would depend on their kicker, [[Noel Prefontaine]] to kick for two field goals and a last-minute single point for all of Edmonton's first-half points.

With both teams' inability to score a touchdown during the first two quarters of play, Calgary had a 9–7 lead into halftime.

However, in the third quarter, Henry Burris threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to receiver [[Arjei Franklin]] to take a 16–7 lead at 5:25 of the third quarter, capping an eight-play, 57-yard drive.  However, [[Edmonton]]'s [[Skyler Green]] countered Calgary's touchdown score with a 93-yard touchdown return on the ensuing Calgary kickoff.

Heading into the fourth quarter, the Stampeders led by two points, 16–14, before Calgary [[Punter (American football)|punter]] [[Burke Dales]] kicked a 67-yard single 19 seconds in to give Calgary a three-point lead.  Then at 2:52 of the fourth quarter, Henry Burris threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to [[Romby Bryant]] to increase their lead to 24–14.

Although the Edmonton Eskimos seemed to be out of it,{{According to whom|date=October 2015}} the Stampeders gave them a chance after they were penalized for 35 yards, including two roughing the passer calls on Calgary's [[Charleston Hughes]], which contributed to the Eskimos' second touchdown at 7:44 of the fourth quarter when quarterback [[Ricky Ray]] rushed in for the 1-yard score and trailed 24–21.

However, Edmonton's chances to get within field goal range to tie the game with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter were stopped, after taking two costly holding penalties that kept them in their end of the field and were forced to punt the ball away, after Calgary's defensive tackle, [[DeVone Claybrooks]] sacked Ricky Ray for a 10-yard loss, which forced Edmonton to rely on their defence to get the ball back.  However, the Edmonton defence were unable to stop the Calgary offence, who simply played out the clock to eventually win the [[Battle of Alberta]] match-up.

With the win, the Calgary Stampeders ended a three-game losing streak against the Edmonton Eskimos in divisional semi-final games dating back to [[2005 Grey Cup|2005]] and went 4–1 against the Eskimos this season.  They will now play the Saskatchewan Roughriders at [[Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field]] for a chance to advance to the [[Grey Cup]] and play in front of their home fans in Calgary.

[[Henry Burris]] rushed for 63 yards and completed 19 passes on 32 attempts for 264 yards and threw for two touchdown passes, while his counterpart, Ricky Ray, was 18-for-30 and 162 yards, but no touchdowns.  While Stampeders [[running back]], [[Joffrey Reynolds]], the [[Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy|West Division nominee]] for the [[CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award|league's most outstanding player]], rushed for 127 yards, which is the fourth-highest in a Stampeder playoff game.

===Division Finals===

====East Final====
Date and time: Sunday, November 22, 1:00 PM [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Standard Time]]<br />Venue: [[Olympic Stadium (Montreal)|Olympic Stadium]], [[Montreal]], [[Quebec]]
{| class="wikitable"
! Team !! Q1 !! Q2 !! Q3 !! Q4 !! Total
|-
|[[BC Lions]] || 3 || 8 || 7 || 0 || 18
|-style="background-color:#DDFFDD"
|[[Montreal Alouettes]] || 17 || 14 || 14 || 11 || 56
|}
The [[Montreal Alouettes]] had a dominant 15–3 season while the [[BC Lions]] was only 8–10, but the [[CFL East Division|East final]] was widely seen as a toss-up due to the strong form of BC quarterback, [[Casey Printers]] after joining the Lions in September and because of the Alouettes previous struggles against their rival from [[Vancouver]].  However, the Alouettes set a franchise playoff record by scoring 56 points and dominated the BC Lions throughout the game.

The game turned only seven minutes in the first quarter, after each team exchanged field goals, BC [[running back]], [[Martell Mallett]] fumbled the ball on the Lions' 22 that was eventually recovered by Montreal's [[Shea Emry]]. On the next play, Montreal quarterback, [[Anthony Calvillo]] found [[wide receiver]], [[Jamel Richardson]] all alone in the end zone and threw his first touchdown pass of the game to give the Alouettes a 10–3 lead.  On their next offensive possession, the BC Lions would turn the ball over again, when Casey Printers threw an interception to Montreal's [[Billy Parker (gridiron football)|Billy Parker]], who would return the ball for 45 yards, which eventually set up a four-yard touchdown pass by Calvillo to [[Kerry Watkins]] for a 17–3, Alouettes lead to end the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, BC [[defensive end]], [[Lavar Glover]] missed his opportunity to tackle Kerry Watkins, which led to a 91-yard return that would set up a seven-yard TD toss by Calvillo to Richardson for a 24–3, Alouettes lead.  The Lions would score their first touchdown of the game when Casey Printers threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver, [[Paris Jackson (footballer)|Paris Jackson]] that was started when Montreal's [[Larry Taylor (Canadian football)|Larry Taylor]] uncharacteristically dropped a punt return, which was recovered by Lions' safety [[Tad Crawford]] deep into the Alouettes side of the field.  However, the Alouettes offence came right back when Anthony Calvillo threw his fourth touchdown of the game to wide receiver, [[Brian Bratton]] to give the Alouettes a comfortable 31–10 lead.  Before the end of the second half, BC kicker [[Paul McCallum (Canadian football)|Paul McCallum]] punted the ball into the endzone to give BC an extra point, although the Lions' were trailing by 20 points into halftime.

At 4:54 into the third quarter, Lions' wide receiver and kick returner, [[Ryan Grice-Mullen]]  returned a 106-yard punt return to score a BC touchdown to cut the Montreal lead to 13, and broke the previous [[Grey Cup|playoff record]] of 103-yards by [[Edmonton Eskimos|Eskimos]]' legend [[Gizmo Williams|Henry "Gizmo" Williams]], which was set back in [[1992 Grey Cup|1992]].  Momentum could have switched for the Lions at that point, however, Grice-Mullen's touchdown return would eventually be the last time that BC could muster any further offence and scoring in the game.

For the remainder of the game, the Montreal Alouettes would score their remaining 25 points.  In the third quarter, Anthony Calvillo threw another (14-yard) touchdown pass to Brian Bratton to tie a league playoff record for throwing five touchdowns in a single game.  Later on, in the third quarter, Montreal's [[Cory Huclack]] blocked a Paul McCallum punt, which was recovered by Jamel Richardson, who scored his third touchdown of the game.

In the fourth quarter, Alouettes' kicker, [[Damon Duval]] added a field goal and a single point on a missed field goal to give Montreal a playoff franchise record of 49 points, which broke the previous record of 48 points that they scored against the [[Hamilton Tiger-Cats]] in [[1956 in Canadian football|1956]].  Montreal would then score their remaining touchdown on a [[John Bowman (Canadian football)|John Bowman]] 41-yard interception return off BC backup quarterback, [[Travis Lulay]], who replaced Printers late in the game.

With the blowout victory the Montreal Alouettes will head into [[Calgary]] to play in their seventh [[Grey Cup|Grey Cup game]] in ten years and will try to overcome a disappointing 1–5 record in those games to become champions for the first time since [[2002 Grey Cup|2002]].

====West Final====
Date and time: Sunday, November 22, 3:30 PM [[Central Standard Time]]<br />Venue: [[Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field]], [[Regina, Saskatchewan]]
{| class="wikitable"
! Team !! Q1 !! Q2 !! Q3 !! Q4 !! Total
|-
|[[Calgary Stampeders]] || 3 || 7 || 1 || 6 || 17
|-style="background-color:#DDFFDD"
|[[Saskatchewan Roughriders]] || 0 || 10 || 14 || 3 || 27
|}
The defending [[Grey Cup]] champions, [[Calgary Stampeders]] were hoping to win and repeat as champions on their home field at [[McMahon Stadium]].  However, they had to get past the [[Saskatchewan Roughriders]] who after 33 years finished first in the [[CFL West Division|West Division]] and had home field advantage with the raucous Rider Nation on their side.

In the first half, the Calgary Stampeders showed signs as if they would succeed when kicker, [[Sandro DeAngelis]] opened the scoring on the game's first possession with a 47-yard field goal to make it 3–0 Calgary in the first quarter.  Eventually, Calgary would add to their lead when [[running back]], [[Joffrey Reynolds]], the CFL rushing leader, rushed for 17 yards for the touchdown to make it 10–0, Stampeders.

However, the Saskatchewan Roughriders would respond at 7:54 in the second quarter, when [[quarterback]], [[Darian Durant]] threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to [[Chris Getzlaf]] to make it 10–7, Calgary. Then at 12:41 of the second quarter, kicker [[Luca Congi]] would kick an 18-yard field goal to tie the game at 10–10.  While both teams were able to score 10 points the first half was dominated by both defences, which kept the game tied at halftime.

At the start of the third quarter, Saskatchewan would eventually break the tie breaker as Darian Durant would throw two touchdown passes to give the Roughriders a commanding lead over Calgary.  The first touchdown pass came at 2:19 when Durant threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to [[Andy Fantuz]] giving the Riders a 17–10 lead.  Then at 11:04 of the third quarter, Durant threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to [[Rob Bagg]] giving Saskatchewan a commanding 24–11 lead, as Calgary was only able to score a single point in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Saskatchewan would add to their point total when Congi kicked a 43-yard field goal to give the Riders a 27–11 lead. Late in the game, Calgary would cut the lead to 10, when [[Henry Burris]] threw a 4-yard touchdown completion to [[Jeremaine Copeland]] at 13:47.  However, when Calgary attempted a two-point convert to make it an 8-point deficit, Burris' pass would be intercepted in the end zone which sealed the victory for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and ended Calgary's hope to become repeat champions on home turf.

With the victory, Saskatchewan met the [[Montreal Alouettes]] at the '''97th Grey Cup''' game at Calgary's McMahon Stadium, which also marked the first time that both these teams have met in a championship game.

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100211100533/http://greycup.cfl.ca/ Official website]

{{Saskatchewan Roughriders}}
{{Montreal Alouettes}}
{{97th Grey Cup}}
{{Grey Cup}}
{{2009 CFL season by team}}

[[Category:Grey Cup]]
[[Category:2009 in Canadian football|Grey Cup]]
[[Category:Canadian football competitions in Calgary]]
[[Category:Saskatchewan Roughriders]]
[[Category:Montreal Alouettes]]
[[Category:2000s in Calgary]]
[[Category:2009 in sports in Alberta]]
[[Category:2009 sports awards]]
[[Category:2009 in Canadian television]]
[[Category:November 2009 sports events in Canada]]