Eman elevates Gaiters over Redmen for first win
Rookie quarterback Travis Eman used his legs to score a pair to touchdowns and the Bishop’s Gaiters defense stuffed the McGill Redmen on a potential game-winning drive to secure the purple and white’s first win of the year, a 17-13 victory. The rivals kicked off in Montreal on Thursday night at Percival Molson Stadium in one of two RSEQ University Football match-ups this Thanksgiving weekend.
Eman (Brampton, Ont.) was one of three Bishop’s pivots to see the field as veteran Shane McDonald (Uxbridge, Ont.) and sophomore Alexandre Bouffard (Sherbrooke, Que.) also took snaps. Eman’s legs proved to be the difference on the night as he scampered six yards and broke a pair of tackles to score the game’s first major just 18 seconds before the first half expired.
After a scoreless first quarter that saw seven punts, the Gaiters grabbed a 7-3 halftime advantage on the chilly Montreal night.
McGill scored their only major 4:29 into the third frame to grab the lead. They held the advantage until Gaiters’ kicker Vincent Dube (Montmagny, Que.) split the uprights on a 30-yard field goal attempt with just over four minutes remaining in the stanza. After the Gaiters got great field position from a defensive stand and pressure forced a McGill special teams mishap, Eman scored his second touchdown of the night on a 1-yard quarterback sneak just two minutes later.
The Redmen tacked on a field goal early in the fourth frame to cut Bishop’s advantage to 17-13. The game was in the balance as the hosts had the ball on their own 26-yard line with 53 seconds remaining. They were able to make a bit of headway but the game ended when Joshua Miller (Brampton) intercepted the Redmen’s hail mary attempt on the last play of the game and secured a Gaiters 17-14 victory, their first of the season.
“It wasn’t pretty but it was a victory,” said Gaiters head coach Kevin Mackey. “We hung tight, at times it was stressful but we came through. I’m proud of our guys tonight.”
Watch all of coach Mackey’s post game comments here: http://youtu.be/WvLSU4zRRcw
Bishop’s (1-4) next heads to Quebec City to face the No. 1 Laval Rouge et Or (5-0) on Sunday, October 19. With Thursday nights win the Gaiters keep their playoff hopes alive. They sit one game behind Sherbrooke (2-3) for the final playoff spot and have a tilt with the Vert et Or on the last day of the regular season.
Bishop’s Bites: Dube finished the game 1-for-1 on field goals and had his best day as a Gaiter punting the ball. He averaged 35.3 yards on 13 punts… Offensively Bishop’s three-headed passing attack was 7-for-18 for 53 yards…Vincent Davignon (Granby, Que.) led the Gaiters in rushing in Ronlee King-Fileen’s (Toronto) absence. Davignon carried the ball 13 times for 88 yards… Bouffard also added 40 yards of rushing … Steve McCollum (Brampton) led the Gaiters defense that allowed 299 yards but just 13 points. He recorded nine tackles including 2.5 for losses and a sack… Bishop’s was penalized 9 times for 100 yards while McGill was flagged 18 times for 158 yards.
