VANCOUVER, B.C. --- Former Sacramento State quarterback Ricky Ray threw for 359 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Edmonton Eskimos to a 38-35 double-overtime victory over Montreal in the 93rd Grey Cup, Sunday afternoon at BC Place Stadium.Ray, who had been replaced in the second half for his lack of production in the team’s two previous playoff games, was named the Most Valuable Player after setting a Grey Cup record with 35 completions on his 45 attempts.
Trailing by five with less than two minutes to play, Ray engineered a drive which included a 35-yard completion on third down and ended with a 1-yard sneak to give the team a 1-point edge. He then connected with Jason Tucker on the two-point conversion to put Edmonton up by three with 1:03 to play.
Montreal answered with a big kick return which started its drive near midfield. The Allouettes forced overtime with a 27-yard field goal from Damon Duval as time expired.
In the first overtime (where each team starts at the 35), Montreal struck first when quarterback Anthony Calvillo threw a 30-yard touchdown to Dave Stala. Ray matched the score on an 11-yard strike to Tucker to tie the score at 35-35.
In the second overtime, Edmonton kicked a 36-yard field goal and the Eskimos defense then stopped Montreal to seal the game.
The Grey Cup title is the second for Edmonton in the last three years. The title was the second-consecutive for Ray, who spent the 2004 season with the New York Jets of the CFL. In his three years as the Eskimos starting quarterback, Ray has led Edmonton to the Grey Cup each season.
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