Edmonton Eskimos vs Montreal Alouettes Match Player Stats On Aug 08, 2014

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Aug 8, 2014

Eskimos 33, Alouettes 23: Mike Reilly threw a pair of touchdown passes and John White added a 58-yard scoring run as visiting Edmonton rode a big first half to an easy win over struggling Montreal.

White finished with 102 yards on the ground while recording the first rushing touchdown of the season for the Eskimos (5-1), who moved into a tie with Winnipeg atop the West Division standings. Reilly was 15-of-21 for 206 yards while Adarius Bowman and Kendial Lawrence combined for 149 receiving yards and two scores.

Sean Whyte's five field goals provided one of the lone bright spots for the Alouettes (1-5), who have dropped four straight and lost Chad Johnson to a head injury following a hard hit on the game's opening series. Troy Smith completed 20-of-45 passes for 231 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Reilly struck first less than three minutes into the game, easily evading a safety blitz before hitting a wide-open Lawrence in stride for his first career TD reception. Two field goals two singles by Whyte helped the Alouettes close within 10-8 early in the second quarter, but White found a hole in Montreal's defense and blazed untouched into the end zone before Bowman added a 25-yard TD catch late as Edmonton carried a 30-8 advantage into the break.

Whyte's 28-yard field goal provided the only offense of a lackluster third quarter in which Montreal controlled the ball for most of the final 12 minutes but couldn't find the end zone. Whyte converted a pair of fourth-quarter kicks to make it a 13-point game, but Edmonton responded with Grant Shaw's 43-yarder and held on despite Brandon Whitaker's 43-yard TD on a screen pass from Smith with less than a minute remaining.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Johnson, a former Pro Bowl wide receiver, was held without a catch and remains stuck on just four receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown on the season. ... Whyte has converted 12 straight field-goal attempts. ... The Montreal franchise is off to a 1-5 start for the first time since the 1981 Concordes.