Travis Lulay throws four touchdown passes as Lions thump Alouettes 43-10

VANCOUVER – Travis Lulay threw four touchdown passes Saturday as the B.C. Lions thumped the Montreal Alouettes 43-10.

B.C. (7-3) retained sole possession of first place in the CFL’s West Division, and took over first place in the overall standings, while avenging a 30-25 loss to the Als (6-4) in Montreal eight days earlier.

Nick Moore and Ernest Jackson each caught their first CFL touchdowns for B.C., while Lulay also hooked up with Marco Iannuzzi and Shawn Gore for the Lions’ other scores through the air.

Andrew Harris added a B.C. touchdown on a one-yard run in the final two minutes on a hand off from backup quarterback Mike Reilly, who saw his first sustained regular-season action as a Lion after replacing Lulay in the fourth quarter.

Paul McCallum added two field goals while B.C.’s remaining points game on five converts and a safety.

Jamel Richardson scored the Alouettes’ lone touchdown, while Sean Whyte provided their remaining points on a field goal.

Lulay completed 23-of-31 pass attempts for 262 yards as the Lions posted their fifth win in six games. The quarterback’s strong showing came a day after Lulay said he felt pressure to put in a good showing against legendary Montreal quarterback Anthony Calvillo.

B.C. won for the 11th time in the past 12 West Coast meetings between the teams. Montreal had hoped the first afternoon game between the clubs since the teams began interlocking play in 1961 would make a difference. It didn’t.

Both teams scored on their first two possessions, but then B.C. took over. Calvillo stood out early, but his teammates hurt him with some untimely penalties, and Montreal’s defence struggled all afternoon against both the B.C. pass and run.

Calvillo completed 16-of-26 passes for a modest 152 yards.

The Lions played without veteran slotback Geroy Simon, who missed his first game in four years with a hamstring injury. Moore, who has spent most of the season on the practice roster, took his spot in the starting lineup.

Simon, 36, was hurt in Montreal, but his absence did not hamper the B.C. offence.

Lulay got the Lions on the scoreboard early, guiding B.C. on an opening drive that led to McCallum’s 43-yard field goal. The field goal was the 600th of his career.

But Calvillo also worked some mastery on Montreal’s first possession. With the crowd making lots of noise in a bid to throw him off, he calmly threw a 38-yard pass to S.J. Green on his team’s first play. It was the first of a five-play scoring drive that culminated with Calvillo’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Richardson, who returned after missing three games with a hamstring injury.

The Lions did not trail for long. Tim Brown returned Montreal’s ensuing kick-off to the Als’ 33-yard-line, and Lulay quickly moved the chains. He was helped by an objectionable conduct penalty on Montreal’s Dwight Anderson that moved the ball to the Als’ two-yard line.

From there, Lulay faked one way and threw the other to a wide open Gore for a touchdown that staked B.C. to a 10-7 lead. The completion gave Lulay a touchdown pass in 21 straight game, moving him into a tie for second all-time on that list with Calvillo and Doug Flutie.

On their next drive, the Alouettes succeeded with some trickery as kicker Sean Whyte deliberately missed a field goal attempt, kicking the ball sideways to Kyries Hebert. The 10-yard boot was officially scored as a missed field goal and onside kick. It led to an actual 31-yard Whyte field goal that tied the score 10-10.

McCallum’s second field goal of the game, from 30 yards, put B.C. ahead 13-10 in the second quarter. B.C. increased its lead just before half-time as a wide-open Iannuzzi caught a five-yard touchdown pass from Lulay.

The touchdown came one play after Moore caught a five-yard pass and was nailed by Anderson. Moore immediately went to the sideline holding his left arm, but returned later.

Late in the third quarter, he helped set up his own touchdown as he hauled in a 21-yard pass. Four plays later, Moore caught Lulay’s pass at the Montreal one-yard-line and leaped over two defenders break the plane of the goal-line.

After scoring his first CFL touchdown, Moore threw the ball straight up in the air in celebration and obvious relief. The touchdown capped a nine-play, 81-yard scoring drive.

Lulay threw his fourth touchdown of the afternoon as he connected with Jackson on a 43-yard scoring play that, with McCallum’s convert, gave B.C. a 34-10 cushion.

Notes: McCallum helped prevent a Montreal touchdown late in the second quarter as he knocked Chip Cox out of bounds following a kickoff. … Montreal played without defensive back Billy Parker, who prevented a last-minute B.C. touchdown in the teams’ first encounter. Parker injured his hamstring in practice on Thursday.