Roughriders 24 Stampeders 23
CALGARY — An injury to Andy Fantuz forced Chris Getzlaf into the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ starting lineup.
He made the most of his opportunity.
Getzlaf caught two touchdown passes to lead the Roughriders to a 24-23 win over the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday.
Starting in place of Fantuz, who missed the game with a hamstring injury, Getzlaf caught a 65-yard touchdown pass from Saskatchewan quarterback Darian Durant late in the fourth quarter to give the Riders the win.
The older brother of all-star Anaheim Ducks’ forward Ryan Getzlaf also caught a nine-yard TD strike in the first quarter.
Weston Dressler had a touchdown reception for the Roughriders (3-2), while Luca Congi kicked a field goal.
Calgary quarterback Henry Burris threw a touchdown pass to Jon Cornish and ran for one himself, while Sandro DeAngelis kicked three field goals for the Stamps (2-3).
Saskatchewan started off strongly as Wes Cates broke off a 17-yard run to give the Riders great field position.
Five plays later, Durant tossed a nine-yard touchdown strike to Getzlaf.
With the Riders threatening again later in the first quarter, Dwaine Carpenter picked off an errant pass by Durant at the Calgary 21-yard line.
Burris then started off a five-play, 89-yard scoring drive with an impressive 45-yard bomb to receiver Ryan Thelwell. Cornish capped off the drive with a 10-yard TD reception to tie the score at 7-7.
In the second quarter, Burris drove Calgary 99 yards downfield to the Saskatchewan five-yard line before the Stamps settled for a 12-yard field goal by DeAngelis. The Calgary kicker then added a 35-yarder a short time later to put the Stamps up 13-7.
Saskatchewan coach Ken Miller gave Steven Jyles some playing time in the second quarter, and the backup pivot responded by driving the Riders on a late first-half drive that covered 74 yards over 14 plays. Congi then kicked an 18-yard field goal as the second quarter expired to pull the visitors within three points.
With Durant back in the game in the third quarter, the Saskatchewan quarterback completed three straight passes to march the Riders 63 yards into the end zone. Durant finished off the drive with a 19-yard TD pass to Dressler to give Saskatchewan a 17-13 lead.
The Riders missed an opportunity to extend their lead when Congi’s 33-yard field goal attempt hit the right upright early in the fourth quarter.
The Stamps took advantage of their good fortune on their next drive when Burris capped off a nine-play, 85-yard drive when he ran for an 18-yard score.