A touchdown pass from Tom Denison to Jameek Murray with just 19 seconds left in the game gave the Greater Toronto All-Stars a 39-38 win over the Calgary Gators in the championship game of the Canadian Major Football League Saturday night in Hamilton.
It was the first national senior title for the Greater Toronto franchise, the reigning Northern Football Conference champion, and the third year in a row a team from Calgary has lost the national championship game.
Murray’s touchdown, his third of the game, actually gave Greater Toronto its first lead. Calgary opened scoring with an early field goal, and the Gators led 24-6 at the end of the first quarter, 31-21 at halftime and 38-27 after Calgary quarterback Jordan Heather, the 2013 Hec Crighton trophy winner from Bishop’s, connected with Oren Doneff with his second TD pass of the game in the third quarter.
An 18-yard pass from Denison to Mark Simone, the second TD reception of the game for the Italian national team member, cut the deficit to five points before the third quarter was done.
Denison, the two-time Hec Crighton trophy winner from Queen’s, was named the Northern conference most valuable player for the fourth time this season. He finished the game with 32 completions from 44 passes, for 348 yards and five touchdowns, but four interceptions.
Murray, Atlantic University Sport rookie of the year at Saint Mary’s in 2008, rushed for 140 yards and had 80 yards receiving.