When Curtis Marsh helped the Rider clinch a wild season opener
Once in a while, there is a player that comes along who is an absolute game changer.
And in a season opening game for the Roughriders in 2001, a guy named Curtis Marsh proved to be just that.
The Riders opened the season that year at home against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Hamilton dominated most of the game, and by the fourth quarter had a 25-13 lead over the Rider team that couldn’t get much going offensively.
Cue number 88.
Marsh caught a long touchdown pass from Marvin Graves early in the final frame to pull the Riders within five.
Not long after that, it was the Marsh connection again, in the form of another touchdown pass that gave the riders a 27-25 lead.
Hamilton would come back and put together a driver that led to a Paul Osbaldaston field goal, giving the Tiger-Cats a 28-27 advantage.
With less than a minute left, Quarterback Marvin Graves needed to get the riders down the field quickly.
And Curtis Marsh was the man he knew could help get it done.
Marsh hauled in two passes for a combined 43 yards putting the Roughriders in field goal range.
That set up Paul Mcallum for a game-winning kick in the final seconds, giving the Riders a 30-28 win.
It sparked celebration in Rider nation with a classic season opening win many won’t soon forget.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Bob Cole, veteran CBC broadcaster and former voice of ‘Hockey Night in Canada,’ dead at 90
Bob Cole, legendary CBC broadcaster and former voice of Hockey Night in Canada, has died. He was 90.
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.