After witnessing the bore bowl that was the 2004 Vanier Cup, fans were hoping for an exciting, well-played football game at this year’s championship match. The game delivered the goods, as it was full of solid play, drama, and last-minute heroics.

The Laurier Golden Hawks and Saskatchewan Huskies met on December 3 at Hamilton’s Ivor Wynne Stadium to decide who was Canada’s best university team in 2005. Both teams were unbeaten entering the grand finale.

Saskatchewan was the heavy favourite in the eyes of many pundits, largely because they had the edge in experience in big games. The Huskies competed in last year’s Vanier Cup, losing to Laval in a sloppy contest, but defeated the Rouge et Or in this year’s national quarterfinals.

Laurier hadn’t been part of a Vanier Cup since 1990 and had never played Saskatchewan before. However, quarterback Ryan Pyear wasn’t about to roll over and hand the title to the Huskies-he had other plans.

Pyear, in his last year at Laurier, passed for 254 yards and three touchdowns and completed 20-of-30 throws. By the end of the game he could barely run, but he fought through the pain to lead his team to a thrilling 24-23 victory.

Steve Bilan, Saskatchewan’s quarterback, also had a solid day. He passed for 226 yards and one touchdown, marching his team down the field on a regular basis.

The game was in doubt until the last minute of the fourth quarter. Saskatchewan was up 23-21 and seemed to have stalled Laurier’s last-ditch comeback attempt with just over one minute to play, but Pyear completed a 17-yard pass to Dante Luciani on a third-and-16 that kept the drive alive.

Then, with 19 seconds left on the clock, Golden Hawk kicker Brian Devlin connected on a 32-yard field goal to give his squad a one-point advantage. The Huskies could not tie the game in the dying seconds, giving the national title to Laurier for the first time in 15 years.

Pyear and Devlin had nerves of steel in the fourth quarter, executing game-saving and game-winning plays with what appeared to be great poise and ease. Pyear took home the Ted Morris Trophy, as he was named game MVP, and Devlin will be remembered as the guy who won Laurier the Vanier Cup.

Saskatchewan was up 23-15 and appeared to have the momentum midway through the final frame. They built their eight-point lead on an 85-yard touchdown run by David Stevens. The sturdy running back rushed for three touchdowns and 190 yards on the day, the fourth-highest total in the history of the CIS final.

But Laurier fought back. Bryon Hickey caught a touchdown pass with just over three minutes remaining to make the score 23-21. The Golden Hawks then failed on a two-point conversion bid, but Devlin bailed them out with his last-minute heroics.

Many of the over 16,000 fans in attendance celebrated on the field with the winning players, coaches, and trainers after the final whistle. They were happy to see a team from Ontario crowned Canada’s best university football squad for the first time since 1994 when Western won the Vanier Cup.

The Saskatchewan Huskies went home empty handed for the second straight year. If they hope to return to the big dance next season they will have to do it without stars Bilan and Stevens. Both have played for five seasons now, making them ineligible to play another season.