With thirteen seconds gone in the final quarter of play, number thirteen Joseph Valtellini kicked a thirteen-yard field goal to give the Varsity Blues football team a ten-point lead over the York Lions in the 36th annual playing of the Red and Blue Bowl at Varsity Stadium. By nature I am not a superstitious person, nor do I have a case of triskaidekaphobia, but seeing that many occurrences of the number thirteen will make anyone wary.
When York erased that ten-point lead in a matter of four plays in the fourth quarter, I could not help but wonder about the possibility of the Blues truly being a cursed club.
Early on it seemed that way, as the Blues’ first possession lasted all of one play. They coughed up a turnover-the first of five lost fumbles on the day.
The Blues did not seem to get discouraged, however, even though York jumped to an 7-0 lead shortly after the miscue. U of T even battled their way to a 14-9 half-time lead, and a capacity crowd of 1,167 fans thought that this was it for their beloved football team’s 27-game losing streak.
The Blues didn’t just go into half time with a lead; they went in with a swagger. The swagger of a team who had made an early statement. The passing game had been established and quarterback David Hamilton seemed poised to lead the Blues to their first win since the demolition of Varsity Stadium.
The second half started the way the first had ended: with both teams battling and all guns blazing. York punched in an early touchdown to take the lead, but the Blues defence stepped up big after that, continuously stopping the Lions’ high-powered offence.
Andre Doyle’s presence was especially felt as he compiled seven-and-a-half tackles, one sack, and a forced fumble in an inspired effort.
After the defence laid the foundation, the offence seemed poised to bring home the victory. David Hamilton continued to pick apart the York defence on his way to a 264-yard day, which included two touchdowns and no interceptions.
With the defence stretched to defend the pass, Marc Gaudett was able to pound his way to 139 rushing yards on 30 attempts. The most telling statistic of Gaudett’s day, however, would not be his yardage or touchdown totals, but rather his fumbles. The Blues running back put the ball on the turf three times, and the turnovers and mistakes started to hurt the Blues.
Nothing seemed to go the Blues’ way after the eerily timed field goal by Valtellini to start the fourth. For example, Hamilton completed a pass to Tony Mammoliti with just over eight minutes remaining in the final period, but Mammoliti was subsequently stripped of the ball by a York defender. The York player then rushed all the way to the Blues endzone for a 55-yard score to tie the game.
York would score again with 55 seconds remaining in regulation time, only to see Hamilton and the Blues come back and tie the game with no time remaining on the clock. Hamilton completed a six-yard pass to Mammoliti, carrying the unforgettable contest into overtime.
The overtime session started with a circus catch by York receiver Ricardo Hudson, who scored his second touchdown of the day. The Blues were given a chance to counter-Canadian football overtimes aren’t sudden death-but Hamilton’s attempted keeper on third and goal came up just inches short of the endzone, proving the longest yard is always the one right before the goal line.
So the streak for the Blues is extended to 28 straight games without a win, and 28 straight games without a stadium. Could it be that the ghost of J.H. Mayne Campbell, who originally introduced the game of football to the university in 1874, is ominously watching over the Blues after they tore down their stadium? A new stadium may be the only thing that can deliver this team from Campbell’s clutches.
