Ottawa's ghosts of Grey Cups past: A thrilling win, a crushing defeat
Sunday marks 16th time an Ottawa football team has vied for Canadian football's ultimate prize
Here's a look back at Ottawa's last two trips to the Grey Cup.
1976: Ottawa Rough Riders vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders
The 64th Grey Cup championship took place on Nov. 28, 1976, at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. Attendance at the game was 53,467, a record crowd for a Grey Cup.
The game remains one of the most memorable CFL finals ever, and not just because it featured two teams with the same name, but because it was capped by one of the most thrilling game-winning plays in league history.
Down by four points with 20 seconds left on the clock, Rough Riders quarterback Tom Clements waved off the play from the bench. Tight end Tony Gabriel ran for the end zone, executed a perfect fake and caught Clements's pass for a game-winning touchdown.
The play has gone down in Ottawa sports lore as 'The Catch.' Now it has a rival. We'll call it 'The Other Catch.'
1981: Ottawa Rough Riders vs. Edmonton Eskimos
The last time Ottawa appeared in a Grey Cup was against the same team they'll face Sunday. The result, Ottawa fans hope, will be different.
The 69th Grey Cup took place Nov. 22, 1981, at Montreal's Olympic Stadium in front of 52,487 football fans. The Rough Riders were the underdogs, coming off a dismal five-win, 11-loss season. Nevertheless, they came within seconds of defeating the heavily-favoured Eskimos.
In the dying minutes, it looked as if Tony Gabriel had done it again, catching a 20-yard pass with an Edmonton player literally hanging off his back. But the referee called interference on both players, the Esks won back possession and beat the Riders with a 27-yard field goal in the dying moments. Final score: Edmonton 26, Ottawa 23.
The Ottawa Rough Riders folded 15 years later, without another visit to the Grey Cup.