A failed field goal attempt set the Rouge et Or up for victory at the Dunsmore Cup on Saturday, much to the dismay of the Carabins.
Carl Chabot was narrowly tackled in the end zone and Laval University won the symbol of supremacy in Quebec university football, 25-24 against the University of Montreal.
After Vincent Blanchard kicked too short from 47 yards (and with eight seconds to play), Chabot wanted to get the ball out of the danger zone and bring overtime.
He instead allowed the decisive point, being tackled just short of the crucial line. The big game was made by Nathaniel Dumoulin-Duguay.
The outcome sent 12,375 spectators into a frenzy at Telus-UL Stadium.
Philippe Boyer, of the Carabins, had managed an equalizing placement with 40 seconds on the clock.
Kevin Mital caught three touchdown passes for the Rouge et Or.
He led the RSEQ with 15 touchdown receptions in 2022.
Mital notably grabbed an 11-yard pass with 3:06 remaining in the final quarter, giving the team a 24-21 lead.
The event opposed these two clubs for the ninth time in a row.
The Rouge et Or also triumphed in 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2018. The Carabins prevailed in 2014, 2015, 2019 and 2021.
Next Saturday at the Mitchell Cup, Université Laval will play in Ontario against the Western Mustangs (who will host the Vanier Cup on November 26).
The Carabins finished the half up 11-10.
They took that lead on an eight-yard catch from Hassane Dosso, with 10:03 left in the second quarter.
It punctuated a climb where Iraghi Muganda grabbed a 51-yard pass, before quarterback Jonathan Sénécal added a 34-yard breakthrough on the ground.
Started at the line of 2, the push followed an interception by Kaylin St-Cyr of the University of Montreal, on a pass in the direction of David Dallaire.
Boyer made a 27-yard field goal to cut the Rouge et Or lead to 10-4.
Mital caught a three-yard touchdown pass late in the first quarter. Alex Duff had just provided 35 yards over two carries.
The Rouge et Or did not manage an aerial play of more than 18 yards in the first half.
Dosso had 61 receiving yards in the first two quarters.
Pierre-Gabriel Germain of the Carabins had the first sack of the day early in the third quarter.
The Montreal clan added a 32-yard field goal from Boyer at the start of the third period.
On the next possession, Mital restored the lead to the Rouge et Or by catching a 50-yard touchdown pass.
A first twist allowed the visitors to settle in control 21-17, in the last moments of the third quarter.
Philippe Lemieux-Cardinal blocked a clearance attempt and the ball was seized by Julien Le Guéhennec, who covered the twenty yards separating him from the end zone.
Two games later, Édouard Doyon allowed the Carabins to keep the momentum going with an interception. A big game for the native of Quebec, a former Cégep de Limoilou.
The end of the meeting was however going to favor the proteges of Glen Constantin, narrowly.