QUEBEC -- Workhorse tailback Sebastien Levesque set the tone early with a 41-yard touchdown run as the Laval Rouge et Or thrilled their home crowd Saturday with a 29-2 victory over the Calgary Dinos to claim the Vanier Cup in snowy conditions.
The Rouge et Or are 6-0 in Vanier Cup games since winning their first in 1999 and tied Western's record of six Canadian university football titles. They also became only the second team to win a Vanier Cup at home after the Toronto Varsity Blues accomplished the feat in 1965 and 1993.
Yannick Morin-Plante also scored a touchdown while Christopher Milo was 5-for-5 on field goals for Laval, which is unbeaten in 44 straight games at PEPS Stadium. The crowd of 16,223 had people standing four or five deep in the end zones, most dressed in Laval's red and gold.
Milo's fifth field goal with 1:31 to play was the only scoring after halftime.
It was a third straight year Calgary has met with disappointment at Laval, having lost the 2008 Uteck Bowl to the Rouge et Or and the 2009 Vanier Cup game 33-31 to Queen's.
It was a frustrating final game for Dinos quarterback Erik Glavic as the two-time Hec Crighton trophy winner could not get the offence moving against Laval's vaunted No. 1-ranked defence. The lanky pivot was picked off and fumbled once on a day he will likely want to forget. He was replaced for much of the second half by Eric Dzwilewski.
It was also a bad day for Calgary receiver Anthony Parker, who dropped at least three passes and fumbled once.
Heavy snow fell through most of the game and crews had the plow it off the lines during breaks in play, but the weather seemed to affect the Dinos the most as they struggled to maintain footing.
Laval scored on seven of its nine first-half possessions to take a 26-2 lead as Levesque, who despite dealing with a sore right knee, picked up 145 yards on 20 carries.
He went off tackle through a gaping hole to score 4:27 into the game from 41 yards out. Three minutes later, Bruno Prud'homme hit Morin-Plante with a 40-yard TD pass.
The Dinos threatened early in the second quarter when Prud'homme fumbled and the Dinos took over on the Laval 40. But a dropped pass by Parker stalled their drive and although Aaron Ifield's punt hemmed the Rouge et Or in deep, the Dinos came away only with a safety.
Calgary threatened again early in the second half after recovering a fumble at the Laval 26, but were stopped on third-and-eight from the 10.
Notes: Laval's Glen Constantin, named CIS coach of the year this week, won a fifth Vanier Cup as a head coach to pass former Calgary mentor Peter Connellan's record. ... Laval is the only team to win Vanier Cups in four different cities -- Toronto, Hamilton, Saskatoon and Quebec City. ... Because the Quebec conference plays one more game than other regions, Laval is the only team with 13 wins in a season.
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