1981 Montreal Alouettes season

The 1981 Montreal Alouettes finished the season in 3rd place in the East Division with a 3–13 record. They appeared in the East Semi-Final, where they lost to the Ottawa Rough Riders 20-16. After the season the Alouettes folded after owner Nelson Skalbania lost $2 million, and the CFL revoked the franchise from him with the team now heavily in debt.

1981 Montreal Alouettes season
Head coachJoe Scannella
Jim Eddy (Interim)
Home fieldOlympic Stadium
Results
Record3–13
Division place3rd, East
Playoff finishLost East Semi-Final
Uniform

Offseason

The Alouettes were purchased by Nelson Skalbania.[1] Skalbania proceeded by signing several American stars. His biggest acquisition was Los Angeles Rams quarterback Vince Ferragamo (who appeared in Super Bowl XIV) to a $300,000 contract.[2] The other signings included wide receiver James Scott, kick return specialist Billy "White Shoes" Johnson, running back David Overstreet and defensive end Keith Gary.[2]

Preseason
Week Date Opponent Venue Score Result Attendance Record
A June 7 Hamilton Tiger-Cats Olympic Stadium 27–21 Loss 21,742 0–1
B June 11 Ottawa Rough Riders Lansdowne Park 18–17 Loss 16,139 0–2
C June 21 Ottawa Rough Riders Olympic Stadium 21–17 Win 21,249 1–2
D July 27 Hamilton Tiger-Cats Ivor Wynne Stadium 38–24 Win 16,604 2–2

Regular season

Despite the high-profile talent, the Alouettes finished the season with only 3 wins, but because of how weak the East Division was that year, the team did earn a playoff berth (the crossover rule, which allows a fourth place team with a better record than a third place team in the other division to qualify, had not yet been implemented).[3] Skalbania lost two million dollars and the CFL revoked his ownership.[2]

Standings
East Division
TeamGPWLTPFPAPts
Hamilton Tiger-Cats16114141433523
Ottawa Rough Riders16511030644610
Montreal Alouettes1631302675186
Toronto Argonauts1621402415064

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Venue Score Result Attendance Record
1 July 4 BC Lions Empire Stadium 48–8 Loss 26,627 0–1
2 July 10 Toronto Argonauts Olympic Stadium 23–22 Win 35,281 1–1
3 July 17 Ottawa Rough Riders Lansdowne Park 33–31 Loss 24,872 1–2
4 July 26 Edmonton Eskimos Olympic Stadium 33–17 Loss 45,835 1–3
5 Aug 2 Saskatchewan Roughriders Olympic Stadium 43–23 Loss 33,205 1–4
6 Aug 8 Winnipeg Blue Bombers Winnipeg Stadium 58–2 Loss 32,936 1–5
7 Bye
8 Aug 23 BC Lions Olympic Stadium 29–14 Loss 28,932 1–6
9 Aug 29 Hamilton Tiger-Cats Ivor Wynne Stadium 16–11 Loss 27,180 1–7
10 Sept 6 Saskatchewan Roughriders Taylor Field 35–26 Loss 28,526 1–8
11 Sept 12 Hamilton Tiger-Cats Olympic Stadium 26–10 Loss 27,270 1–9
12 Bye
13 Sept 26 Edmonton Eskimos Commonwealth Stadium 62–11 Loss 48,470 1–10
14 Oct 4 Calgary Stampeders Olympic Stadium 22–16 Win 22,222 2–10
15 Oct 10 Calgary Stampeders McMahon Stadium 29–3 Loss 28,896 2–11
16 Oct 17 Toronto Argonauts Exhibition Stadium 20–14 Loss 31,038 2–12
17 Oct 24 Winnipeg Blue Bombers Olympic Stadium 33–13 Loss 20,487 2–13
18 Nov 1 Ottawa Rough Riders Olympic Stadium 39–15 Win 20,867 3–13

[4]

Postseason
Game Date Opponent Venue Score Result Attendance
East Semi-Final Nov 8 Ottawa Rough Riders Lansdowne Park 16–20 Loss 17,754

[4]

Awards and honours

References
  1. Weird Facts about Canadian Football, p.71, Overtime Books, First Printing 2009, ISBN 978-1-897277-26-3
  2. Weird Facts about Canadian Football, p.72, Overtime Books, First Printing 2009, ISBN 978-1-897277-26-3
  3. Weird Facts about Canadian Football, p.72 Overtime Books, First Printing 2009, ISBN 978-1-897277-26-3
  4. "1981 Montreal Alouettes (CFL) - Pro Football Archives".
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