The Carleton Ravens lost a 19-17 thriller to the uOttawa Gee-Gees Saturday afternoon, with a fourth quarter comeback falling short in the final minutes at TD Place.

It was the first Panda Game in 726 days and one that wasn’t short of late-game drama. Down 16-7 with seven minutes left, the Ravens battled back to take a 17-16 lead, but couldn’t close it out. Gee-Gee Campbell Fair kicked a last-minute, game-winning 45-yard field goal to win it for uOttawa.

“Another typical Panda Game,” Ravens head coach Steve Sumarah said. “That’s just the way these games seem to go.”

The game started positively for Carleton. After forcing the Gee-Gees to punt on their opening drive, a strong push down the field led by running back Nathan Carter saw the Ravens strike first with a touchdown.

In the midst of that drive, Carter surpassed Mark Brown to become the Ravens all-time rushing leader—a record set in 1988. It’s a momentous feat for the fifth-year, who remains a major pillar of Carleton’s offence.

The defence took charge after that, limiting the Gee-Gees’ attack, while the offence struggled to generate throughout the middle two quarters.

“They have a very veteran offensive line,” Sumarah said, noting the ability of uOttawa’s defence to limit the Ravens’ attack throughout.

Carleton’s game plan entering Saturday involved first-year quarterbacks Reid Vankoughnett and Tristan Rinaldis rotating throughout the game. Starting quarterback Tanner DeJong injured his ankle in last week’s game against York and will be out for the remainder of the season, while backup quarterback Tristan Lefebvre is currently game-to-game with an undisclosed injury.

That meant both rookie quarterbacks made their Ontario University Athletics (OUA) debuts on one of the biggest stages in Canadian university sports.

“First-year guys getting their first starts in a Panda Game—you can’t add up all of the challenges that they are faced [with],” Sumarah said. “I thought they handled themselves well.”

Vankoughnett, who said he found out he was going to play in the Panda Game five days prior, led Carleton’s last-ditch fight back into the game.

“Who doesn’t love having the game in their hands, driving down the field [with] a chance to win?” Vankoughnett said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t come out with the win but we just gotta get back to work [and] get ready for next week.”

In the fourth quarter, it was Carleton receiver Khalik Johnson’s touchdown that ignited the Ravens—and their fans on the south side of TD Place—for the first time since the opening drive. It also gave Carleton momentum in the crucial final minutes.

After Brandon Forcier’s 32-yard field goal gave Carleton the 17-16 lead, the mentality on the Ravens sideline was to close it out.

“Emotions were definitely high,” Vankoughnett said. “In a time like that you have to stay level-headed because if you get too ahead of yourself, then you’re riding the wave [of emotion].”

A late and strong Gee-Gees drive put a stop to that wave, granting uOttawa the victory.

“It’s definitely the biggest moment of my career,” said Fair, who kicked the 45-yard game-winner for the Gee-Gees. “[At that moment], I’m just trying to think about mechanics and the most basic form … As a kicker, we want to be the most calm guys on the field at all times.”

Sumarah said he regrets the inability of Carleton to hold on to the lead.

“When you get ahead, you need to be able to close out one of these games,” Sumarah said. ”Unfortunately … we had opportunities [and] we didn’t.”

Sumarah stressed the importance of the Gee-Gees’ success in the game.

“The thing that sometimes gets lost in these things is you have to credit the other team,” Sumarah said. “They made plays when they needed to.”

Following the game, uOttawa fans charged the field, a tradition that has become commonplace for the winning team in recent years. The sold-out reduced capacity crowd of 15,000 was raucous throughout the game, exchanging enthusiastic, antagonizing cheers from opposite sides of TD Place.

It rained for most of the game, leading Carleton fans to gather on the concourse of the south side and uOttawa fans to seek refuge under the north side overhang. But at the end of the games, fans—especially those cheering for the Gee-Gees—were still deafening.


With DeJong out for the season and Lefebvre sidelined for the time being, the Ravens may be forced to move forward with their current offensive structure. That will present challenges for Carleton as they progress this season.

The first challenge will be next week at Ravens Perch, when the Ravens host the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Oct. 8 at 6 p.m.

Featured image by Spencer Colby.

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