Dru Brown Leads Winnipeg Blue Bombers to 19-17 Win Over Ottawa

STILLWATER — When Oklahoma State brought in graduate transfer quarterback Dru Brown, many fans, and the media alike, wondered why the former Hawai’i standout was heading to Stillwater. Spencer Sanders was the talented heir apparent to the quarterback job.

Sanders won the job as expected, but suffered a hand injury late in the year, which led to Brown starting and leading the Pokes to a 20-13 win at West Virginia. He finished the game going 22-of-29 for 196 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Next was Oklahoma and Brown played respectable, but the Cowboys couldn’t find a way to win.

Brown also nearly led the Cowboys to a win over Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl down in Houston, TX, but the Pokes came up short on the last drive, losing 24-21.

During his short time in Stillwater, Brown more than proved his worth. He was later drafted and signed with Winnipeg in the Canadian Football League. COVID 19 cancelled his first season, but Brown has stuck as a back-up. He struck again last Friday in the Blue Bombers opener with Ottawa.

An injury late and the California native, like he was at Oklahoma State, was ready as he led Winnipeg on a drive for the game winning field goal in the 19-17 win.

Brown finished the game going 3-for-3 for 51 yards.

Here is bluebombers.com’s Ed Tait’s description of the game winning drive:

“Trailing 17-16 with 99 seconds left, Zach Collaros was removed from the game by the CFL’s injury spotter following a 10-yard run in which he was nailed by Ottawa linebacker Frankie Griffin. No. 2 QB Dru Brown then entered the game and – why, of course – promptly completed all three of his passes to Dalton Schoen, Nic Demski and Greg Ellingson to set up Marc Liegghio’s game-winning 25-yad field goal with six seconds left.

“It’s definitely not how you want your first opportunity to go,” said Brown, who had all of 14 pass attempts last season, his first with the Blue Bombers. “Zach’s been an incredible mentor to me – everything I know has been from him and Buck (Pierce, offensive coordinator). You never want to see something like that happen and I hope he’s OK moving forward. But also, the team needs me to step up in moments like that. It was a great opportunity for me to show them they can trust me.”

The Brown/Liegghio dramatics also came after Dakota Prukop – the Blue Bombers third quarterback – had put the club ahead 16-14 with just over six minutes remaining. Yet, Liegghio subsequently missed the convert and the RedBlacks promptly took the lead back on a Lewis Wad 43-yard field goal with 3:50 remaining.

A huge night for Brown and proof that he hasn’t lost the knack for being ready when needed.”