Perry Lefko

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on Sportsnet.ca.

CALGARY – With five minutes to go and the Montreal Alouettes trailing the Saskatchewan Roughriders 27-19 in the 97th Grey Cup, with Rider Nation sensing victory, Alexia Calvillo prayed for her husband, Anthony.

It has been a trying time for the Calvillos, personally and professionally, since doctors diagnosed Alexia with B-cell lymphoma, a treatable form of cancer, in October, 2007. Anthony, the Als’ quarterback, took a leave of absence for the remainder of that season to be with his wife and their two young children.

Inasmuch as his teammates needed him, Anthony knew his wife and his children needed him more.

He had no idea if his wife would survive her cancer battle or what lay ahead in his football career.

Alexia survived cancer in what became a triumph for the family, and her husband won the Canadian Football League’s Most Outstanding Player Award. It had the makings of a storybook finish, the kind that supersedes anything involving a game of grown men playing pitch and catch with a leather ball.

The Als made it to the Grey Cup game in 2008, playing at home in the Big Owe. Anthony wanted to win the game for his wife, for all she had gone through, more than for himself. But the Als lost to the Calgary Stampeders, a cruel ending for a team and for a family.

"I prayed so hard for something good because he’s done so much good and he’s been so strong for our family. I wanted that for him so much for him to have something like this," Alexia said, moments after her husband addressed the media, holding the Calvillos’ four-year-old daughter, Athena, whom he hadn’t seen all day.

"It’s amazing – amazing – we’re elated," she added. "I wanted something for him. I wanted him to get something out of this that was bigger. He deserves it. He’s a good man. He’s a good husband. He’s a good father. He’s a great football player and it was his time."

She pointed to Montreal’s record, which stood at only one championship this decade in six tries, leading to the notion the Als’ couldn’t win the only game that mattered; that Anthony Calvillo couldn’t lead his team to victory.

"We should have won more, but you know what, we’ll take this one. We’re so happy," she said.

Interesting that she should use the word "we" because it really has been a team effort for the Alouettes and a team victory for the Calvillos. Anthony made a decision this past off-season to change his diet in an effort to take his game mentally and physically to a new level.

He didn’t play with the same kind of efficiency against the Roughriders as he had in the regular season in which he set a CFL record for pass completions, a gaudy 72 per cent.

He struggled early and often against the Roughriders and, at one point, showed visible signs of frustration, something which is completely out of character.

And then it happened. The Als mounted a comeback.

Just around the time Alexia prayed.

Anthony did his job on offence, the defence did its part, and the Roughriders committed a costly penalty fielding 13 players on the final play of regulation, giving Als’ kicker Damon Duval a second chance to win the game after he missed a 43-yard field goal. This time, with 10 more yards of real estate, Duval did not miss.

When Calvillo walked into the Als’ dressing room long after his teammates had arrived, the room erupted in a chant: "A.C. A.C. A.C."

He had been given the team ball by head coach Marc Trestman, who normally doesn’t do things of that sort. But he had to make an exception.

"He’s the pilot of our plane. He never drives it in auto pilot. He’s the man," Trestman said.

A few minutes later Calvillo entered the media room, and Alexia stood in the back watching her husband with immense pride.

He described the victory as "overwhelming" after all he and his family had endured.

To hear his name chanted by his teammates was to him an expression of team work.

"I think we all play for one another and right there was a fine example; all of us coming together and sharing and celebrating the year," he said "For them to do that was special. It’s a memory I’m always going to remember. For the coach to give me the game ball, which we’ve never done before, it’s something I’ll cherish. We have a lot of love in that locker room and winning always brings out amazing, emotional feelings, and to see that was special.

"It’s just as special as winning the Grey Cup – to see the excitement, the joy and the celebration that the guys have for one another, and of course for them just calling my name is awesome."

It took a year later than expected, but the Als won the Grey Cup they wanted to win so badly in Montreal, and the Calvillos celebrated the joy of winning a championship and the joy of living.

Their prayers came true.