MONTREAL -- It was a bittersweet day for the McGill University football team as the No.4 ranked Montreal Carabins came away with a 16-0 victory to put a damper on "Seniors Day" at Percival Molson Stadium.

Despite the loss, the game meant little in the RSEQ standings as the big game was a few hundred kilometres east of Montreal where Sherbrooke rallied for a 28-21 victory over Concordia to force a three-way tie, with identical 2-6 records, for the final two playoff berths. When the slide rules were pulled out and the dust settled, it was McGill with the biggest smile on their face and a third-place finish, by virtue of their point-differential in head-to-head games between Sherbrooke, Concordia and the Redmen.

It was the team's highest standing in the Quebec conference since 2002, when they finished first and went on to win the Dunsmore Cup league championship. Sherbrooke eked into the final playoff berth and Concordia, which started out with so much promise, was left on the outside looking in.

That sets up next week's playoff matchups, with fourth-seeded Sherbrooke (2-6) traveling to top-seeded Laval (8-0) in one semifinal, while McGill (2-6) makes the five-kilometre trek around Mt. Royal for a rematch with the Carabins (6-2). Both games are slated for a 2 p.m. kickoff on Saturday, Nov. 3, with the McGill-Carabins game being televised live across the TVA Sports network.

After a scoreless opening period, the Carabins took a 13-0 lead into halftime on the strength of a 49-yard punt single and a 39-yard field-goal by place-kicker L.P. Simoneau, along with a one-yard TD run on a quarterback sneak by by Dimitri Morand.

Simoneau, who converted the TD, closed out the scoring with a 41-yard field in the third quarter and the final stanza was scoreless.

Morand completed 23 of 31 pass attempts for 215 yards and one interception.

Dimitrios Sinodinos, a sophomore starter with the Redmen, was 5-for-17 passing for 56 yards and one INT.

The Redmen offence, which featured five freshmen starting on the offensive line, was limited to just 53 yards and 11 first downs.

McGill's bend-but-don't-break defence held the omnipotent Carabins to 293 net yards and 19 first downs.

Penalties also played a role, as Montreal was called for 23 infractions for 201 yards, while the visitors were flagged 16 times for 85 yards.

Linebacker Kamba Katchelewa and safety Tristan Fleury led the McGill defence with five tackles apiece. Katchelewa also registered one pick for 11 yards.

COMPLETE BOXSCORE

REDMEN RAP: McGill held a pre-game ceremony to pay tribute to the team's nine graduating seniors. The group included Remi Bertellin, Jacob Dwinnell, Scott Macdonald-Ducharme, Maxime Rouyer and Alexandre Ghaly. Also honoured were four players who are expected to graduate but could return for a fifth year of eligibility, namely Simon Aubin-Lavoie, William Pettersen, Kamba Katchelewa and team captain Dane Wagner.