A week removed from an incredible comeback win, the Ottawa REDBLACKS aim for a second straight victory over the BC Lions, this time in a 10:00pm ET kickoff from Vancouver.
Down 27-10, Dustin Crum led the way to a remarkable fourth-quarter surge that delivered the REDBLACKS a 34-33 win. The pivot scored twice on the ground, before throwing the game-winning touchdown to Geno Lewis in the final minute. William Stanback also scored a rushing touchdown. Mark Milton made his debut in the REDBLACKS’ defensive tackle, leading the way with a team-high five tackles and an interception, with Lucas Cormier also nabbing his first career pick.
In lineup news, Dru Brown dresses as the third quarterback as Ottawa’s starting quarterback continues to recover from a knee injury. Also back in the lineup is Adrian Frye, two months to the day of suffering a shoulder injury against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Ottawa looks to win on the west coast for the first time since 2017, in a matchup with massive CFL playoff implications.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Before their lead slipped away last week, Nathan Rourke had led a clinical Lions offence through three quarters and change. The Canadian quarterback ended the night with 22 completions for 284 yards, a touchdown to Justin McInnis, and a pair of interceptions. James Butler rushed for 77 yards and a touchdown, with Rourke also scampering for 29 yards.
On the defensive side, former REDBLACK Micah Awe again led his team with eight tackles tackles. Ottawa will look to respond to a surging BC pass rush that tallied four sacks in last week’s contest.
IN THEIR WORDS
BOB DYCE, HEAD COACH, ON THE CFL PLAYOFF RACE: “There are a lot of teams right now with an opportunity, and that’s what you want. These guys are excited for the opportunity in front of them. You always want to be able to control your destiny. How you control your destiny is by making sure you put your best performance out there. We’re not looking too far down the line. We’re looking at this one. You can’t worry about four or five until you take care of the one.
DUSTIN CRUM, QUARTERBACK, ON HIS MINDSET AS A STARTER: “I think the guys are excited. We took care of business last week and put ourselves in a position to keep controlling our destiny and still accomplish all the goals that we set out for at the start of the year. I think the guys are looking forward to it, and to continuing to grow, and trying to play a clean football game and leave it all out there.”
ADRIAN FRYE, DEFENSIVE BACK, ON RETURNING FROM INJURY: “Best feeling in the world, just being able to get back on the field and play football again. [I learned the importance of] mental reps, coaches harp on it all the time in the meeting rooms, when you’re not getting reps, get those mental reps. But whenever you’re physically unable to play, all you can do is take those mental reps. That’s the biggest takeaway.”
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