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Nathan Rourke and Co. chase after a fourth straight win when Vernon Adams, Jr., and his Stampeder cohorts come to town Saturday
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Published Oct 03, 2025 • 4 minute read
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B.C. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke throws the ball during first half CFL football action against the Calgary Stampeders in Calgary, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Photo by Jeff McIntosh /The Canadian PressArticle content
Hjorth Road Park was in contention for happiest place on earth Thursday afternoon.
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The B.C. Lions were raucous and rollicking through practice at the Surrey field. There was an especially boisterous uproar from the defence when back-to-back Nathan Rourke passes were picked off during drills.
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You can appreciate these being happy times in Lions Land. B.C. (8-7) heads into the their annual Gravy Bowl game with the Calgary Stampeders (8-6) on Saturday (4 p.m.) at B.C. Place on a three-game winning streak.
A win clinches the Lions a playoff spot and the team is expecting a crowd in the 30,000 range.
There’s still a chance the Lions could host the West Division semifinal game, depending on how their final three regular season games play out and how things go for the Stampeders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (8-7) down the stretch. It wasn’t that long ago we were talking about the chances of the Lions missing the post-season altogether.
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The run comes, too, at a good time in both the Lions’ season and the sports’ year. The Vancouver Canucks are starting up. They take up so much of the oxygen on the scene. The Vancouver Whitecaps are making a run at first place in MLS as well. With this surge, the Lions are still grabbing for that share of the spotlight.
“It feels like winning is a good remedy in football in general,” Lions defensive lineman Mathieu Betts said when asked about Thursday’s collective mood with the club.
“But it’s also no secret that the better you practice, the higher energy you have. The more confidence you have within the group is all an upside on game day. It all goes together … it feels like we’re trending in the right direction. It just about how we’re going to keep it going.”
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In regards to all the post-season possibilities for the Lions, Betts says: “I know that. I feel like we know that.” He also maintains that can’t be front of mind and it has to belong to the Stampeders.
“The CFL is so unpredictable. I feel like it’s worse this year but it’s probably the same as last year and the year before,” he said. “It’s always like that, and that’s why you have to focus on the task at hand. That’s when good things happen.”
The BC Lions’ offence is on fire, scoring over 30 points in most of their recent games. Their defence has also levelled up, with Mathieu Betts leading the charge. Plus, key players are returning from injury, making them a force to be reckoned with. @FarhanLaljiTSN #BCLions #CFL… pic.twitter.com/aROTC2G0jn
— The SportsCage (@sportscage) October 2, 2025
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Betts and his defensive line cohorts have played a large role in this Lions’ turnaround. Betts has a league-leading 13 sacks going into this week in the CFL. He’s recorded nine of them in B.C.’s past three games.
The Lions changed the mix of their defensive front in the past few weeks, too, adding free agents Levi Bell and Bradlee Anae. B.C. sits second in the CFL in sacks, with 35. They’ve registered 17 of those in the past four weeks.
More pressure on opposing quarterbacks is making things easier on the secondary, and it’s all leading to better numbers for the defence. The team has allowed 24 points a game in this three-game stretch. The two games before that were a 34-33 loss to the Ottawa Redblacks where B.C. gave up the lead in the fourth quarter, and a 52-34 shellacking at the hands of the Toronto Argonauts.
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“The energy is very important. But the confidence, I felt like it was always there,” Betts said. “To know that you can make the plays to help the team win and to be confident that we can win the games if we play well … just try to control what you can control.”
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Saturday’s matchup also marks the first game back at B.C. Place for quarterback Vernon Adams, Jr., since the Lions traded him to the Stampeders last November.
The Lions had both Adams and Rourke in their quarterback room last season when Rourke returned from the NFL midway through the campaign, and the club simply couldn’t afford to go with both of them long term.
B.C. walloped the Stampeders 52-23 two weeks ago in Calgary, and Adams left the contest after a CFL spotter determined he had suffered a hit to the head. He played last week in a 38-20 setback to the Montreal Alouettes, which marked Calgary’s third straight loss.
Adams told reporters in Calgary earlier this week: “Yeah, we need confidence and that starts with me. I’ve lost my confidence the last few weeks. I’m not playing like myself and things like that. And, you know, I’ve just come to realize this week, I just have to be me.”
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Rourke has thrown for 4,170 yards, with 23 touchdown and 12 interceptions. Adams has thrown for 3,189 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
Rourke has run for 455 yards on 55 carries and scored nine touchdowns. For Adams, it’s 240 yards rushing on 31 carries, with 2 touchdowns.
Rourke and Adams are both supporters of KidSport in their respective regions and they’re challenging fans to see how much the can raise by donating money in the name of their team’s quarterback. Each donation of $20 or more will receive a charitable tax receipt and each donation will stay within their team’s community to support local kids and their access to sport.
@SteveEwen
SEwen@postmedia.com
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