VANCOUVER- The BC Lions stayed hot and very much in control of their destiny for a home playoff date. All three phases made key contributions, as they stifled the visiting Edmonton Elks 37-24 in front of 26,308 fans at Save-On-Foods Field at BC Place. The fifth consecutive win improved Buck Pierce’s squad to 10-7 and dropped the Elks to 7-10, eliminating them from contention for a playoff spot. Now for some game takes following an eventful night of football.
Second Half Surge Propels Victorious Lions
We’ve spoken at length over the course of this winning streak about how this Lions team has learned to win in multiple ways. Friday’s result saw the offence overcome a slow start, with barely over ten minutes in time of possession in the first half. Trailing 10-2, they finally hit paydirt with James Butler’s five-yard touchdown run in the final seconds before the break.
He then ran in a two-point convert to tie the score. Up until that point, they were stuck in neutral after a Justin McInnis fumble inside Edmonton’s ten-yard line. That sequence led to a safety to open the scoring when Ben Hladik took down Elks’ quarterback Cody Fajardo in the end zone. When the offence struggles, the defence is there to back them up. That’s been the hallmark of this late-season Lions surge up the standings. And it could go a long way in determining their final position in the standings.
“We want to play in front of our fans again. That’s, that’s really what it comes down to. We want to pack BC Place and play another game in front of our fans, for our fans,” said Pierce after the win.
“They’ve shown up for us all year and we want to play in front of them again. Our ultimate goal is to keep getting better. And next week is another opportunity to get better.”
The major turning point in this win came early in the third quarter when Robert Carter Jr. intercepted Fajardo and took it back 50 yards to the house. At that point, it seemed like they were destined to prevail. Carter himself continues to turn heads as one of the squad’s more impressive newcomers this season.
“I guess you can say the Edmonton offence hasn’t been committing turnovers, but the BC Lions’ defence has been committing turnovers,” said Carter of the big takeaway and score.
“I think we come in here and we’ve been doing what we’ve been doing for the past four or five games, you know? And that doesn’t stop just because of them and they haven’t been doing turnovers. You play the BC Lions’ defence and we get turnovers.”
Photo: David Friederich, BC Lions.
On offence, Rourke finished his night 21/32 for 332 yards, a fourth-quarter touchdown strike to Keon Hatcher Jr. and one interception. His big moment, however, came on the ground with a career-high 70-yard run for a major that made it a 27-10 game before the end of the third quarter. It looked like the Elk defence had him dead to rights. And the end result nearly had the roof blowing off the place.
“I just kind of reacted and tried to go. And it was kind of a broken play, right?” explained Rourke.
“RPO, I was hoping to get something quick. They played it pretty well. I didn’t see the DB fall down. It’s kind of off that a little early. It’s just one of those things where you’re taught all the way going back to youth football, if it’s not there, just go and follow the run. And so that ended up being where the run was. So if I had given it, JB, probably would have scored, to be honest. So shout out to our guys for making some big blocks and retaining those blocks for a long time, but just trying to play football at that point.”
It will no doubt get some play on the highlight shows for a few days, at least.
“Just like we drew it up,” laughed Pierce.
“I mean, he’s a pretty special player. When you look at that play in its entirety, we go tempo, good protection up front, he goes to make a throw, the receivers are getting grabbed. He always seems to be able to break tackles, right? That’s something about him, his contact balance and his core strength and the way that he’s always looking to extend plays is awesome. I was always kind of going in my head, make sure to get the first down, then get down. But, he just makes plays all the time.”
What It Means..
By virtue of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers taking down Saskatchewan 17-16 earlier on Friday, the Lions haven’t yet locked up second in the West. In fact, they can still finish anywhere from second to fourth in this crazy division race. More can be determined on Saturday when the Stampeders play host to Toronto. Should the Argonauts pull off the upset, the Lions would be assured of finishing no lower than third, based on all of the scenarios remaining. Those include a possible three-way tie with the Bombers and Stamps. One thing is for certain: a win next week for the Lions in Saskatchewan means a home date on Saturday, November 1. Still work to be done.
Key Numbers
506- net offence for the Lions, much of it aided by damage done on the ground. Rourke and Butler both ended up with 82 rushing yards.
559- rushing yards on the season for Rourke, a new career-high.
3– interceptions recorded by the resurgent Lion defence in this one. T.J. Lee and Jackson Findlay had the others.
36– they held game-breaker Justin Rankin to just 36 rushing yards on 11 carries, an average of only 3.3 per.
6-3- the Lions’ final regular season home record at Save-On-Foods Field at BC Place. They won five straight here to end their home slate.
Next Up
The 71st regular season in Lions history wraps up with a visit to Saskatchewan next Saturday, October 25. Kickoff at Mosaic Stadium is 4:00 pm PT. The 12-5 Roughriders have first place in the West sewn up and with that, homefield advantage for the November 8 Western Final.