THE MOJ: B.C. Lions ready for training camp in Kamloops<\/p>\n
Published 7:30 pm Wednesday, May 6, 2026<\/p>\n
B.C. Lions general manager Ryan Rigmaiden is jacked.<\/p>\n
The Lions begin training camp this week in Kamloops and to state that Rigmaiden and the organization is optimistic is an understatement.<\/p>\n
The goal is to win the Grey Cup and anything less will not be acceptable.<\/p>\n
The start of the season always spawns optimism and hope. Sometimes that optimism disappears as reality sets in, but in this case, that optimism and hope is warranted.<\/p>\n
Despite a 2-5 start in 2025, the Lions rallied to finish 11-7 and host a playoff game against Calgary which they won 33-30. Unfortunately the following week, the Lions season ended in Regina when they lost 27-21 to the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The Riders, of course, would go on and win the Grey Cup.<\/p>\n
So why does this team feel that it\u2019s going to get to the next level?<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s start with Rigmaiden and head coach Buck Pierce \u2013 both of whom were rookies last year in their respective roles.<\/p>\n
Year two sees both executing their responsibilities with more confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust from an evaluation standpoint and just getting to know Buck and the coaches in terms of what they specifically want, I think I\u2019ve skewed the way I evaluate more into what Buck specifically needs. I think in my younger years, I would always lean towards athleticism and just pure performance. But we need to get the right guys \u2013 not the best guys \u2013 for what Buck needs on offense and for what Mike (Benevides) needs on defence,\u201d said Rigmaiden.<\/p>\n
Another lesson learned from last season for Rigmaiden was that being away from the team for extended periods while scouting may not have been the best thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think being present here is very important \u2013 that\u2019s both for me and the club. I need to get a pulse on things all the time and that\u2019s comes with being here day-to-day. You need to know how your guys are feeling. When you\u2019re on the practice field, you can kind of get a feel of maybe why a guy is struggling a little bit. Maybe something\u2019s going on at home that I don\u2019t know about. Maybe it\u2019s something else. That type of stuff is important for me to understand. If I\u2019m on the road at an NFL camp, I can\u2019t do that, so I\u2019ll be here more. I think that\u2019s important for me,\u201d said Rigmaiden.<\/p>\n
As for the team itself, Rigmaiden loves the direction the organization is going in.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just believe in everything that we\u2019re doing. I love Buck and the process and the toughness that he\u2019s brought in. I think the culture shift has been huge,\u201d said Rigmaiden, who believes the additions of linebacker Darnell Sankey and defensive tackle Casey Sayles will add more toughness to the team.<\/p>\n
Offensively, Rigmaiden is extremely excited to see what Pierce and star quarterback Nathan Rourke can come up with this season. To give you an idea of how far the offence has advanced from this time last year, the \u2018install\u2019 in training camp in Kamloops 12 months ago was basic. This year\u2019s \u2018install\u2019 is the package that the team was running in the playoff game in Regina. Simply put, the offence has gone from 100-level classes to post-graduate work in a year.<\/p>\n
Yes, the Lions did lose all-star tackle Jarell Broxton in free agency to Winnipeg but Rigmaiden hopes Dejon Allen can regain the form which made him the CFL\u2019s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman in 2023 while a member of the Toronto Argonauts. Allen missed a chunk of training camp with a back injury and when he did return a triceps injury sidelined him again.<\/p>\n
If Allen can rebound, he will make up for the loss of Broxton but Rigmaiden says the offensive line will have to get better across the board. There is also the possibility that the team could start four Americans up front as well.<\/p>\n
Defensively, the biggest question the team faces is how the secondary comes together.<\/p>\n
The unit lost outstanding rookie corner Robert Carter Jr. to the Indianapolis Colts of the NFL while veterans Garry Peters and T.J. Lee are a year older. Safety Cristophe Beaulieu is rehabbing a knee injury and won\u2019t be able to start the season although Jackson Findlay, who was a pleasant surprise as a rookie, will man the safety spot in his place.<\/p>\n
\u201cI won\u2019t say it\u2019s a concern but it\u2019s the one area on the team that we really have to focus on. The good news is that we\u2019ve brought in C.J. Coldon from Ottawa. We now have another vet to go along with GP, and T.J. Lee. Then we\u2019ve got Jackson. The challenge for the coaches will be how to get enough reps for the young guys that we\u2019re really high on. How do we make sure that we give them enough reps to where they can have an opportunity to develop in the camp? That\u2019s the challenge \u2013 how do we allow some of the young players to emerge just like Robert did last year?\u201d said Rigmaiden.<\/p>\n
One thing that the organization will be focusing on is to win the Western Division and to gain home field advantage in the Western Final.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we were 2-5 last year, we could have made some drastic changes but we didn\u2019t. We believe in what we were doing and that paid off, but it also taught me that we need to win the West. It is hard to go through Saskatchewan and it is hard to go through Winnipeg. That means getting home field advantage is absolutely huge,\u201d said Rigmaiden.<\/p>\n
The journey starts this week in Kamloops with Rigmaiden hoping it culminates with a trip to Calgary for the 113th Grey Cup on Nov. 15.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019ve got a roster that can win a Grey Cup. I think we came extremely close last year, so I couldn\u2019t be happier going into this season,\u201d said Rigmaiden.<\/p>\n
Veteran B.C. sports personality Bob \u2018The Moj\u2019 Marjanovich writes about the B.C. sporting scene for Black Press Media.<\/p>\n
This column is brought to you in part by:<\/p>\n
\u2022 The West Coast Auto Group. For the very best car buying experience \u2013 be sure to check out https:\/\/www.westcoastautogroup.com\/ <\/p>\n
\u2022 Johnston Meier Insurance Agencies Group. Our success is built on a simple premise \u2013 Customers First, which has helped us become one of BC\u2019s largest insurance service providers. Please visit jmins.com for more information. <\/p>\n
\u2022 River\u2019s Reach Liquor Store. Located at 320 6th St in New Westminster, The River\u2019s Reach Liquor store offers a diverse selection of beverages in a welcoming environment. Customers frequently highlight the friendly service and attractive pricing that make it an appealing choice for liquor shopping. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"THE MOJ: B.C. Lions ready for training camp in Kamloops Published 7:30 pm Wednesday, May 6, 2026 B.C.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":653256,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[903,49,48,521,522,520,82],"class_list":["post-653255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-british-columbia","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-cfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=653255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/653256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=653255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=653255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=653255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}