B.C. Lions reap Saskatchewan harvest, sow seeds for second place (& 11 other thoughts)

Photo courtesy: Jeff Vinnick/BC Lions.

The B.C. Lions had a chance to harvest the season series from the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday night in Vancouver, and left not a single grain on the stalk with a 31-24 statement win.

Here are my thoughts on the game.

Thresh prince of BC Place

In the hamfisted agricultural metaphor I have concocted for this recap, Nathan Rourke played the role of a combine harvester and separated the wheat from the chaff of the West Division. The only difference is that the Canadian quarterback mowed through the prairie visitors with much greater speed and efficiency than any John Deere product could possibly muster.

If the Week 15 victory over Montreal was Rourke’s best performance of the year up until that point, then this week was the moment when he finally returned to his true M.O.P. form. The imposing aura of offensive inevitability felt palpable for the first time since last year, and it seemed as if he had all of the answers for Josh Bell’s defence memorized in advance. The pace of the B.C. attack seemed to leave opponents breathless in key moments, including one occasion where the Riders were caught with too many men on a touchdown pass.

The 28-year-old absolutely dominated on the edges, routinely pulling the ball out of the belly of his running backs and rolling outside the pocket to generate big plays. Often that came courtesy of a hair-trigger release and picture-perfect ball placement, but he was equally decisive with his legs when needed. That was an element of his game that had been missing for much of the season, and Rourke admitted post-game that he’s made it a point of emphasis in recent weeks.

“When I’m decisive, I think I’m at my best,” he said, quoting almost directly from one of my previous columns.

Somewhat counter-intuitively, decisiveness does not detract from Rourke’s unique playmaking ability; it enhances it. Look no further than his most spectacular play of the night, when he spun out of a certain sack from Caleb Sanders and reversed field to deliver a 59-yard strike to Justin McInnis in the fourth quarter. The play was pure instinct, rooted in a simple thought process rather than self-imposed desperation. Even though the Canadian receiver was tracked down from behind, it proved to be the dagger.

Rourke finished 22-of-28 passing (78.6 percent) for 375 yards and four touchdowns, while adding three carries for 37 yards on the ground. Honestly, the stat line doesn’t do his performance justice. The thought that the league’s best player is peaking at the right time should send shivers down the spines of every other playoff team, knowing that they could all just be crops for the reaping.

Off-hand comment

As spectacular as Rourke was, it wasn’t all good news for the quarterback. He was briefly forced to head into the medical tent after a second-half scramble and emerged with a glove on his left hand. He appeared to be shielding that side at the podium, and closer inspection revealed that his pinky and ring fingers were taped together.

The Oakville, Ont., native didn’t seem overly concerned about the injury, but also declined to provide much context other than to say that he will play through anything as long as he can be effective. A dinged-up digit on a non-throwing hand isn’t likely to limit him much, but it is something to monitor.

Locutus of Benevides

The B.C. Lions’ defence is gradually starting to take a backseat to their offensive attack, but their performance against Saskatchewan wasn’t weak by any stretch of the imagination. They allowed a few long drives and surrendered some yardage. Kian Schaffer-Baker and A.J. Ouellette were both effective in their returns to the lineup. But when the chips were down, they made the plays needed to win.

Admittedly, Mike Benevides’ unit might have caught a break when Trevor Harris drilled an end zone shot off the right upright on Saskatchewan’s first drive, forcing a field goal. They were full value for the rest of their stops. Mathieu Betts cut hard inside to swarm Ouellette for a seven-yard loss early in the second quarter, forcing another kick. After Saskatchewan marched all the way down to the B.C. nine-yard line late in the third quarter, the unit stuffed the typically unstoppable Tommy Stevens for a turnover on downs. Cristophe Beaulieu, Stantley Thomas-Oliver, Hayden Harris, and T.J. Lee all produced key pass breakups in the second half.

It was only thanks to a massive kickoff return from James Letcher Jr. late in the final frame that the Riders were able to make things mildly interesting with a second touchdown, but they were held scoreless for the better part of 20 minutes. In a battle between contenders, that’s pretty damn good.

Head coach Buck Pierce remarked post-game that he has been most impressed by the defence’s ability to adapt on the fly. When they make a mistake or get victimized on a drive, it rarely carries over into the next play or series. As a certified nerd, they remind me a little of the Borg from Star Trek. After a few successful phaser blasts, their shields adapt, and subsequent shots aren’t fatal. Unless you are constantly cycling to a new offensive frequency, they’ll keep operating unperturbed within their system as frightened redshirts scatter in their wake.

Unseen contributions

This was an exceptional top-down effort from the Lions’ starting receiving corps. McInnis was quiet for long stretches, but made the most of his three catches with a team-high 111 yards. Jevon Cottoy continued his sensational play of late with nine catches for 96 yards, becoming almost an automatic first-down outlet. Stanley Berryhill put up 80 yards on two catches, and Jermaine Jackson had a touchdown reception.

It’s not very often that Keon Hatcher Sr. finishes a game fourth on the team in receiving yardage, but that was how the numbers worked out on this occasion. With five catches for 66 yards, he still managed to secure his fourth career 1,000-yard campaign and snag a pair of touchdowns.

The 32-year-old also deserves a lot of credit for a play that did not show up in the box score. Called on in max protection, he picked up a blitzing Jameer Thurman in the first quarter and bought Rourke enough time to deliver the first deep shot of the night to Berryhill. That block set up his own opening touchdown and set the tone for the entire game.

Reunion tour

When bands get back together for a reunion tour, they only play their greatest hits. That isn’t always the case when CFL players make their returns from the NFL, but Robert Carter Jr. very nearly covered his own multi-platinum single in his first game.

As Trevor Harris unloaded for Kian Schaffer-Baker on a deep corner near the Lions’ sideline in the first quarter, Carter found himself in the trail position and went airborne with one arm outstretched. It was almost a mirror image of his viral interception against Hamilton last year, except that this ball deflected off his fingertips instead.

Carter told me post-game that it would have been an easy catch for him, but he was unaware that BC Place had upgraded its lights ahead of the FIFA World Cup and found himself momentarily blinded. I’m not sure I buy that excuse, but I do not doubt that the 23-year-old will add to his already impressive highlight reel before this season is through. He looked absolutely at home starting in the Lions’ secondary after just two days of practice, and is eager to prove the Indianapolis Colts made a mistake by casting him aside.

Late to the party

Perhaps the only major wart on this Lions’ victory came in the second quarter, when Zander Horvath lined up under centre for what should have been an easy touchdown plunge from the one-yard line. The uber-successful sneak artist failed to get the snap off in time and drew a time-count violation, forcing a field goal and creating B.C.’s first unsuccessful trip to the red zone in over a month.

After the game, Pierce took responsibility for the mishap, stating that he was late signalling a personnel change and put Horvath in a bad position. The bruising back also acknowledged that was the case, but indicated he needed to be quicker to react in that situation as well. The error was particularly pronounced because Saskatchewan was lined up offside on the play, which meant that a plunge didn’t even need to be successful for the Lions to benefit. Nathan Rourke was also completely uncovered and gesticulating like a madman on the far side. He would have walked in for a touchdown had Horvath audibled into a throw, though I don’t blame him for playing that safe.

This marked the fifth time that Horvath has been held out of the end zone this season and just the second since he took over as starting running back. He remains on pace to break the CFL’s single-season touchdown record, but now needs five touchdowns over the final four games. I still think he gets there, but the Leos should be concerned about getting the ground game going more consistently. 10 carries for 28 yards is not good enough from your star ball-carrier when you played with a lead for much of the night.

Blow from below

While the Lions may have been on a bye last week, they certainly weren’t out of the news cycle. The aftershocks of their heated clash with the Montreal Alouettes continued to reverberate, including new accusations that defensive back Josh Hagerty delivered a pair of punches to the groin of Montreal running back Liam Talbot. The blows caused injuries that have been described as potentially life-altering and prompted the CFL to issue a two-game suspension.

Considering the nature of his infraction and the possible long-term implications for Talbot, many critics felt the CFL’s discipline didn’t go far enough. The Lions also drew criticism for electing not to release Hagerty, though head coach Buck Pierce and general manager Ryan Rigmaiden both condemned his actions. I tend to agree that the punishment fell short of the crime, though we should all be cautious in trying to tie suspension lengths to something as unpredictable as injury severity. Hagerty’s conduct was undeniably heinous, but it would have been equally so had Talbot emerged unharmed, as was initially believed to be the case.

Whatever your opinion of the CFL’s ruling, a two-game suspension is more substantial than most people give it credit for. On Hagerty’s side, it will deprive him of more than 10 percent of his annual earnings, which is incredibly significant for a depth CFL player near the bottom of the pay scale. For the Lions, the loss of a key special teamer and regular defensive contributor left a major hole to fill.

With starting halfback Ronald Kent Jr. also suspended one game for his role in a sideline brawl against Montreal — curious that the CFL dubbed him and not potential record-setting receiver Tyson Philpot the instigator of that fight — B.C. had to dress two brand-new defensive backs. The fortunate fact that Carter happened to be available alleviated some concerns, but re-learning a whole playbook on the fly isn’t simple. It is a testament to defensive coordinator Mike Benevides that there weren’t more busts in this game.

Fish out of water

I’m a huge admirer of Kieran Poissant for the outstanding work ethic and character that has allowed him to carve out a CFL career coming from junior football, and I appreciate that the Lions trust him implicitly. That doesn’t mean he should be a primary kick returner at the professional level. That’s just not his skill set.

There were some extenuating circumstances this week as Lawrence Woods III works through a shoulder injury and Poissant did a passable job as a temporary stopgap, but there have to be better options out there. It seems like every CFL team is able to uncover multiple budding return men every season, but the Lions stopped at Seven McGee and couldn’t replicate the process once he got hurt.

Regardless of who has been back there this season, the B.C. return game has been a net negative. Rourke entered this week with better offensive numbers than most critics have given him credit for, but did so despite having the worst average starting field position of any starting quarterback in the league. Imagine what this offence could do if they didn’t have to play with one hand tied behind their backs!

Colours of added importance

Friday night was the B.C. Lions’ annual Orange Shirt Day game in support of Indigenous truth and reconciliation. The Lions blazed a trail in this area for the rest of the CFL and continue to engage with Indigenous communities through the offseason. Now that the other franchises have caught up, I always look forward to the return of the special indigenized logos, which I would argue are almost universally better than their regular emblems.

It is especially easy for Lions fans to show tacit support for these initiatives given that most are already decked out in orange for the games, but the stakes here demand more than pulling on a shirt and delivering a few cheers for the relevant dignitaries. Reconciliation requires true education, and that applies in sport too. While the CFL has done a great job highlighting this topic and placing it visually at the forefront for one week a year, there has been no concerted effort to address the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action No. 87, which asks that relevant organizations highlight the history of Indigenous athletes in their sport.

For a league that loves to boast about its history, the CFL does a remarkably poor job at recording, reminiscing, or engaging with it. I mean, they still continue to publicly cite Herb Trawick as the league’s first Black player almost every Black History Month, even though that is incorrect on several different levels. At least we have flawed facts to engage with on that topic; the history of Indigenous players in the CFL offers a dearth of official documentation, and there appears to be no appetite to change that. Until steps are taken to tell those stories, all the orange warm-up jerseys in the world won’t make their commitment any less performative.

Power couple

If you’ve been following the Lions on social media, you may have seen images shared of a plastic hedgehog with a pineapple-like exterior as part of their celebratory post-game memes. There are actually two of these creatures floating around the locker room, which the team have dubbed Mr. and Mrs. Momentum. They came on the scene when B.C. began their winning streak and have become unofficial mascots for the turnaround.

Rourke was joined at the podium by Mrs. Momentum during his post-game media availability on Friday, as Mr. Momentum was apparently too shy to appear on camera. It was fantastic to see the sometimes overly serious pivot have some fun by embracing the gag, building the lore behind the inside joke.

The toys and the memes aren’t everybody’s cup of tea, and that’s okay. It is a particular brand of Gen Z humour meant to bond the young players and staff members, while providing some laughs to a demographic of fans the CFL desperately needs. If it causes Rourke to crack a smile and lighten his load too, then that’s just an added benefit.

Savouring second

With the victory, the Lions have secured the all-important tiebreaker over the Roughriders and officially move into second place in the West Division. There is still a lot of work to be done before that positioning is set in stone, but this contest was the single most important hurdle standing in the way of a home playoff game. B.C. now has full control of their own destiny, which seemed almost impossible after their 1-5 start.

The push to the postseason will continue for the Lions (8-6) on Saturday, October 3, when they visit the Toronto Argonauts (9-6). Kickoff is slated for 12:00 p.m. PT.