Achi news desk-
The BC Lions exhaled on Saturday.
Expectations for the team were high coming into the CFL season and last week’s loss to the Toronto Argonauts came as a surprise to many viewers.
Beating the Calgary Stampeders 26-17 in their home opener on Saturday gave the Lions some relief.
“I feel like we got the monkey off our backs,” linebacker Josh Woods said. “Last week it didn’t feel like it was us. It was good to get a win and give confidence to boys, confidence of new guys. … We feel like us again.”
Vernon Adams Jr. threw. for 277 yards, connecting on 17 of 29 attempts, including two touchdowns, and another big drive for BC (1-1).
“We had to adapt and we did. I still want to be more consistent. It was a real roller coaster game,” Adams said.
“But a hard fought win, man. Can’t take anything from these guys. I love the way we fought and finished that game.”
Calgary’s Jake Maier went 26 for 33 with 339 passing yards, two TDs and one interception as the Stampeders (1-1) took their first loss of the campaign. BC sacked the quarterback four times.
“I’m not worried at the moment because I like our team. And I understand that no team right now should be playing their best football in Week 2,” said Calgary head coach Dave Dickenson. “They fought hard. We’ve got good talent, we’ve got playmakers, we played a good football team.”
Maier, who was named the league’s top offensive player for his performance against Hamilton last week, continued his solid play early in Saturday’s game.
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The quarterback launched a 25-yard pass to Marken Michel midway through the first quarter, then sent a 10-yard throw to the receiver a few steps from the goal line. Michel walked in to complete the attack and Rene Parades hit the conversion, giving Calgary a 7-0 lead at the end of the first.
Early in the second frame, Adams scrambled out of the pocket and lobbed an eight-yard throw to Justin McInnis in the end zone. Sean Whyte’s kick was blocked, leaving the Lions trailing 7-6.
Maier sent a pass to Dedrick Mills minutes later, but the ball went off his fingers and BC fullback Ben Hladik came to grab the ball for an interception.
Hladik was a force for the Lions on Saturday, registering 10 tackles and an interception.
“Ben is one of the underrated dudes in this league. He’s one of the smartest linebackers,” Woods said. “We’re a duo. It’s fun to play with. That’s my brother.”
The Stamps turned to Parades midway through the second quarter and the kicker kicked a 13-yard field goal.
Adams responded by sailing a 28-yard pass to McInnis, then followed up with a huge lob to Hollins deep in the end zone. Whyte converted this time and the Lions took a 14-10 half-time lead.
The Stampeders offense got back to work early in the second half when Maier connected with a wide open Mills on a long bomb. He took the receiver down the field before Hladik pulled him out by his ankles. Maier completed the effort with a throw to Reggie Begelton deep in the end zone, restoring Calgary’s lead.
The Lions scored 17-17 midway through the third with a 30-yard field goal.
BC went up again early in the fourth after Adams laid a rainbow pass to Ayden Eberhardt for a 59 yard gain that put the Lions in the red zone. The quarterback then muscled the ball over the goal line for another major. Whyte’s conversion attempt was again blocked, leaving BC up 23-17.
The kicker went for a 53-yard field goal with 36 seconds left in the game, and sent the ball through the uprights to give the Lions a 26-17 victory.
“I think we have room to grow,” Lions head coach Rick Campbell said of his team’s performance. “It’s obviously a lot more fun to grow when you’re winning a game than when you’re losing. So very proud of them. It was a tough game.”
Football wasn’t the only show at BC Place on Saturday – rapper 50 Cent performed before kickoff, belting out hits like “In da Club” and “Candy Shop” for the announced crowd of 53,788.
Dickenson admitted he didn’t check the performance, but said the crowd was good for Canadian soccer.
“I love that there are people here who maybe don’t check the CFL game regularly. I’m in the business of selling our game and I thought you see a lot of good football,” he said. “I thought it was a very entertaining game, we came out in the end.”
& copy 2024 The Canadian Press
