The B.C. Lions delivered what could be their signature win of the 2025 season on Friday night in Calgary, demolishing the heavily-favoured Stampeders by a margin of 52-23 in a game where they were supposed to be overmatched, undermanned, and receiving their comeuppance.
Here are my thoughts on the game.
Atlas enjoys a trap workout
Believe it or not, there were actual human beings, presumably with brains and a pulse, who confidently stated that the Lions made the wrong decision at quarterback this offseason. Even as Nathan Rourke played well to start the year, some pointed to Calgary’s turnaround under Vernon Adams Jr. as evidence that B.C. opted for the inferior face of the franchise.
Hopefully, we can now banish those people to the fringes of society, right alongside the flat-earthers and anyone who pours the milk in before they add cereal.
Sublime does not even begin to describe the performance that Rourke put on film in Week 16. On a night where he was missing the best left tackle in the league, the CFL’s leading rusher, and a key member of his receiving corps, he did what I’ve always claimed he would have to in order to make the Lions a dark-horse contender: put the team on his back. Despite that massive burden, it still came across as effortless.
The Oakville, Ont. native was on his game from the start, delivering a beauty on the move to Justin McInnis as he led the Lions down the field for points on the opening drive. Unlike his brilliant performance last week against Ottawa, he never slowed down and continued to deliver strike after strike. When he elected to run, defenders seemed to roll off him like droplets of water as he glided towards his goal. On his 26-yard touchdown run, at least five Stampeders made contact, but none slowed him down.
The raw numbers might not be the most eye-popping of his career — 20-of-24 passing for 331 yards, plus six carries for 43 yards on the ground. But the five total touchdowns he contributed, coupled with the absence of a single turnover against arguably the league’s top defence, make a compelling argument for this being the best performance of his career. If his hot streak continues, anything is possible for B.C.
Misinterpreted idioms
They say that revenge is a dish best served cold, but it appears that Vernon Adams Jr. took that way too literally ahead of his much-anticipated reunion with the B.C. Lions.
Adams was uncharacteristically quiet in his last two games, but everyone expected the emotions to break him out of the mini-slump. After all, for all his unquestioned professionalism, this was his chance to stick it to the franchise that deemed him expendable and outduel the quarterback who made him so in primetime. Instead, he came out of the locker room like two-week-old meatloaf from the back of the refrigerator — frigid, congealed, and malodorous.
This wasn’t just an off-evening; it was shades of something we haven’t seen from him since his six-interception game against Toronto in 2023. Only the notorious Bad VA, once thought deceased, could have made some of the throws and decisions he did in the first half. His two interceptions were ugly, especially the cross-body toss into double coverage that kicked things off, but he easily could have added two more. A negligible deflection off the crossbar erased an endzone takeaway that would have been even easier for the defence without the obstruction, and Garry Peters dropped an almost certain pick-six on the final drive of the half.
Unfortunately, Adams never got a chance to redeem himself. The 32-year-old took a glancing blow from the forearm of safety Jackson Findlay on a QB run early in the third quarter and came up stumbling. In some ways, the hit mirrored the head injury that he suffered earlier in the year, and he never returned after being pulled by the concussion spotter. That isn’t the result that fans of either team wanted, as 30 rough minutes don’t diminish their affection for VA or the excitement he brings to the field. Here’s hoping he makes a speedy recovery, because the league is better when he’s lighting it on fire.
Just add detergent
To be clear, I fall firmly in the camp that the Findlay hit should have been penalized. It was far from an egregious play, the Canadian rookie certainly didn’t exhibit any intent to injury, and Adams did himself absolutely no favour with the way he slid, but you have to protect quarterbacks. The contact came a beat late, and while VA was in a vulnerable position — that flag must come out.
Not that it will be of any consolation to Calgary, but they got their makeup call in the fourth quarter. While Deontai Williams made some contact with Tevin Jones on a deep shot from P.J. Walker down the sideline, I would have characterized the interaction as hand-fighting with both players capable of making a play on the ball. At the same time, I understand why Buck Pierce’s challenge failed to see it overturned, as those types of ticky-tack calls rarely provide the definitive evidence required.
Even if those two incidents end in a wash, the Lions’ regressed on their discipline issues yet again. 11 penalties for 150 yards is too much on any night, even a blowout, especially when they so consistently impact the flow of the ball game. Among those preventable infractions were a late hit from Patrice Rene on special teams that gave Calgary prime field position and a horsecollar from Micah Awe on a key tackle for loss that helped produce a Stamps’ TD, while a couple of ill-timed holds also erased big plays on offence.
Button smashers
If you are seeking in-depth analysis of the B.C. defence, you won’t find much of it here. Despite the lopsided scoreboard, they didn’t make much of an impression, which is probably for the best.
It’s never a bad day when you beat the team across from you, but it felt like Calgary’s struggles out of the gate had less to do with facing an impenetrable game plan than it did the offence making basic mistakes. Cristophe Beaulieu’s interception came on a poorly thrown ball, and while Micah Awe’s came on a much better defensive play to bait VA, it still shouldn’t have been thrown.
Just like against the Redblacks, more soft-yardage was afforded as the night went on. The unit had a hard time stopping Dedrick Mills as either a running or receiving option, and made P.J. Walker look the best he has all season. The pass rush was less smothering than either of the past two games, and there are still holes in the secondary to be exploited.
This felt a bit like a team playing a video game on the lowest setting. The amount of points they were able to score on the other side of the ball made minor mistakes irrelevant, and they could get away with spamming the key buttons against a CPU opponent prone to giving things away. Frankly, that’s the formula that B.C. was always going to need to follow: leaning on Nathan Rourke as their best defensive player while they figure out what the future is for that side of the ball. The question will be whether it can be a sustainable model.
Endangered species breeding program
Fullbacks are a dying breed in professional football, but the B.C. Lions are leading the charge for conservation.
Not only have they successfully converted two defensive players to the position in Riley Pickett and Jacob Bond, but Friday saw them give backup offensive lineman Andrew Peirson reps in the backfield, and starting running back Zander Horvath is himself a fullback by trade. It was a beautiful sight to see.
I was slightly surprised to see the team go with Horvath as the feature back in the absence of James Butler, only because he was given so few touches early in the year when he dressed for depth. With that said, I’ve long been a believer that big backs are underutilized in the CFL, and the six-foot-three, 230-pound bruiser from Purdue certainly qualifies.
He was dangerous every time he touched the ball, compiling 152 yards on 12 carries and showing some breakaway burst on a 70-yard touchdown run to end things. Butler isn’t expected to be out long, but I wouldn’t mind seeing a dose of Horvath down the stretch.
Proper surface
If you require evidence that football games are played on turf, not paper, look no further than the line of scrimmage in this game.
Even with the loss of Folarin Orimolade, it was hard not to anticipate a mismatch between B.C.’s banged-up offensive line and Calgary’s vaunted defensive line. Defensive tackle Jaylon Hutchings is the clear frontrunner for Most Outstanding Defensive Player and was facing a pair of inexperienced guards in Anu Una and Ilm Manning. Meanwhile, Jarell Broxton was out of the lineup, and Kory Woodruff was forced to play left tackle, a position he lacks the ideal build for. It could have been disastrous.
Instead, Hutchings had one of his quietest nights of the year, and Clarence Hicks was largely a non-factor off the edge. The Lions’ blockers got an assist thanks to their quarterback’s decisiveness with the ball, but did their jobs protecting him. They also had a great night in the run game, consistently getting hats on the key defensive playmakers. Kudos to that whole unit for flipping the script.
Peaking at the right time
Sacks are one of the most bizarre statistics in sports. Exhibit A: Mathieu Betts, who spent much of the season as a pariah for his lack of production and has now seized the league lead in just two weeks.
Another multi-sack outing — this time just two instead of four — gives the Canadian pass rusher 10 on the season. Teams need to peak at the right time in the CFL to have a chance at a title, and that goes for players, too. It is heartening to see Betts find his groove when it matters most.
Outside the lines
Seven McGee came oh, so close to busting two returns for touchdowns in this game, continuing a positive trend from a once moribund special teams unit. The excitement of one shoestring touchdown-saving tackle from Kyle Wilson as he broke into space inside was undercut by a review showing that he clearly stepped out of bounds, but he also nearly squirted free after making several defenders miss later in the contest.
My internal radar gun can never quite make sense of McGee, who never appears to be moving as fast as he really is, but he’s quietly cemented himself into his role. He may not be in the top tier of game-breaking returners yet, but his elusiveness is rare.
Who’s on first?
Can we start to give Keon Hatcher his due as the definitive best receiver in the CFL?
I understand that Kenny Lawler fits the prototype of an outside threat who can beat press coverage, but while everyone has gone ga-ga over his performance in Hamilton this year, Hatcher has only led the league in yardage. He’s also put up more 100-yard games, and has never been held under 30 yards in a contest, something that has happened to Lawler on three occasions.
Another eight catches for 147 yards in this game looked automatic for the veteran in this one. I have long contended, even dating back to Justin McInnis and Alexander Hollins’ glory days early last year, that Hatcher is the only B.C. receiver worthy of a number one title. He deserves the same respect league-wide.
Mind the (age) gap
I’ll confess that I still have serious doubts about how viable a 34-year-old T.J. Lee can be as a stop-gap solution at halfback.
Just one week removed from being on the street, the longest-serving Lion — does he still get that title? — got the nod and finished with five tackles. He wasn’t a noticeable difference-maker and got beaten on one of Calgary’s touchdowns. On another night against an opponent on their game, I fear he would have stuck out more. It seems he’ll have ample opportunity to prove me — and Father Time — wrong.
A whopping 13 years younger at just 21, rookie safety Jackson Findlay had to step in following an injury to Beaulieu and proved he deserves more reps. The Vancouver College alum made five defensive tackles and three more on special teams while never looking out of his depth. His growth over the past few weeks has been an under-discussed storyline.
Double-threat
On a night full of offensive fireworks, the two best may have come from Stanley Berryhill III. Not only did he make a tremendous one-handed stab on a perfectly placed deep ball from Rourke in the first half, but it was his hustle to cut off two defenders downfield that sprung Horvath for his 70-yard score. Young players watching should learn more from that hustle than from the highlight reel catch.
Homegrown duel
Rourke officially broke Russ Jackson’s record for most single-season passing yards by a Canadian on Friday, but buried way down those charts will be another “quarterback” in this game.
Quincy Vaughn, who converted to tight end in college at North Dakota but has been handling short-yardage duties for Calgary, was forced into action when P.J. Walker went down late and completed his only pass for five yards. Given that he mostly practices as a blocking H-back and rarely throws at all in practice, that’s something of an accomplishment.
I accused the Stampeders of reaching on Vaughn when they selected him in the second round this year because of his limited role, but I’ll concede that he’s undeniably good at what he does. I’m just baffled that they continue to list him as a backup quarterback rather than a fullback, a la David Mackie for the Lions last year. It gives them no ratio benefit and creates the possibility of situations like this, where you might prefer to have an actual passer on hand.
Must be this tall to ride
The Lions have now proven they can do more than just compete with one of the perceived big boys of the CFL — they can wipe the floor with them. Yet again, that dramatically changes their fortunes amidst a roller coaster season where volatility has been the only constant.
Stealing a victory against a team ahead of them in the standings brings B.C. to .500 on the year, and makes the playoffs seem tantalizingly close. Even so, they can’t afford another costly slip-up against Toronto next Friday, September 26, lest the crossover option get fumbled away.