After a 3-0 start to the season, the BC Lions see their Saturday night clash against the defending Gray Cup champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers as an opportunity to test their mettle.
“They’ve been the best team in the league the last two years, and they’re undefeated this year as well,” Lions coach Rick Campbell said after practice Thursday. “You always want to see how you compare to the good teams.”
The Blue Bombers (4-0) arrive at BC Place just five days after posting a 23-22 victory in Toronto on Monday night, with a failed conversion attempt in the last minute by Argonauts kicker Boris Bede. , which made the difference in the game.
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BC Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke named CFL’s best offensive player in June
After beating BC by a combined 75-9 in a pair of blowout wins last season, Winnipeg will see a team that has been firing flat out en route to its first 3-0 start since 2007.
Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke was named the CFL’s best player for June on Wednesday thanks to 1,077 passing yards for nine touchdowns, an 83.8 percent completion rate and 180 rushing yards for three touchdowns.
Amid the hype, Rourke, 24, remains grounded.
“I don’t think Nathan is a guy who cares about being in the spotlight,” wide receiver Dominique Rhymes said.
That’s what you admire about him. He just wants to win at the end of the day. He keeps his head in focus, which keeps everyone else in focus.”
“He’s a boring guy when it comes to practice, because he’s so predictable,” Campbell added of Rourke’s preparation habits.
“I mean that jokingly, but he’s a guy you can put in a practice movie any day and he’ll look remarkably the same. He comes here and practices like he means it. And that’s a good sign.”
Rourke may be new to the full-time starting role, but he took his share of reps last season, including two starts, while veteran starter Michael Reilly was resting an injured elbow.
That familiarity with the receiving body has proven valuable. Five Lions, led by Keon Hatcher, already have more than 100 receiving yards.
Filling the slotback position in place of injured veteran Bryan Burnham, Hatcher went 7-of-7 for 166 yards in the Lions’ 34-31 win at Ottawa in Week 4, and was named the Week 4 player of the week. CFL.
“Burnham, he’s a great player, a great leader, I don’t take him lightly,” said the 27-year-old Hatcher, who has now graduated full-time after appearing in seven games with BC in the 2021 season.
“Coming in last week, I knew I had a great job, a great role that week. I just locked myself in and finished the job.”
Burnham will miss his second game after suffering rib fractures in BC’s Week 3 win over Toronto, while wide receiver Lucky Whitehead is expected to play through a lingering ankle injury.
While the Lions’ offense has been in the spotlight earlier in the season, the defense has also impressed. BC’s 16.3 points allowed per game is second-lowest in the CFL, trailing only Winnipeg (15.8).
Campbell likes to watch his players push each other around on the practice field.
“Our practices are set up so that most of it is our offense competing against our defense,” he said. “We want good against good and we want guys to compete to the best of their ability in practice.
“I think it pays off on both sides of the ball where you’re playing against a unit that’s trying to get better and be a cohesive unit. That’s always a focus for us in practice.”
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBER (4-0) AT BC LIONS (3-0)
Saturday, 7 p.m., Place BC
WELCOME TO THE WEST: With a pair of wins against Ottawa and one against Hamilton and one against Toronto, the Lions will be Winnipeg’s first Western Conference opponent this year. The two sides will return to BC Place on Oct. 15 and then wrap up the 2022 regular season schedule on Oct. 28 at IG Field in Winnipeg.
WILSON TO GO: The Blue Bombers announced Thursday that linebacker Kyrie Wilson has been placed on the six-game disabled list after suffering an Achilles tendon injury against Toronto on Monday. Malik Clements is expected to take his place in the lineup.
FAMILY FUN: The Lions will host Family Day on Saturday, with an expanded Family Zone, festivities at Terry Fox Plaza and a chance for kids to run on BC Place Field after the game.
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