Held in check early, the BC Lions erupted for 25 unanswered points to down the Edmonton Elks 37-24 — their fifth straight victory — at BC Place on Friday night.
Nathan Rourke ran in a 70-yard score and threw for another, closing with a 21/32 line with 338 yards and an interception to remain a perfect 6-0 against Edmonton. Keon Hatcher Sr. added 97 receiving yards to his CFL-leading total and caught a touchdown, and James Butler tallied 82 rushing yards and a major on 15 totes to help BC improve to 10-7.
The Lions’ defence forced four turnovers, with T.J. Lee leading the way. The veteran defensive back stuffed the stat sheet with a sack, an interception, a forced fumble and a team-high six tackles in his fourth game back with BC.
Cody Fajardo went 19-for-34 for 230 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions, doubling his season total at six, while Kurleigh Gittens Jr. hauled in six of 12 targets for 96 yards as Edmonton fell to 7-10. Justin Rankin picked up the 24 yards he needed to reach the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the first time in his career, but found little room after that, finishing with just 36 on 11 carries.
With the loss, the Elks were officially eliminated from playoff contention, while the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Calgary Stampeders both secured post-season berths. The Lions, meanwhile, are now in pole position to host the Western Semi-Final.
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The Elks came out fast with two chain-moving plays to set up a 44-yard field goal try, but Vincent Blanchard pushed it wide right.
After a punt apiece, the Lions found rhythm as Justin McInnis snagged a 16-yard strike over the middle and absorbed a big hit. He followed with a 41-yard catch-and-run inside the 10, but JJ Ross made an excellent individual play to jar it loose, jump on the fumble, and flip possession.
Edmonton’s momentum swing was short-lived. Trapped deep in his own end, Fajardo dropped back from the eight-yard line and was swallowed up by Ben Hladik for a safety. Defence continued to be the story down the first-quarter stretch, as neither of the CFL’s top two big-play offences could muster a point.
Edmonton cracked the defensive deadlock early in the second. Fajardo connected with Kurleigh Gittens Jr. three times for 60 yards to reach the red zone, then sold a fake to Rankin and pitched to Javon Leake, who cruised in untouched for his first touchdown of the year. Blanchard’s point-after made it 7-2.
BC stuck with its big-play approach midway through the second, but Rourke — for a third time in the half — overthrew his target on second down. Edmonton answered by pounding the ball on the ground to set up another 44-yarder for Blanchard and, this time, he split the uprights.
Rourke caught fire in the three-minute drill, going five-for-five for 64 yards before Butler bulldozed in from the five to finish the drive. Butler added two more on the conversion to tie it 10-10 at half, salvaging a slow start for the CFL’s top offence, which held the ball for just nine minutes to Edmonton’s 20.
The Lions’ defence opened the third with a statement, as Robert Carter Jr. jumped Fajardo’s pass and raced it back 50 yards for six. The rookie’s team-leading fifth interception was also his third in as many weeks.
Things didn’t get easier for Fajardo after the kickoff. The veteran was swarmed on second down by a pass-rushing party led by Levi Bell. With Edmonton’s season hanging in the balance, head coach Mark Kilam kept the offence on the field for third-and-long, but Mathieu Betts applied the pressure to force an incompletion.
Off the turnover on downs, Zander Horvath broke free for a 40-yard gain up the sideline, setting up Sean Whyte’s 38-yard field goal to extend BC’s lead to 20-10.
The Lions kept their foot on the gas with their next possession in the third. Rourke found a lane, got in gear, and left the Elks in the dust on a 70-yard touchdown sprint, the longest run of his career. Whyte added the point-after as BC’s lead ballooned to 17 points.
Edmonton finally showed signs of life near the end of a busy third quarter. Fajardo led a balanced attack on an 11-play, 81-yard drive, polishing it off by threading a back-foot throw through the uprights and to Binjimen Victor for the score — his first in the CFL.
Early in the fourth, it was Edmonton’s defence turn to make a play. With BC facing second-and-long, Kilam sent the house, and Rourke’s rushed throw found Brandon Barlow instead. Six snaps later, BC’s front answered with a turnover of its own, as Lee jumped in front of a Fajardo misfire to Gittens Jr.
With momentum back on the Lions’ side, the Rourke-Hatcher Sr. connection came alive. Rourke hit the CFL’s leading receiver for 33 yards, then went right back to him for a 17-yard touchdown. Whyte hit the conversion to make 34-17.
In desperation mode, Fajardo made it back-to-back picks after his deep shot in double coverage was taken away by Jackson Findlay — his third straight game with an interception. After which, BC pieced together a field goal drive to make it 37-17.
With three minutes left and the result essentially sealed, the Elks continued to battle. Fajardo escaped Betts’ blitz and the broken pocket, weaved his way through traffic, and stretched over the goal line to complete a 15-yard touchdown run. Blanchard made it 37-24 on the extra point, but with just a minute left, it was too little, too late.
The Elks will play their season finale at home, a Week 21 matchup against the Calgary Stampeders on Friday, October 24. The Lions, meanwhile, wrap up their regular season on the road in Saskatchewan against the Roughriders on Saturday, October 25.