Lions, Redblacks meet in battle of second-place teams moving in different directions

Ottawa Redblacks quarterback Dustin Crum, left, tries to fight off B.C. Lions' Ben Hladik during the first half of a CFL football game, in Vancouver, B.C., Sept. 16, 2023. The Redblacks (6-2-1) are undefeated in their last five games, while the Lions (5-5-0) are mired in a four-game losing streak. Despite their respective success and struggles, both teams sit second in their division. (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press)

On paper the Ottawa Redblacks and B.C. Lions appear to be headed in opposite directions.

The Redblacks (6-2-1) are undefeated in their last five games, while the Lions (5-5-0) are mired in a four-game losing streak.

Despite their respective success and struggles, both teams sit second in their division. The Lions are just one point back of Saskatchewan in the West, while Ottawa trails Montreal, first overall, by five points in the East.

When the teams meet Saturday night at TD Place the Lions will be desperate to put an end to this brutal stretch of games and Nathan Rourke will be looking to rebound from last week’s less than impressive performance against Winnipeg.

Rourke, who made his season debut and return to the CFL, apologized to fans for his outing.

The 26-year-old quarterback was 8-for-25 for 126 yards with two interceptions, though the last time he played a CFL game was Nov. 13, 2022.

Rourke said he’s glad it’s a short week and can get right back at it, but knows Ottawa will present a challenge.

“They’re playing really fast right now and I think they’ve kind of hit their stride as a defence,” Rourke said of the Redblacks. “I think they’re playing really confident so it’s going to be important for us to be able to execute and be able to adjust on the fly to what they’re doing.”

Lions head coach Rick Campbell says it’s unfair to pin last week’s loss on Rourke.

"(Winnipeg) had a really good game plan and we never could figure our way through it,” Campbell said. “Nathan will say he can play better, which he can, but far be it that this was on him."

The Lions passing game has struggled of late. B.C. averaged 367.2 passing yards per game with Vernon Adams Jr. under centre as it started with a 5-1 record. But the Lions have managed just 162.5 through the past four games, with Adams out with an injury in the last two.

Ottawa’s pass defence ranks third in the league allowing 263.9 passing yards against per game.

While the Lions are looking for more from their pivot the Redblacks had a choice to make — stick with the player who largely got them to their current position or stick with what worked last week.

Dru Brown has been exactly what the Redblacks have been looking for the last four seasons — consistent. Brown went down two weeks ago in a game against Saskatchewan and Dustin Crum came on in relief to lead the Redblacks to a 22-22 tie.

Last week the Redblacks turned to Jeremiah Masoli, making his return after recovering from serious injuries over the last two seasons, who led them to a 31-29 over Calgary.

But there’s no denying this is Brown’s team and he’ll be back behind centre to face the Lions.

"He's an incredibly focused individual and doesn’t make a difference if he took a week off, he still prepares the same way," said head coach Bob Dyce. "He handles himself the exact same way, he leads the exact same way and we’re excited to see him out there this week, back at the controls of the offence and looking forward to him having great success."

Dyce, who is usually careful about handing out praise, was happy to give credit to his players for their impressive start after four straight seasons of posting four or fewer wins.

"The team feels good about themselves and they have the right to feel good about themselves because they’re a special group," Dyce said. "We know the most important thing is what’s ahead of us and not what’s behind us."

Brown said one of the keys to Ottawa's success this year has been to move on from the previous week when preparing for a game.

"I think that we show up and we work kind of regardless if we’re coming off a game where we played really well or we played poorly," he said. "Any time you’re winning tends to be a bit more fun."

LIONS (5-5-0) AT REDBLACKS (6-2-1)

SATURDAY, TD PLACE STADIUM

CAN’T GET THROUGH: Over their last four games Ottawa has allowed just 17.8 points and 282 net yards per game.

PICK ME: With an interception last week B.C.’s T.J. Lee has 27 for his CFL career. That puts him tied for seventh place all-time for the Lions.

KEEP IT GOING: Ottawa is 4-0-1 in its last five games, the longest unbeaten run within the same season in Redblacks history.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 23, 2024.