Lions beat Eskimos, clinch playoff spot
VANCOUVER (CP) — The B.C. Lions are officially headed to the playoffs.
Receiver DeVier Posey had a trio of touchdowns for the Lions (9-8) as they beat the Edmonton Eskimos 42-32 on Friday, guaranteeing B.C. a spot in the post-season.
Edmonton’s record falls to 7-9 with the loss, further diminishing the Eskimos’ playoff chances.
B.C. quarterback Travis Lulay had a slow start in Friday’s game, notching just 37 yards in the first half, but he ultimately tossed for 251 yards and four touchdowns.
Mike Reilly threw for 245 yards and one touchdown for the Eskimos, moving him up to a league-leading 5,219 passing yards this season.
The Lions had a sloppy start, with offensive penalties marring scoring chances in the first quarter. Edmonton capitalized, turning the mistakes into points.
Eskimos kicker Sean Whyte put his team on the board first, making a 47-yard field goal. Reilly added a touchdown to put the Eskimos up 12-0.
With less than four minutes to go in the opening frame, Lions returner Chris Rainey swung the momentum, collecting a kickoff deep in his own zone and rushing 95 yards for B.C.’s first touchdown of the night.
It was the first time since September 2015 that the 30-year-old has scored on a kickoff return.
Minutes later, Lulay connected with Bryan Burnham in the end zone for another major, giving the Lions a 14-12 lead to end the frame.
The Eskimos responded in the second, with Reilly finding receiver Bryant Mitchell wide open in the end zone and tossing a 23-yard rocket for a TD.
The Eskimos went into the half up 22-17, but the Lions came back out of the locker-room fired up and ready to claw their way back.
Lulay connected with Posey for three TDs in the third quarter, including a 65-yard catch-and-dash.
Edmonton put up a final push late in the fourth quarter, with defensive back Aaron Grymes intercepting a B.C. pass and returning it 57 yards for a touchdown.
Whyte made a 40-yard field goal with less than two minutes left, bringing the Eskimos within seven points.
Lions kicker Ty Long sealed the game by making a 40-yard field goal with 13 seconds left on the clock.
The CFL’s playoff bracket has yet to be set with two weeks of regular-season games still to go. The Lions join the Calgary Stampeders, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Ottawa Redblacks and Hamilton Ticats as teams who have now secured post-season berths. The Lions next head to Regina to face the Riders on Oct. 27.