LIONS’ PRIDE NOT ENOUGH TO STOP RIDERS
Former B.C. backup Fajardo, RB Powell lead visitors’ offence in push to secure top seed
SASKATCHEWAN 27, B.C. 19
The B.C. Lions were playing for pride, but the Saskatchewan Roughriders were playing for first place in the West Division.
Here’s what we learned from the Riders’ 27-19 win before 18,043 fans at B.C. Place on Friday night, the Lions’ ninth straight loss against a divisional opponent this season.
O’BRIEN STEPS UP
The 5-12 Lions’ playoff aspirations ended last weekend in Edmonton but, for a couple of quarters at least, they made things interesting against the 12-5 Riders.
Quarterback Danny O’brien, making his first CFL start after six years as a backup with three different teams, finished the night 16 of 23 for 171 yards and a touchdown and had the Lions in a 9-3 lead late in the second quarter.
Riders running back William Powell, however, finished a nineplay, 75-yard touchdown drive with a one-yard run with two minutes left in the half before an O’brien fumble at midfield led to a 15-yard Brett Lauther field goal and a 12-9 Roughriders lead.
The visitors then took the second-half kickoff and marched 85 yards to extend their advantage.
Cody Fajardo hit Kyran Moore for a nine-yard touchdown but the key play was a reviewed pass interference call on the Lions’ Chris Edwards after the Leos had appeared to stop the Riders.
And that was pretty much the game.
CASTILLO COMES THROUGH
Lions rookie Grant Kraemer picked up for O’brien with four minutes left in the third quarter and had a tough time.
On his first possession, the Drake product took a sack at his own four-yard line which led to a safety and a Riders field goal.
His second possession ended with a fumble on his own 37, leading to another Riders field goal. Kraemer then suffered a knee injury on his only completion of the game when he was hit by A.C. Leonard.
Kraemer’s 18-yard completion to Rashaun Simonise led to Sergio Castillo’s fourth field goal of the night.
O’brien, who re-entered the game after the injury to Kraemer, hit Bryan Burnham for a 30-yard touchdown pass with 90 seconds left.
FAJARDO DOESN’T FAIL
Fajardo, who was the Lions’ third-string quarterback last season, finished the night 21 of 27 for 224 yards and added another 20 rushing yards on six carries. He’s emerged as one of the front-runners for the league’s most outstanding player.
Powell gashed the Lions for 111 rushing yards on 15 carries. He picked up 148 yards in the Riders’ previous trip to B.C. Place.
Solomon Elimimian, who signed with the Riders this off-season after nine years with the Lions, had eight tackles and a sack. Burnham, the league’s leading receiver, contributed three catches for 72 yards and a major, but his most memorable play came late in the second quarter when his leaping, twisting, one-handed grab in the end zone was ruled out of bounds.
ON THE TABLE
Lions owner David Braley was interviewed on the Team 1040 on Friday and painted an interesting picture of the team’s potential sale.
Braley said no local group has stepped up with an “acceptable,” offer and he’s now thrown the process open. He added there are four or five local concerns showing an interest as well as out-of-town buyers including a couple in the States.
Mark Woodall, the insurance man who’s heading up a local consortium with longtime Lion supporter Moray Keith, said his group has made, “a very good offer,” to Braley, which was rejected without a counter offer.
“If he has five interested groups, why can’t he sell it?” Woodall wrote in a text message.
When asked if his intention was to sell the team, Braley answered: “Yes, there’s no question about that whatsoever.”
But he also said he’ll perform a complete evaluation of the Lions following the season and, “make the necessary changes or adjustments if they’re required.”