BEN ANDREWS/MATT BAKER
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats (0-2) and the BC Lions (2-1) square off at Tim Hortons Field to close week four of the CFL season. The Tiger-Cats hope that the energy of the home opener will kick start the team after a slow start to the 2017 campaign. The Lions are on the final leg of a three game road trip, and will have to battle fatigue and a raucous Tim Hortons Field crowd if they want to escape with the third victory of their eastern swing.
The Tiger-Cats lineup is largely unchanged from last week in Saskatchewan, with Head Coach Kent Austin electing to allow his starters to develop in their positions.
“At some point we’ve got to settle in and give guys a chance to develop that haven’t played a lot of football games,” said Coach Austin. “If you’re going to make some changes and you’re going to try and figure things out, we’re going to do that early [in the season] as opposed to late.”
Hamilton KR Brandon Banks Photo: Canadian Press
The receiving corps looks identical to the group in Regina, with the up-start Jalen Saunders and the seasoned Junior Collins earning their second consecutive start.
Lamar Holmes, former Atlanta Falcon, will get the start at RT for the Ticats. Drafted in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft, Holmes started in one game in his rookie campaign, but followed it up with 15 starts for the Falcons in his sophomore season. Two seasons of unfortunate injuries derailed Holmes NFL career and in June he signed with the Tiger-Cats as a free agent. With the addition of Holmes the Ticats hope to buy Collaros some more time in the pocket.
Although the Lions are facing a winless Hamilton team, BC head coach Wally Buono, the winngest head coach in CFL history, knows a thing or two about facing desperate teams:
“I think it’s foolish to overlook anybody. Records are not indicative of the kind of football club you are. A play here, a play there you win, a play here a play there you lose. The thing we have to be aware of is the fact that we’re going into Hamilton, I think it’s their season opener (at Tim Hortons Field), you know it’s going to be a lively crowd and you know the club is going to feel that’s going to be a huge advantage for them.”
Montreal Alouettes defensive end Gabriel Knapton (55) tackles B.C. Lions running back Jeremiah Johnson (24) during first half CFL football action in Montreal, Thursday, July 6, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
The visiting Lions are bringing high flying running back Jeremiah Johnson to town. Last week, Montreal’s excellent run defense didn’t stop the Leo’s explosive RB from factoring into the offense, as he posted 68 receiving yards in the showdown, good for most on the team. Johnson has been a major part of the Lion’s offense, accounting for over a quarter of the team’s total offensive yardage and scoring almost half the team’s offensive touchdowns. Shutting down the dual threat RB is the first step to shutting down the BC Lion’s offence.
Defensively, the Lions all-star linebacker, Solomon Elimimian, is coming off a 14 tackle performance. The veteran Elimimian is leading the Lions defence by example.
The Lions won both meetings in 2016, a 28-3 victory in the Ticats’ home opener at July 1st and a 45-38 thriller at BC Place on August 13th. Manny Arceneaux hauled in the winning touchdown with 1:23 left in the home contest and finished that night with 105 yards receiving.
The Lions are hoping to return home with three eastern victories under their belt. The Tiger-Cats hope to leverage their home field advantage, and deal the Lions their first eastern loss.
AFI, Yare Media and the CFL
American Football International is collaborating with Yare Media and the Canadian Football League to present 2017 CFL games live. This is more than a livestream. This is a stream of the top flight TSN network television broadcast.
LIVE STREAM PPV: CFL – BC Lions @Hamilton Tiger-Cats July 15 @ 7:30p EDT (1:30a July 16 CEST)