LIVESTREAM CFL: BC Lions @ Montreal Alouettes, Sept. 7, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm Sept. 6, EDT)
MONTREAL — The BC Lions head east to visit the Montreal Alouettes for Friday Night Football.
A win for BC would move them into first place in the tightly contested West Division, while Montreal can extend its East Division lead with a home victory. The Als go into the game without star receiver Austin Mack, who was placed on the six-game injured list on Thursday.
The Lions’ five-game losing streak was put firmly in the rearview mirror after a convincing 38-12 victory over the Ottawa REDBLACKS in the Touchdown Pacific game in Victoria, B.C. on OK Tire Labour Day Weekend.
Quarterback Nathan Rourke had a lot to do with that win and will try to make it consecutive strong performances after throwing for 325 yards and three touchdowns.
To do it, he’ll have to manage one of the league’s top pass defences that’s had an extra week of rest after a Week 13 bye.
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Limiting yards through the air has been the forte of a secondary led by veteran Marc-Antoine Dequoy.
Dequoy, along with Kabion Ento and Dionte Ruffin, have helped hold opposing offences to 249.1 passing yards per game.
Rourke’s ability to spread the field will be key to the Lions’ offensive success. As he has all season, Justin McInnis leads the corps of receivers and is the only player in the league to surpass 1,000 receiving yards with 1,026. With Ayden Eberhardt taking on a larger role over the past several games and the playmaking ability of Keon Hatcher and Alexander Hollins always posing a threat, they’re as equipped as anyone to find open space downfield.
Watch live. BC Lions @ Montreal Alouettes, Sept. 7, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm Sept. 6, EDT)
While confident, Rourke and the rest of the Lions’ offence knows the tough challenge they’re about to face in an aggressive Als’ defence.
“They’re really well coached,” Rourke told reporters. “They fly around, they do a lot of different things. They’re very talented in a lot of different areas. We’re going to have to be able to take what they give us and put some drives together because that offence is explosive, as well.”
Running back William Stanback provides an elite secondary option in the play calling of offensive coordinator Jordan Maksymic. With 93 yards against the REDBLACKS, Stanback has now rushed for 87, 100, 99 and 93 yards in his past four games and sits 41 yards behind league leader Brady Oliveira, with 810 on the season.
Campbell shouldn’t hesitate to give Stanback the ball against an Als’ front seven that’s surrendering 105.5 yards per contest.
It’ll be on the shoulders of linebackers Tyrice Beverette and Darnell Sankey to contain the run, as the pair have totalled 127 defensive tackles.
Leading the Als’ offence will be Cody Fajardo in his second game back from a hamstring injury. Despite Mack’s sudden injury, he’ll stiill have a set of dynamic receivers putting up impressive performances.
Even without Mack and Tyson Philpot, Charleston Rambo and Cole Spieker have kept the Als’ offensive machine humming along. Spieker pulled down 107 yards in the Als’ win over Edmonton in Week 12 and Rambo has been one of the bigger surprises league wide with 599 yards on the season. Jose Barbon comes in off the practice roster in the wake of Mack’s move to the injured list.
Watch live. BC Lions @ Montreal Alouettes, Sept. 7, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm Sept. 6, EDT)
The Lion’s pass defence has been fulled by the play of Emmanual Rugamba and Garry Peters downfield, with T.J. Lee at linebacker. They held Dru Brown to 206 passing yards last week, despite averaging 298.7 against in their previous 11 games.
The defence will be put to a different kind of test with running back Walter Fletcher though, as Jason Maas is just as apt to use him in the pass game as he is with the run. Through 11 games, he has 483 rushing yards and 461 through the air.
In the Lions’ front, Fajardo and Fletcher need to be cognizant of Mathieu Betts as he’ll have had a full week of practice and is known for his talent as a pass rusher. That’s not to mention Christian Covington and Juliano Falaniko who had a sack and a forced fumble against Ottawa.
Betts, a former Laval Rouge et Or, was happy with his first game given the circumstances that surrounded it but says the Als pose a different challenge than other teams around the league.
“We’re moving on to Montreal, a short week for us but it’s going to be fun,” Betts told reporters. “They’re doing things a little bit differently than the other CFL offences, so it’s a good challenge for us but at the end of the day it comes down to execution, playing fast, being physical and hopefully good things will follow.”
Despite a 6-6 record, BC still has first in the West Division well within view.
Montreal can continue to run away with the East with a victory.
Watch live. BC Lions @ Montreal Alouettes, Sept. 7, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm Sept. 6, EDT)
