The B.C. Lions (8-7) hosted the Toronto Argonauts (5-10) on Friday night from B.C. Place Stadium. Nick Arbuckle returned as the starting quarterback for the Argonauts after missing last week’s game with a calf injury. The Lions also got running back James Butler back after missing last week’s game with a thigh injury.
First Quarter:
In the first quarter, Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed two passes for 23 yards to the 50-yard line. The offense moved the ball to the 43-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu kicked a 50-yard field goal to put the Argonauts up 3-0 with 8:58 left.
B.C.’s offense had the ball on the 40-yard line. Quarterback Nathan Rourke rushed for four yards and threw two passes for 22 yards to the 44-yard line. On the next play, he scrambled to the right side before throwing the ball was intended for Justin McInnis. However, Toronto defensive back Willie Drew made a nice leaping interception on the one-yard line with 7:32 left.
B.C.’s defense got the ball back. Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle attempted to complete a pass to Jake Herslow. The ball was underthrown, and it was intercepted by defensive back Jackson Findlay on the 42-yard line.
After running back James Butler rushed for six yards, quarterback Nathan Rourke threw two passes for 19 yards to the 17-yard line. On third down, B.C. tried to get Toronto to jump offside, but it did not work, and they were backed up five yards to the 22-yard line. Kicker Sean Whyte made a 30-yard field goal, and the game was tied 3-3 with 4:06 left.
Late in the first quarter, Toronto’s offense moved the ball to the 11-yard line. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made an 18-yard field goal. The Argonauts led 6-3 to end the first quarter.
Toronto’s offense had 70 yards (74 yards passing, one yard rushing, 3 yards lost), and B.C.’s offense had 57 yards (48 yards passing, 9 yards rushing).
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, B.C. quarterback Nathan Rourke overthrew his intended receiver Keon Hatcher, and it was intercepted by Toronto defensive back Benjie Franklin on the 55-yard line. The offense moved the ball to the 48-yard line before the drive stalled. B.C. got the ball back on the 18-yard line.
B.C. running back James Butler started the drive with a 45-yard run to the 47-yard line. Quarterback Nathan Rourke completed two passes for 31 yards to the 16-yard line. On the next play, Rourke faked the handoff before throwing the ball to Justin McInnis. McInnis broke a tackle before running in for the touchdown. The Lions took a 10-6 lead with 8:58 left to cap off a four-play drive for 87 yards.
Late in the second quarter, B.C.’s offense moved the ball to the 39-yard line. Kicker Sean Whyte made a 47-yard field goal for a 13-6 lead with 2:15 left. Toronto defensive back Derek Slywka intercepted Nathan Rourke’s pass before lateraling it to Tarvarus McFadden, who ran for four yards to the 46-yard line.
Toronto running back Spencer Brown rushed for three yards to the 43-yard line before kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 50-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Lions 13-9 at halftime.
First Half Stats:
B.C.’s offense had 223 yards (175 yards passing, 63 yards rushing, 15 yards lost), 10 first downs, 1 for 2 in the redzone, and the team was penalized five times for 49 yards. Quarterback Nathan Rourke completed 11 of 15 passes (73%) for 175 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions, and three carries for 11 yards.
Running back James Butler had four carries for 52 yards. Wide receiver Keon Hatcher made three catches for 87 yards, while Justin McInnis made two catches for 31 yards and one touchdown. The defense made two tackles for loss, two sacks, one forced fumble, and one interception.
Toronto’s offense had 124 yards (119 yards passing, 15 yards rushing, 10 yards lost), 8 first downs, 0 for 1 in the redzone, and the team was penalized three times for 20 yards. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 12 of 16 passes (75%) for 119 yards and one interception.
Running back Spencer Brown had seven carries for 15 yards and two catches for six yards. Wide receiver Kevin Mital made five catches for 53 yards, while Jake Herslow made four catches for 49 yards. The defense made one tackle for loss, one sack, and three interceptions.
Third Quarter:
Toronto got the ball to start the third quarter on the 40-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw two passes for 21 yards and rushed for one yard to the 48-yard line. Running back Spencer Brown was stopped for a two-yard loss.
They caught a break on second down when B.C. defensive back Garry Peters was called for a defensive pass interference penalty, placing the ball on the 28-yard line. They went two-and-out before kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 35-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Lions 13-12 with 9:59 left.
Later, B.C.’s offense had the ball on the 52-yard line. Quarterback Nathan Rourke threw three consecutive passes for 53 yards to the five-yard line. On the next play, Rourke’s pass intended for Keon Hatcher was incomplete, but a defensive pass interference penalty on Toronto defensive back Willie Drew placed the ball on the one-yard line. Rourke finished the drive with a touchdown. The Lions extended their lead to 20-12 with 3:24 left.
Late in the third quarter, Nick Arbuckle threw a nine-yard pass to Jake Herslow, and running back Deonta McMahon had two carries for six yards to the 53-yard line. Arbuckle would throw a nine-yard pass to Kevin Mital, and Deonta McMahon rushed for eight yards to the 36-yard line.
The drive ended when B.C. defensive lineman Mathieu Betts sacked Arbuckle for a seven-yard loss to the 43-yard line. Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made a 50-yard field goal. The Argonauts trailed the Lions 20-15 heading into the fourth quarter. It was Hajrllahu’s fifth field goal of the night.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, B.C. quarterback Nathan Rourke carried the ball twice for 14 yards and threw two incomplete passes. However, Toronto’s defense committed two penalties, a pass interference call on Benjie Franklin and a roughing the passer call against Anthony Lanier II, moving the ball to the one-yard line. Rourke finished the drive by scoring the touchdown. The Lions started to pull away with a 27-15 lead with 12:23 left to cap off a five-play drive for 70 yards.
Later, Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed a pass to Kevin Mital for 10 yards to the 31-yard line. Penalties were an issue on this drive with B.C.’s defense getting two roughing the passer penalties, and Toronto’s offense got called for holding and a procedure penalty.
The offense had the ball on the seven-yard line when quarterback Nick Arbuckle threw a touchdown pass to Makai Polk. The Argonauts trailed the Lions 27-22 with 5:46 left to cap off a six-play drive for 66 yards.
Late in the game, Toronto had the ball on the 27-yard line. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed four straight passes for 42 yards to the 54-yard line.
On the next play, B.C. defensive lineman Mathieu Betts blew by left tackle Brandon Kemp and sacked Nick Arbuckle, causing a fumble that was recovered by Josh Woods. He ran for four yards before getting tackled on the 50-yard line with 2:31 left.
B.C. running back Zander Horvath put the team on his back to make sure Toronto did not get the ball back. He had four carries for 22 yards. Nathan Rourke finished the job on third down to get one yard, and the B.C. Lions defeated the Toronto Argonauts 27-22 for their third straight win.
Final Stats:
B.C.’s offense had 347 yards (235 yards passing, 128 yards rushing, 16 yards lost), 21 first downs, 3 for 5 in the redzone, and the team was penalized 10 times for 119 yards. Quarterback Nathan Rourke completed 16 of 25 passes (64%) for 235 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions, nine carries for 31 yards, and two rushing touchdowns.
Running back James Butler had seven carries for 72 yards. Wide receiver Keon Hatcher made four catches for 87 yards, while Justin McInnis made four catches for 78 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 47 tackles, three tackles for loss, four sacks (3 of them by Mathieu Betts), two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one interception.
Toronto’s offense had 292 yards (281 yards passing, 28 yards rushing, 17 yards lost), 21 first downs, 1 for 2 in the redzone, and the team was penalized 11 times for 127 yards. Quarterback Nick Arbuckle completed 28 of 38 passes (73.6%) for 281 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and one carry for one yard.
Running back Spencer Brown had eight carries for 13 yards and two catches for six yards, while Deonta McMahon had three carries for 14 yards. Wide receiver Jake Herslow made 10 catches for 104 yards, while Kevin Mital made eight catches for 83 yards. The defense made 36 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and three interceptions.
Next Saturday, the Toronto Argonauts host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at 3 pm on CTV, TSN, and CFL+, followed by the B.C. Lions hosting the Calgary Stampeders at 7 pm on TSN and CFL+.
