Lions reckon they’re playing with house money

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This article was published 12/11/2022 (1039 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The B.C. Lions feel like they have nothing to lose.

Those were the exact words quarterback Nathan Rourke used earlier in the week and he reiterated it on Saturday after the Lions held their walkthrough at IG Field.

The 12-6 Lions take on the 15-3 Winnipeg Blue Bombers today at 3:30 p.m. CT in the Western Final. The Lions took down the Calgary Stampeders 30-16 last week at home to earn the right to play the back-to-back Grey Cup champs.

“I think sometimes it can be harder to stay on top of the mountain than it can be to crawl up there. There’s people on that side of the ball, that side of the stadium that has experienced this before and that can definitely play to their strengths,” Rourke said.

“But we’ve got a really hungry group. And if we can go into there knowing that no one’s picking us to win and calling us the underdogs, then why not give everything we have and not hold anything back thinking we have something to lose? I think that’s a good mentality for us and we’re going to embrace that, for sure.”

The Lions had four players, as well as head coach Rick Campbell, take turns stepping up to the podium at IG Field on Saturday to answer questions about today’s tilt.

Despite being 24 hours away from a daunting task, all of them seemed loose, and most importantly, confident.

“I understand the whole underdog thing, but I don’t view us as underdogs. I think Winnipeg is excellent and it’s going to be hugely difficult to beat those guys, but I don’t think if we beat these guys that it’d be some shocking event,” said Campbell.

“We’ve won 13 games so I think we’re a pretty good football team.”

The Lions and Bombers played twice last month to close out the regular season, but neither game meant anything in the standings. You have to go back to Week 5 when the Lions, who were 3-0 at the time, hosted the 4-0 Blue Bombers. The Lions averaged 45.6 points per game through the first three weeks and were the favourites, but Winnipeg left Vancouver with a convincing 43-22 win.

“The first meeting, I can’t lie, we were complaining out there. We came into the game, feeling ourselves at 3-0,” said Lions defensive back Garry Peters. “So, we came into the game excited but we had a lot of excuses on the sideline. You gotta learn from every game. You grow from every game. It’s 20 games later, you can’t be the same team you were in game four.”

The talk for the past few weeks has been the health of Rourke’s foot. He played well in the semi-final, in what was his first full game in 11 weeks, but only ran the ball once for five yards. The Bombers are preparing as if Rourke is at 100 per cent, but B.C.’s quarterback admitted he’s not there yet.

“It was definitely an issue last week. I felt good going in, but I overextended it probably a little more than what I was used to, and that’s naturally part of the rehab process to figure out where your limits are,” said Rourke, who’s thrown for 25 touchdowns and 3,349 yards in 10 games this season.

“But it recovered really nicely this week and I feel really, really good. Better than I did going into the game last week. So, it should be good.”

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As for leaving their dome, BC Place, to play outdoors in November in Winnipeg, the Lions don’t feel they’re too far out of their element.

“I’d definitely rather play in a dome, but who wouldn’t, right? But I think the good thing about weather is both teams are going to have to play in it,” said Rourke.

“It’s not like one team has a distinct advantage. I think the guys have embraced it and I think it’s been a fun little challenge and I think this team really thrives off of that.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.