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You are here: Home / Archives for Playoffs

The BC Lions Den Pawdcast: Episode 90

November 17, 2016 By Brian Wawryshyn

farhan_ryan_740x300
Calgary, here we come! The BC Lions are off to the Western Final against the Stampeders, and we have you covered with Farhan Lalji of TSN and Ryan Ballantine of the CFL Horsemen. We debate the hit on Manny Arceneaux and get the latest on his condition.

What are you waiting for? Hit play and get jacked for the Lions and Stamps in the WDF!

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Follow our guests:

Farhan Lalji
Twitter: @FarhanLaljiTSN

Ryan Ballantine / CFL Horsemen
Twitter: @PodcasterRyan :: @CFL_Horsemen

This show was recorded on November 16th, 2016.

Filed Under: 2016, 2016 Game Recaps, BCLionsDen.ca Pawdcast, CFL/League, Featured, Interviews, Podcasts Tagged With: BC Lions, BCLionsDen.ca, Brian Wawryshyn, Calgary Stampeders, CFL, CFL Horsemen, Mojo Kemp, Playoffs, Podcast, Ryan Ballantine, Western Final, Winnipeg Blue Bombers

A Few Reasons the BC Lions Will Make the Playoffs

October 25, 2015 By Brian Wawryshyn

Sports are full of examples of teams that have had that defining moment where the switch went on. Whether the BC Lions had that moment in a convincing 40-13 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats remains to be seen, but if this team get on a roll and makes the playoffs, you can certainly consider it one.

At the beginning of the year, we had former BC Lions offensive lineman Angus Reid on the Pawdcast who told us that he saw the BC Lions starting out slowly and getting better as the season went on. With 22 new faces and the youngest team in the league, it wasn’t hard to agree.

Over the past few weeks, the Lions have played some good football. A Winnipeg loss, combined with the Lions win on the weekend has put the Lions back in control of their own destiny. A win next week in Toronto would eliminate the Bombers, a Montreal loss combined with that win would see the Lions join the playoff dance for the 19th straight season.

So there is work to be done, but in the spirit of looking at the positives, let’s take a look at some reasons the Lions will make the playoffs.

Jonathan Jennings

Jonathon Jennings

Cue the coronation, the Lions have found themselves a new quarterback. The poise and confidence that Jonathan Jennings displays at just 23 years old is impressive and has revived the Lions offence. As he continues to grow and get more experience, it should continue to improve not only in the passing game but in opening things up for Andrew Harris.

The Lions offence is no longer one dimensional, and Jennings has his receivers making plays for them by simply trusting in them to do so and getting the ball to them quickly and accurately. The resurgence of Manny Arceneaux and the contributions from Bryan Burnham, Lavelle Hawkins and Shawn Gore over the past few weeks have been key.

Jennings is going to make the odd rookie mistake, but the good far outweighs the bad and for the Lions and their fan base there is a lot to get excited about.

The Defence

Michael Brooks, Matt Nichols, Selvish Capers

The Lions defence was scorched by opposing defences early and often in 2015. It’s no coincidence that with more success on the offensive side of the ball, the defence has improved as well. In too many games this season they were on the field way too long.

The secondary is starting to gel under the leadership of Ryan Phillips as well as the strong showings of players like TJ Lee and Ronnie Yell who is starting to look more and more like long time Lion Dante Marsh every game.

The defensive line has found its groove led by newcomers Mic’hael Brooks, Zac Minter and Craig Roh. The Lions are rotating players in throughout the game and national David Menard continues to impress, while the Lions have moved up the sack total ladder in recent weeks, boding well for the team down the stretch.

Coaching

Winnipeg Blue Bombers v BC Lions

Some of you may disagree with this, but I think Jeff Tedford is on track to getting this team playing the way he wants them to play. There have been plenty of examples to dispute this theory, but in the end hindsight is 20/20 in the coaching profession.

But consider the fact that Tedford has been able to keep this team together through some very tough losses. There has been no finger pointing, no visible discord in the locker room and Friday’s performance against the Ticats showed that the players are behind their coaches.

Just as the start of the year was a learning curve for the new players, it was also the same for their new coach. The offence has become more aggressive under Jennings, and Tedford was brought in with the reputation of being a fast tempo, aggressive offensive coach. We’re now starting to see that as Jennings is able to go down field.

The Schedule

The Lions best chance to qualify for the post season is this week. The win against Hamilton was key, especially since the Alouettes won. Montreal now travels to Edmonton where the Eskimos are looking to clinch the CFL West and will be amped to do so at Commonwealth Stadium. The Lions travel to Toronto to take on an Argonauts team that is coming off back to back losses, but will be playing just their 4th game of the year at home and will have Ricky Ray at quarterback. If the Lions win and Edmonton wins, the Lions are in.

The Lions made their own bed, but they still have a chance to make it to the dance. Ryan Phillips told his teammates after last week’s game that he’s never missed the playoffs in his career, and he doesn’t plan to start now.

If they do get in, you would think both Calgary and Edmonton, teams they played tough this season will be in for a tough fight in the Western Semi. The Lions are starting to roar, whether they get to eat or not, will be decided in the next two weeks.

Filed Under: BC Lions Den, Featured Tagged With: BC Lions, BC Lions Den, CFL, Emmanuel Arceneaux, Jeff Tedford, Jonathan Jennings, Michael Brooks, Playoffs

From the Couch: Riders 29 Lions 25

November 15, 2013 By Brian Wawryshyn

The BC Lions fought a good fight but in the end it was Darian Durant who put his team on his shoulders and led his Roughriders to victory. The Lions season is done, and they will be thinking about the one that got away for some time. Here is our final Lions game recap of 2013, From the Couch.

The Game

For three quarters it was the Lions that dominated the time of possession putting together three long and productive drives, chewing time off the clock and keeping the Riders offence shivering on the sidelines. The Lions showed the Riders looks they weren’t familiar with including a four man deep I-formation and you certainly couldn’t accuse the offence of being predictable.

The combination of Andrew Harris and Stefan Logan continued to have success while Travis Lulay looked to be on his game and confident. The offensive line played outstanding; pass protecting for Lulay and opening holes for Harris and Logan who built on their recent success racking up a combined 146 yards along the ground.

Defensively the Lions were containing the likes of Kory Sheets outside of one big run that set up a Rider score but it was Taj Smith and Weston Dressler doing the damage for the Riders. Smith stole a sure interception out of the hands of Josh Bell, then out-fought Dante Marsh on another deep ball following a questionable pass interference call just before the end of the half that kept a Riders drive alive. Dressler was Dressler, and when the Riders need him to get open he did with amazing ease. With those players keeping the Riders close, Durant then took it upon himself to lead the comeback in the fourth quarter.

Entering the final quarter with a nine point lead, the Riders noticed a vulnerability in the Lions defence and Durant killed them with draws up the middle, rudely reminding all that Solomon Elimimian was back in Vancouver nursing a hamstring injury that he didn’t feel would allow him to perform in the biggest game of the season. The offence dried up in the fourth and couldn’t muster any of the success they had for most of the game, the defence couldn’t get the stops and as a result, the Lions season is over.

Under Review

Every CFL fan can relate to the frustration of watching a game and tolerating CFL officiating and Sunday was no different. The Lions certainly weren’t on the favourable end of a few calls and that’s just the way it goes in the Canadian Football League.

The pass interference call near the end of the half, a very weak roughing the passer call on Durant on the same series and a curious decision by the command centre of the league on an apparent Lions touchdown all come to mind. These calls didn’t cost the Lions the game, but they also didn’t do anything to install confidence in fans who want to see the game decided by the players.

When I speak with fans around the league, it’s a constant topic that comes up. Officials have a very tough job, and I’m amazed at how many times they get it right at full speed, but we can only hope we won’t have anything to say about them in the final games of the year. Don’t hold your breath.

Where do they go from here?

Two exits from the playoffs for the Lions in the last two years will certainly mean changes are coming for the BC Lions and it may not be just player wise. The lack of consistency from the offence for the majority of the season has to be the focal point for the club moving forward, and it likely cost the Lions a home playoff game.

Despite what I felt was a great game plan by the Lions heading into the game on Sunday, I’m not sure it will be enough to save the job of coordinator Jacques Chapdelaine. Jacques has taken a lot of heat in BC over the years but the lack of a running game for much of the season may be the reason Wally Buono needs to go in a different direction in 2014.

I think that Mike Benevides will be back, but he will certainly be under pressure to return the Lions to the top of the Western division in a year when the Lions will be playing host to the Grey Cup. Of course it will be up to Wally Buono, Neil McEvoy and Roy Shivers to give him the team to do that and the Lions will have some tough decisions to make this off-season, beginning with who they leave exposed in December’s expansion draft.

Another question will be whether Travis Lulay will have surgery to clean up his problematic shoulder. He played like a warrior on Sunday, and injuries can never be predicted, but two seasons with the same problem indicate it should at least be considered. The Lions looked like a different team with Lulay back at the controls and they have to take every measure to make sure he doesn’t make it a shoulder hat-trick in 2014.

At 33 years of age, do the Lions bring back Stefan Logan? I hope they do, because I don’t think there is too much football mileage on that body. He provided a spark and a welcomed element to the Lions ground game and at the very least the Lions should be looking for a similar type back that can team up with Harris in the backfield and give them the same one two punch.

The offensive line will have changes as well and the Lions will need to hope that Kirby Fabien returns healthy. They seem to have an answer for replacing Angus Reid with Matt Norman, but the guard and left tackle positions need to be better. Defensively the Lions will be looking at an aging secondary and deciding whether they can get another year out of the group, while finding a way to start grooming others. The defensive line needs to be improved particularly at providing better first layer interior run support.

So it is over for another year. As always I will be heading to Grey Cup in Regina and hope to provide you with some insight from the festivities from the 101st edition of our great Canadian Football championship, both in this space and on BCLionsDen.ca and via Twitter, @BCLionsDen. My thanks to Lowell Ullrich and the folks at TheProvince.com for giving this fan a voice here and we hope to continue next year as Vancouver gets set to host the nation at Grey Cup 2014. Thanks for reading everyone, and enjoy the rest of the playoffs. Roar you Lions roar!

Filed Under: 2013 Game Recaps, CFL/League, Featured, From The Couch, Game Recaps Tagged With: BC Lions, BCLionsDen.ca, CFL, Game Recaps, Grey Cup, Playoffs, Saskatchewan Roughriders, The Fifth Quarter

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