Andrew Harris runs for three touchdowns as Lions beat Eskimos 31-21

VANCOUVER – Andrew Harris ran for three touchdowns and Emmanuel Arceneaux scored on a 77-yard passing play as the B.C. Lions beat the Edmonton Eskimos 31-21 in CFL action Saturday night.

The Lions (3-1) swept the home-and-home series with the Eskimos (1-3) after downing them a week earlier in Edmonton.

Arceneaux’s spectacular touchdown early in the third quarter broke a 10-10 tie and sent the Lions on to victory.

Paul McCallum booted a 37-yard field goal to account for the rest of the B.C. scoring.

Edmonton backup quarterback Kerry Joseph and Fred Stamps, with just over a minute left in the game, scored touchdowns for Edmonton. Kicker Grant Shaw provided the other Eskimo points on two field goals and a 51-yard single off a missed three-pointer.

The Lions threatened on their opening drive, but Chris Thompson intercepted a Lulay pass intended for Arceneaux.

Reilly, who had been plagued by downpours, at home against B.C. and on the road in Guelph, Ont., against Hamilton in the previous games, promptly led the Eskimos down field under a clear blue sky. The Eskimos opened the scoring with just over five minutes gone in the game as Shaw kicked a 47-yard field goal.

Then the Edmonton defence came up big, forcing the Lions to go two and out. The Lions were forced to punt after Harris was tackled for a one-yard loss and then Almondo Sewell sacked Lulay.

But B.C.’s defence was just as effective, forcing the Eskimos to kick after rush end Jabar Westerman leaped high to knock down a Reilly pass.

The Lions got on the scoreboard early in the second quarter as McCallum booted a 37-yard field goal to create a 3-3 tie. McCallum, playing his first game of the season after missing the initial three with a groin injury suffered in the pre-season, drew a large round of applause as he set up for the three-pointer.

After Edmonton’s offence struggled again, Lulay’s 35-yard pass to Courtney Taylor and a roughing-the-passer penalty on Edmonton on the next play put the Lions in scoring position again. One play later, Harris bowled 13 yards for a touchdown, reaching the end zone after it appeared a number of times that he would be stopped.

In the next sequence, the Eskimos finally gained some traction through offensive trickery. Charles ran 18 yards on a reverse and, a couple of plays later, Reilly and Cary Koch, played pitch and catch on an option play with the quarterback turning into a receiver and hauling in a 15-yard pass.

After coming in for an apparent plunge on second down, Edmonton backup QB Joseph ran for a three-yard touchdown late in the second quarter. Grant Shaw’s convert created a 10-10 tie that stood up until half-time.

Lulay completed 11 of 17 passes for 137 yards in the first half, while his former backup Reilly was good on five of seven for 59.

But Lulay’s first pass of the third quarter was the most memorable. He connected with Arceneaux for a 77-yard touchdown.

Arceneaux shook off Thompson’s tackle attempt and also stayed in bounds, as the Eskimos defensive back got his arms on him but could not bring him down along the sideline.

Lulay maintained his hot passing arm later in the third quarter as he was good on all four attempts during a scoring drive that culminated with a Harris one-yard run. Harris set up his own touchdown as he caught a short Lulay pass and gained 24 yards a play earlier, leaping over a defender in a bid to get into the end zone.

Harris thought he had scored, and fireworks went off prematurely, but a replay showed that his knee was out of bounds before he crossed the goal-line. There was no doubt on the TD run though as he ran a reverse untouched into the end zone, staking B.C. to a 24-10 lead.

Nate Coehoorn’s 41-yard reception late in the third quarter put the Eskimos in scoring position, and they moved the ball further, to the five-yard line. But the Lions defence held tough, and Edmonton had to settle for Shaw’s 15-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, reducing B.C.’s lead to 24-13.

The Eskimos pulled within an another point on a single off Shaw’s wide 43-yard field goal attempt. But the miscue allowed the Lions to run about three minutes off the clock.

Following a Lions punt that put Edmonton deep in its own territory, Westerman recorded a rare interception for a defensive lineman. He kept the ball after his first career pick-off.

After the Lions ran more time off the clock and backup quarterback Thomas DeMarco, succeeded on a third-and-one attempt, Harris juked and jived four yards for his third touchdown of the night.

Notes — Edmonton third-string quarterback Jonathan Crompton threw 12 yards to Stamps for his touchdown. … McCallum handled all of the B.C. punting duties after coach Mike Benevides said Hugh O’Neill could punt in certain situations. … The Lions inducted legendary former coach Don Matthews and quarterback Damon Allen onto their wall of fame at half-time. Matthews guided the Lions to their 1985 Grey Cup title, while Allen called the signals for their 2000 championship squad. The two CFL hall of famers entered the field riding in vintage convertibles. Matthews, 74, who is recuperating from cancer, and Allen received Lions jackets and plaques. The former coach drew the loudest cheers. … Lions nickleback Korey Banks played in his 150th CFL career game. … B.C. defensive back Ryan Phillips needs to play two more games for 150 consecutive contests.