Lions clinch second in West with 27-21 win over Roughriders

REGINA — The B.C. Lions clinched second place in the CFL West Division and a home playoff game with a 27-21 victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday.

The Lions improved to 11-7 and will now face the third-place Calgary Stampeders, who also finished with an 11-7 record, in the West semifinal on Nov. 1 in Vancouver.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who finished fourth in the West with a 10-8 mark, will crossover and travel to Montreal to play the 10-8 Alouettes in the East Division semifinal on Nov. 1.

The Riders, who clinched first place in the West two weeks ago, are now off for a week before hosting the West final on Nov. 8.

The Lions trailed 21-19 in the fourth quarter when quarterback Nathan Rourke led a six-play, 73-yard scoring drive that culminated with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Keon Hatcher. A two-point convert was successful, with Rourke and Hatcher connecting again, to give the Lions a 27-21 lead with four minutes remaining.

Rourke entered the game with an opportunity to become the first Canadian quarterback to lead the league in passing yardage since Russ Jackson of the Ottawa Rough Riders in 1969. Rourke trailed Hamilton Tiger-Cats quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell by 374 yards heading into the game. Rourke finished with 366 yards to finish nine yards shy of eclipsing Mitchell’s total.

The Lions wasted little time getting on the scoresheet in the first quarter with Rourke connecting with Ayden Eberhardt on a 63-yard touchdown pass on their first play from scrimmage.

The Riders offence didn’t let that lightning strike affect them in the first half. Their offence controlled the ball in the half, running 38 plays to 18 for the Lions while having possession for almost 20 minutes. The Riders has 16 first downs in the half to seven for the Lions.

Saskatchewan starting quarterback Trevor Harris played three series before exiting midway through the second quarter. The Riders scored on all three possessions, collecting two rushing touchdowns from backup quarterback Jack Coan and a 28-yard field goal from kicker Michael Hughes, who was making his CFL debut.

Eberhardt had two touchdown receptions for the Lions. Kicker Sean Whyte had two field goals and punter Karl Meyer had a 73-yard single.

Coan scored two rushing touchdowns for the Riders while Hughes had two field goals and a single on a 90-yard kickoff.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 25, 2025.