VANCOUVER — Even after putting up monster numbers in his first ever CFL playoff game, B.C. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke saw room for improvement.
“We came out of it with a win. That was the most satisfying part to me,” the 24-year-old Canadian said Sunday after the Lions topped the Calgary Stampeders 30-16 in the West Division semifinal.
“I mean, it wasn’t pretty, but we got it done. And that’s what playoffs are all about.”
Rourke threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns, connecting on 22-of-30 attempts. It was his first full game since Aug. 19, when he suffered a foot injury that required surgery and forced the first-year star to the sidelines for eight games.
The performance didn’t surprise Lions’ head coach Rick Campbell.
“I’ve been the No. 1 Nathan Rourke fan for the last three years and he’s gonna approach it — playoff, pre pre-season, regular season — he’s going to have that same mentality (every game),” he said.
B.C. got solid performances across the lineup.
Antonio Pipkin added 45 passing yards and a TD for the Lions, while Sean Whyte connected for three field goals and the defensive unit limited Calgary — who boosted the CFL’s best run game in the regular season — to 83 rushing yards.
Stopping the league’s top running back was a focus for the defensive group all week, said defensive lineman Mathieu Betts.
“Obviously they have a really good guy with Ka’Deem (Carey) there,” he said. “Credit goes to our coaches for getting us ready, guys bought in and with our offence taking the lead … somewhere in the first half, they became one dimensional, so that helped.”
Calgary quarterback Jake Maier also started in his first playoff game Sunday and connected on 12-of-22 passing attempts for 138 yards before being replaced by veteran Bo Levi Mitchell in the fourth quarter.
Maier said he and his teammates simply didn’t execute.
“It hurts really bad, but I can assure you this — I’ll be back and we’ll be back from this,” he said.
Mitchell threw for 147 yards in what was likely his last appearance in a Stampeders’ uniform.
“It’s been an amazing ride, an amazing career for that chapter. And I just appreciate it and everybody that’s given me the opportunity,” he said. “I look forward to the next part.”
Renee Parades made all three of his field goal attempts, including a 32-yard kick.
The two sides came in with identical 12-6 regular-season records but the Stampeders were plagued by penalties on Sunday, taking eight for 83 yards.
“It’s disappointing, a 12-win season we didn’t make any noise in the playoffs,” said Calgary head coach Dave Dickenson. “I think we had a team that could win it. That’s the problem I have with not playing our best game, but (B.C.) has a good team, too. They played well.”
The Lions will head to Winnipeg to face the Blue Bombers in the West Division final on Nov. 13. The East Division final will see the Montreal Alouettes take on the Argonauts in Toronto the same day.
The Grey Cup will be played in Regina on Nov. 20.
A crowd of 30,114 fans took in Sunday’s game inside a chilly B.C. Place. Their cheers and energy helped propel the Lions to the win, Campbell said.
“Obviously the players deserve all the credit but I think it’s really cool the atmosphere, that’s a real deal atmosphere. The fans were fantastic,” he said. “It’s pretty fun and special to be a part of.”
Both sides were limited to field goals through much of the first two quarters, including a 41-yard kick by Whyte early in the second.
B.C. took a 13-6 lead into halftime after a series of solid passes put the Lions deep in Stampeders’ territory.
Rourke connected with Burnham on a 19-yard toss, then sent a 25-yard bomb to Keon Hatcher before capping the drive with a 13-yard rocket to Alexander Hollins deep in the end zone. The QB was hit hard as he let the ball fly but walked off the field on his own and was back for B.C.’s next possession.
The Lions’ offensive line had difficulty at times on Sunday and midway through the third, Rourke was sacked for the fourth time. He recovered quickly and followed up by threading a 16-yard pass to Bryan Burnham through a pair of Stamps defenders.
The Lions capped the drive when short-yardage specialist Pipkin came in on third down. While being hauled to the turf, Pipkin put up a 20-yard toss to an unmarked Hatcher, who sprinted 25 yards for B.C.’s second touchdown of the game.
The team had been working on the play all season, Hatcher said.
“When we heard in the huddle, me, (Dominique) Rhymes and Alex (Hollins) looked at each other like ‘Oh my god, they called it, they called it,'” he said. “I was super excited but you’ve got to execute. So that’s what happened. We executed and got a touchdown out of it.”
With less than 11 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Calgary opted to replace Maier with Mitchell in a bid to spark the offence.
“Jake played hard and I don’t think it was really on him,” Dickenson said. “I just don’t think there were enough guys open. We didn’t have the ball long enough. We weren’t protecting him well enough. Calls weren’t fitting well enough. It was a group effort.”
Mitchell, a two-time Grey Cup champion, drove his side to B.C.’s eight-yard line on his first possession before getting sacked. Parades finished the scoring drive with a 24-yard field goal, cutting the Lions’ lead to 20-9.
The Lions boosted their advantage to 27-9 with just over three minutes left on the clock.
Rourke dished a seven-yard pass to Hollins, who rushed for an additional 22 yards and put B.C. in scoring position.
The Canadian QB then waited patiently in the pocket for the right target and picked out Burnham in the end zone. Rourke sailed a 10-yard bomb to the veteran receiver for B.C.’s third TD of the day.
Calgary made a late push, with Carey appearing to punch in the Stamps’ lone touchdown with a one-yard run with a minute and 49 seconds to go. The play was overturned on review, with officials determining he had not, in fact, crossed the goal line.
The down was replayed, this time with Tommy Stevens as he muscled the ball into the end zone with a one-yard QB sneak that cut B.C.’s lead to 27-16.
Whyte capped the final drive of the day with a 15-yard field goal to seal the score at 30-16.
NOTES: Calgary took six penalties for 68 yards in the first half. B.C. had one for five yards. … Sunday marked the Lions’ first home playoff game since 2016 and the team’s first post-season appearance since 2018. The Stampeders made the playoffs for a club-record 17th straight season this year. … The last time two starting QBs made their playoff debut in the same game was Nov. 23, 2014 when Bo Levi Mitchell (Calgary) took on Michael Reilly (Edmonton) in the West final.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2022.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — No. 1 Texas will start Arch Manning at quarterback Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe while regular starter Quinn Ewers continues to recover from a strained muscle in his abdomen, coach Steve Sarkisian said Thursday.
It will be the first career start for Manning, a second year freshman. He relieved Ewers in the second quarter last week against UTSA, and passed for four touchdowns and ran for another in a 56-7 Texas victory.
Manning is the son of Cooper Manning, the grandson of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, and the nephew of Super Bowl-winning QBs Peyton and Eli Manning.
Ewers missed several games over the previous two seasons with shoulder and sternum injuries.
The Longhorns are No. 1 for the first time since 2008 and Saturday’s matchup with the Warhawks is Texas’ last game before the program starts its first SEC schedule against Mississippi State on Sept. 28.
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Making 104 senior appearances for Canada over a 20-year span, Atiba Hutchinson embodied quiet professionalism and leadership.
“He’s very humble but his influence is as strong as I’ve ever seen on men,” said former national team coach John Herdman.
“For me it was just a privilege, because I’ve had the honour to work with people like (former Canada women’s captain Christine) Sinclair. And Atiba, he’s just been a gift to Canada,” he added.
Hutchinson documents his journey on and off the field in an entertaining, refreshingly honest memoir called “The Beautiful Dream,” written with Dan Robson.
The former Canada captain, who played for 10 national team coaches, shares the pain of veteran players watching their World Cup dream slip away over the years.
Hutchinson experienced Canada’s lows himself, playing for a team ranked No. 122 in the world and 16th in CONCACAF (sandwiched between St. Kitts and Nevis and Aruba) back in October 2014.
Then there was the high of leading his country out at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after a 36-year absence by the Canadian men.
And while he doesn’t throw anyone under the bus — for example, he notes the missed penalty kick in Canada’s World Cup opener in Qatar against Belgium without mentioning the taker (Alphonso Davies, whom he is very complimentary to) — he shares stories that paint a picture.
He describes the years of frustration the Canadian men experienced, with European club teammates ridiculing his commitment to the national team. In one telling story about a key World Cup qualifier in Honduras in October 2012, he relates learning in the dressing room before the match that the opposition players had been promised “land or homes” by their federation if they won.
“Meanwhile an executive from the Canadian Soccer Association entered and told us that we’d each receive an iPad or an iPod if we won,” Hutchinson writes.
Needing just a draw to advance to the final round of CONCACAF qualifying, Canada was trounced 8-1. Another World Cup campaign ended prematurely.
Hutchinson writes about the turnaround in the program under Herdman, from marvelling “at how good our younger players were” as he joined the team for World Cup qualifying ahead of Qatar to Canada Soccer flying the team to a game in Costa Rica “in a private jet that was swankier than anything I’d ever seen the federation pay for.”
Canada still lost 1-0, “a reminder we weren’t there yet,” he notes.
And Hutchinson recalls being “teary-eyed” during Canada’s memorable World Cup 2-1 qualifying win over Mexico in frigid Edmonton in November 2021.
“For the first time we had the respect of the other countries … We knew we had been viewed as an easy win by opponents like Mexico. Not anymore,” he writes.
The Canadian men, currently ranked 38th in the world, have continued their rise under coach Jesse Marsch
“I’m extremely proud to see how far we’ve come along,” Hutchinson said in an interview.
“Just to see what’s happening now with the team and the players that have come through and the clubs they’re playing at — winning leagues in different parts of Europe and the world,” he added. “It’s something we’ve never had before.”
At club level, Hutchinson chose his teams wisely with an eye to ensuring he would get playing time — with Osters and Helsingborgs IF in Sweden, FC Copenhagen in Denmark, PSV in the Netherlands and Besiktas in Turkey, where he payed 10 seasons and captained the side before retiring in June 2023 at the age of 40.
Turkish fans dubbed him “The Octopus” for his ability to win the ball back and hold onto it in his midfield role.
But the book reveals many trials and tribulations, especially at the beginning of his career when he was trying to find a club in Europe.
Today, Hutchinson, wife Sarah and their four children — ranging in age from one to nine — still live in Istanbul, where he is routinely recognized on the street.
He expects to get back into football, possibly coaching, down the line, but for the moment wants to enjoy time with his young family. He has already tried his hand as a TV analyst with TSN.
Herdman, for one, thought Hutchinson might become his successor as Canada coach.
Hutchinson says he never thought about writing a book but was eventually persuaded to do so.
“I felt like I could help out maybe some of the younger kids growing up, inspire them a bit,” he said.
The book opens with a description of how a young Hutchinson and his friends would play soccer on a lumpy patchy sandlot behind Arnott Charlton Public School in his native Brampton, Ont.
In May, Hutchinson and Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown celebrated the opening of the Atiba Hutchinson Soccer Court, an idea Hutchinson brought to Brampton city council in March 2022.
While Hutchinson’s playing days may be over, his influence continues.
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“The Beautiful Dream, A Memoir” by Atiba Hutchinson with Dan Robson, 303 pages, Penguin Random House, $36.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024
LONDON – Canada will meet three-time champion Germany in the Davis Cup quarterfinals in Malaga, Spain this November.
Canada secured a berth in the quarterfinals — also called The Final 8 Knockout Stage — with a 2-1 win over Britain last weekend in Manchester, England.
World No. 21 Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal anchored a five-player squad that included Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., Gabriel Diallo of Montreal, Alexis Galarneau of Laval, Que., and Vasek Pospisil of Vernon, B.C.
The eight-team draw for the quarterfinals was completed Thursday at International Tennis Federation headquarters.
Defending champion Italy will play Argentina, the United States will meet Australia and Spain will take on the Netherlands. Schedule specifics have yet to be released but the Final 8 will be played Nov. 19-24.
Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz were unbeaten in doubles play last week to help Germany reach the quarterfinals. The country’s top singles player — second-ranked Alex Zverev — did not play.
The Canadians defeated Germany in the quarterfinals en route to their lone Davis Cup title in 2022. Germany won titles in 1988, ’89 and ’93.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
