July 16, 2009
THE CANADIAN PRESS
EDMONTON -- Geroy Simon reeled in a pair of long touchdown passes from backup quarterback Jarious Jackson as the BC Lions finally captured their first victory of the 2009 season, defeating the Edmonton Eskimos 40-22 on Thursday night.
Jackson came in for injured starting quarterback Buck Pierce in the first quarter and had a strong showing, passing for four TDs and an impressive 362 yards.
With the victory the Lions improved to 1-2 and moved into a tie for second place with Edmonton in the West Division.
It was the second pasting in a row for the Eskimos (1-2), who were coming on the heels of a 50-16 loss in Montreal.
With the Lions up 2-0 on a safety, Pierce left the game following a hit by Elliott Richardson with five minutes to play in the first. Jackson came in and immediately paid dividends, hitting Simon with a 45-yard passing strike down to the Edmonton one-yard line. Martell Mallett took it in from there to give the Lions a 9-0 lead after the opening quarter.
Jackson and Simon proved to be a lethal combination again three minutes into the second quarter. Jackson found a wide-open Simon on a 33-yard TD strike into the end zone for a 16-0 lead.
The Eskimos finally caught a break with seven minutes left in the second. Jackson was caught scrambling and hit by Maurice Lloyd, and the ball popped out and was recovered by Kitwana Jones on the BC 20. Edmonton converted on the opportunity as quarterback Ricky Ray hit Maurice Mann for a 12-yard passing touchdown.
Edmonton closed to within two points with just over a minute left as Ray hit Calvin McCarty on a swing pass, and he muscled his way 23 yards in for the touchdown to make it 16-14 at the half.
The Lions gave themselves a bit of a cushion again midway through the third as Jackson hit Rufus Skillern for a long 46 yard passing strike and then Paris Jackson for a 15-yard TD toss to restore their nine-point edge.
BC kept coming with five minutes to play as Jarious Jackson avoided the rush after almost going down and was still able to find Simon for his second TD reception of the night, this one from 40 yards out.
BC got the ball back almost instantly as Ray was picked off by Korey Banks at the Edmonton 41, but a fake field goal attempt failed to connect, leaving the score at 30-14 BC.
Ray had another pass intercepted on the Eskimos next possession, this time by Barron Miles, to end the third. It led to another long drive by the Lions, finished off with a 26-yard passing play into the end zone to Emmanuel Arceneaux.
Jason Maas came in at quarterback to the delight of the frustrated Edmonton crowd and started well, but soon bobbled a snap which was recovered by Lion Aaron Hunt at the BC 27. That would eventually lead to a 23-yard field goal by rookie kicker Sean Whyte.
Edmonton saved some embarrassment with a scoring drive to end the game, culminating in a two-yard TD plunge by McCarty to make for the 40-22 final after a two-point convert.
The Lions play host to Calgary next Friday while the Eskimos return to action next Saturday when they visit Saskatchewan.
