Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback B.J. Coleman looks for a receiver during first half pre-season CFL action against the B.C. Lions in Regina on Saturday, June 11, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Taylor
The BC Lions are in a prairie state of mind as they invade Saskatchewan for a showdown with the 0-2 Roughriders . It’s a battle of two teams trying to make amends for losses they felt slip away; The Leos’ missed opportunities against Toronto have been well documented, while the Green Riders’ inability to convert on 3rd and inches in overtime at Edmonton sealed their fate and dropped them to 0-2. That being said, the Lions know they are not in any position to underestimate the opposition, led by their new GM and head coach Chris Jones. “We know Jones always produces a good football team,” said Jonathon Jennings. “We’re coming in there with a mindset that we have to go in and try to dominate. That’s what we’re going to try to do and we look forward to it.” Jennings will start behind centre after he was pulled in the third quarter of last week’s 25-14 defeat. This evening also marks his first ever start at the always energetic environment that is Saskatchewan. “It’s super exciting. It’s an atmosphere that players live to play for. ”
While Wally Buono acknowledges the fact Saskatchewan is a rejuvenated club under the guidance of Jones, he also says the Lions’ mindset is the same as it always is when they had in to this tough environment. “Football is football,” Buono said. “The thing about going to Saskatchewan is more the environment, more the fans. Who coaches the team is no different than any other place you go. You always have to be prepared, but you always have to be expecting something you’ve never seen.” Oddly enough, Buono was in a similar situation in 2003, his first year with the Lions. Like Jones jumping ship from Edmonton, Buono had a highly publicized move to the west coast from Calgary and there is no doubt that the ability to land him as GM and head coach was an absolute win for the franchise. The history speaks for itself.
A few other storylines for Saturday’s tilt:
Allen Returns To Regina:
Fresh off his 107-yard rushing performance, Anthony Allen will once again start in the backfield after taking most of the first-team reps in practice this week. There is no doubt the first-year Lion would love to make as statement against his former Roughriders teammates, but he isn’t losing focus on the main priority: getting the win. “Anytime you get to go back to a place where you played before you remember the memories you had there, but I’m on a different team now,” Allen said. “Regardless if I was playing the Riders or Winnipeg, it would still be the same thing. I still try to go out there, knock some heads and get the W.” Buono and company chose to sign two veterans in the early hours of free agency and that has proved to be valuable after Jeremiah Johnson went down with an ankle injury two weeks ago in Hamilton. “The running back is a position that you’re going to get beat up a little bit and if you don’t play physical you probably won’t be playing,” Buono said. “The good thing is that we have a guy who has played at Mosaic, understands the culture there, understands the kind of game it’s going to be and we know he’s excited about it.” Both Allen and Johnson have performed well when given their opportunities and that is also a tribute to the excellent work up front by the offensive line. With crowd noise a definite factor on Saturday, it will be another huge test for both the run game and entire offence as a whole.
Slowing Down Durant:
Despite their winless record, Riders QB Darian Durant has looked like his old self through two games, passing for 627 yards, five touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Durant went down with a ruptured Achilles in last season’s opener and much like Solomon Elimimian, there was some doubt as to how effective he might be after also suffering a season ending Achilles injury early in 2015. The stud linebacker can certainly appreciate how Durant has been able to rediscover his old form. “It’s a tough injury to come back from and Darian sure looks like he’s came back from it. He’s looked as good as I’ve ever seen him.” Elimimian said. “You can’t try to out scheme him because he’s seen a lot of things and he’s mobile too. He’s a dual threat quarterback.” Elimimian has been a huge reason the Lions defence has turned heads by allowing an average of only 15.3 points per game so far this year. That being said, he understands what they have done up to this point means nothing. “You can’t be complacent in this league. When you think you’re good and you’ve arrived that’s usually when bad things happen. You’re only as good as your last game. We’re excited for this opportunity to get the bitter taste out of our mouth and show the team we want to be. We’re looking to have a great game.”
Manny Show Enters High Ratings Period:
Perhaps it’s a good thing these clubs are set to meet three times regular season, because for whatever reason, Manny Arceneaux has saved some of his best work for the Roughriders since first donning the orange in 2009. Whether it was the Hail Mary Catch to force overtime with no time on the clock one year later, or the game winning catch in extra time to win in the Lions’ home opener last season, Arceneaux has made a habit of causing nightmares for gang green. Number 84 admits he doesn’t prepare much differently for these games. “It’s just all about waiting for your number to be dialled and making the play when the ball comes your way,” Arceneaux said. Although it may be just another game, Number 84 does admit it is exciting to play in the hostile environment that is Regina. “The fans are so passionate and you have to give them credit. Week in and week out, regardless if they are 0-5 or 5-0, the fans are coming to watch them play.” Through three games, “The Manny Show” has performed quite well, as he sits second behind Shawn Gore with 154 receiving yards. He also surpassed the 5000 yard mark for his career last week.
Other Tidbits:
Tonight marks Buono’s 400th career game as a head coach. Ironically, his first came against the Lions when he was with Calgary, a 38-38 tie on June 13th, 1990.
Ryan Phillips has some catching up to do. Although he has owned Durant with ten interceptions in 19 career regular season meetings, he has not picked him off since the 2012 season. It will be interesting to see if he manages to talk to him during pregame warmups, something he always made a point of doing for good luck.
READ MORE: Phillips looks to haunt old QB friend.
2016 marks the farewell tour for old Mosaic Stadium. The Lions will also be back for the final regular season tilt on Saturday, October 29th. As you would imagine, there is all kinds of festivities planned, including for this Saturday when the 1966 Grey Cup Champion Roughriders will be honoured prior to kickoff.
The Lions swept the three game regular season series in 2015. Along with Arceneaux’s OT heroics in week two, there was a 27-24 win at Mosaic the following week and a 46-20 result at BC Place October 5th.
This evening’s clash can be heard on TSN 1040 with Scott Rintoul and Giulio Caravatta. Pregame coverage kicks off at 11:00am with Bob Marjanovich and Chris Burns broadcasting live from Regina as well. Kickoff is at 4:00PM. The game can also be viewed on TSN 1.
You can download the Lions roster and depth chart for week four here.
Matt Baker: mbaker@bclions.com