It no doubt lingered through their first bye week of the season. Now the 3-5 BC Lions get an opportunity to avenge their latest loss to the red-hot Hamilton Tiger-Cats when the teams re-convene on Thursday night in Steel Town.
Now winners of six in a row following their 0-2 start, the latest victory being another fourth-quarter comeback in Edmonton, Bo Levi Mitchell and company represent the type of killer instinct these Lions are striving for.
A victory in Hamilton will go a long way in both setting them up for an exciting second half and reminding those observers they shouldn’t be counted out. With more, we present our 5 Things
Week 10, August 7: BC Lions at Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Kickoff: 4:30 pm.
TV: TSN/CBS Sports Network.
Stream: CFL+ (US, International).
Radio: 730 CKNW/Sher-E Punjab Radio Am 600/Sirius XM Canada Talks 167.
1. Crunch Time?
Thursday marks the conclusion of the first half of what has been an up-and-down season. And while the Lions remain in control of their playoff fate, the cushion is loosened with each unfavourable result. Nathan Rourke and the Leos enter this week fourth in the West but with a two-point lead on Toronto and Ottawa in the East. We won’t start with the weekly playoff math just yet.
With ten games to play, there remains a big opportunity to make noise near the top of this competitive West Division. But it has to start now. Before their next bye leading into Labour Day weekend, there is the trip to Hamilton, followed by a home date with Montreal and a road battle in Toronto. The time to put a win streak together is right now. We’ll see how battle-tested this team has become.
2. A Homecoming Of Sorts
Hamilton Stadium and Toronto’s BMO Field remain the only two CFL venues that Rourke has yet to start in. Growing up in nearby Oakville, Rourke starred at Holy Trinity Catholic School and played games at both the old Ivor Wynne Stadium and McMaster University. A 2021 visit as Michael Reilly’s backup is Rourke’s lone appearance in Hamilton as a BC Lion. The squad didn’t travel there in 2022 and the visits in each of the last two seasons came while Rourke was still in the NFL.
It will be interesting to see if he can rekindle some of that magic in the familiar setting. The Lions’ offence did some good things in the last meeting, recording 433 net yards. The focus this week will be finishing more drives and owning time of possession, a formula that worked very well in their most recent victory at Edmonton last month.
3. Gotta Be Greater Than 57
As in minutes. On a night where they finally turned the tide on their slow starts, the Lions didn’t trail Hamilton until the final 16 seconds of the last meeting while holding a ten-point advantage at the three-minute warning. The task of playing a full 60 is a complete team effort and that has been a major emphasis during this short week of practice. Everyone loves the craziness that the final three minutes of a CFL game can provide. It’s even more enjoyable when you come out on the winning end of it.
Your Lions week 10 depth chart is set!
Here’s how we lineup for Thursday’s matchup with Hamilton.
#BCLions | @PlayNowSports pic.twitter.com/6FLWPU99EP— BC LIONS (@BCLions) August 6, 2025
4. Defensive Shuffle
The Lion defence gets a bit of a minor shake-up this week, as Patrice Rene slides down to the starting nickel position. Diontae Williams moves back to starter at field halfback with Ronald Kent Jr. sliding next to him at corner. On the boundary side, highlight-reel interception machine Robert Carter Jr. moves to halfback next to Garry Peters. These moves are no doubt designed to shake things up after allowing too many yards and points over the last two weeks.
The unit led by Mike Benevides did manage to keep Kenny Lawler in check last game, holding the CFL’s leader in touchdowns to only two receptions for 29 yards. Limiting the big-play strike capability of Mitchell is once again a big key in the quest for a victory.
5. What They’re Saying
“The past is what you make of it. The good teams and the good players view it as lessons that you learn. But you don’t dwell on things either. There’s an understanding that we need to be better and that’s a common theme, regardless of the result. I think a lot of times you can look at the results and become overwhelmed searching for answers but the answers are simple.
You look at the tape and you assess what needs to be fixed and you go about fixing those things. I thought our mindset was good today. Good energy and the guys are excited to be back practising together.”- Buck Pierce on the vibes during this two-game losing streak.
“We’re working, man. It’s positive. That’s the first thing I saw when we came back; it wasn’t this gory or ‘woe is me’ mentality. Guys were like, ‘let’s get ’em back.’ Everything comes from the top down. Coach Buck’s attitude is to keep working. I’ve seen his highlights. Coach Buck gets hit and guess what he does? He gets back up.
That’s what we do. Coach Bene, same thing. Coach Glen, all our coaches, we’ve been there before. I’ve been on teams that are bad, teams that are good. End of the day, you just control what you can control, keep going and have that positive attitude.”- The always well-spoken linebacker Micah Awe on the team’s mindset.