5:04 p.m.
Riders win the toss and defer to the second half, B.C. willl have the football to start the game.
5:02 p.m.
The national anthem is up, the coin toss is moments away, we're minutes from kick-off!
4:58 p.m.
Here are Luc’s Three Keys to the Game:
1 – Have to get the ball out quickly. B.C.’s pass rush will be coming and trying to disrupt Trevor Harris as much as possible, so don’t give them time and get the ball moving as fast as possible.
2 – Dictate the pace vs. Sankey and the Lions defence: The B.C. linebacker is good at what he does, so throw in some quick offence and tempo and get Sankey and the entire defence front moving horizontally.
3 – Defensive tackles have to be stout: Caleb Sanders, Mike Rose, Devin Adams and Ali Saad have to contain the run, have to get pressure on the quarterback and win the battles. Won’t be easy but will be a big part of a close contest.
2:02 p.m.
It’ll be an absolutely perfect day weather-wise for football in Vancouver: air-conditioned room temperature, no wind and no smoke, thanks to B.C. Place!
2:01 p.m.
The Rider Broadcast Network pregame show is currently on the air. Teagan Witko and Wes Cates are your hosts and will have plenty of special guests to help set up tonight’s game. Then the Voice of the Roughriders Dave Thomas and analyst Luc Mullinder will have the game call at kick off at 5 p.m.
2:00 p.m.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders and B.C. Lions might find themselves on different trajectories over the short term in the Canadian Football League, but anyone expecting anything other than another great game between on Sunday night might be in for a surprise.
The Roughriders are coming off one of their toughest losses of the season, as a combination of an injury-depleted roster, miscues on both offence and defence and untimely penalties led to a 26-19 loss to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Hamilton.
The loss isn’t the end of the world for Saskatchewan, of course, as they still hold a 6-3 record and are still in second place in the West Division. And this past week also saw the team receive a host of reinforcements off the injury list, including receivers Sam Emilus and James Letcher Jr., which should help bolster the offence substantially.
One of Saskatchewan’s wins this season is against these very same Lions, that coming back in their season-opener during Week 2 of the campaign. That 31-27 victory saw the Lions suffer a host of injuries, which combined with their exclusive road schedule to start the campaign due to the World Cup, led to a disastrous start.
In fact, B.C. was at 1-5 and in last place in the West before they started to get home and healthy — and sure enough, once that happened, the wins started to add up.
As a result, the Lions come into this contest with a 4-5 record, having won their last three games and moved into playoff contention.
Their most recent outing was a 30-26 win over the Calgary Stampeders back on Aug. 13. Quarterback Nathan Rourke passed for 301 yards, running back Zander Horvath ran for 102 and a trio of receivers had more than 80 yards receiving — including Justin McInnis and Keon Hatcher Jr., both of whom have missed substantial time due to injury,
So it’s going to be an interesting match-up tonight at B.C. Place, and who comes away with the win is anybody’s guess.
Saskatchewan’s depth chart:
B.C.’s depth chart:
