VANCOUVER — The Calgary Stampeders are just one game away from deciding the outcome.
The Stamps continued to control their postseason destiny with a 41-16 win over the BC Lions on Friday at BC Place.
Calgary will clinch a playoff spot if the Saskatchewan Roughriders lose to the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday or win against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at McMahon Stadium in Week 21.
The victory was the result of effective performances on both sides of the ball. The Stampeders took a 17-0 lead in the first half and never lost control of the game despite playing against a tough opponent.
Quarterback Jake Meyer was efficient with touchdown passes to receivers Luther Haknavanff and Reggie Begelton, backup pivot Tommy Stevens scored twice on the ground, and the Stampeders finished their sixth season. He improved his record with 11 wins and 11 losses.
Running back Peyton Logan scored on a 39-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter for head coach Dave Dickenson’s team.
The defense maintained momentum in the visitors’ favor in the first half with a trio of interceptions from Kobe Williams, Nick Stutz and linebacker Cameron Judge, along with a key fumble on BC’s first-and-goal play.
Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. played two quarters but couldn’t overcome a stingy performance from Calgary’s defense. Backup Dane Evans entered the game in the third quarter and led two touchdown drives, but also had two interceptions for BC’s offense on a memorable night.
Running back Jaquan Hardy added a major on the ground, and receiver Jevon Cotoy caught Evans’ touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
Defensive lineman Mathieu Betts recorded his 18th sack of the season in the second quarter, setting a new CFL record for sacks by a national player.
The Leos (12-6) are currently locked in second place in the West and will host a playoff game against either the Stampeders or Roughriders on Nov. 4. Meanwhile, the Blue Bombers lost to BC to advance to the Western Finals and are waiting to see who advances from BC, Calgary and Saskatchewan.
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The teams traded punts in the first quarter and it took a while for both offenses to get going before Carey started getting the visitors going. The running back drove his team down the field with a powerful run over the middle, putting him in position to score. The drive stalled in the red zone and Rene Paredes scored the first 3 points of the game.
Later in the quarter, Williams caught Adams Jr.’s overthrown pass, giving the Stampeders possession in the red zone. Calgary immediately went back to running back and two plays later No. 35 scored the first goal. Meyer then sent a pass into the right corner of the end zone to an open Haknavanf, who pushed the lead to 10-0 on the ensuing point.
Head coach Rick Campbell called for a pass interference penalty against the Stampeders’ defense, which sparked the Lions’ long march. Adams Jr. completed a third-and-two with a strike to receiver Justin McInnis, gaining 14 yards and moving the ball to Calgary’s 35-yard line. Pivot then immediately connected with Kotoy twice at the 2-yard line, where reserve Dominic Davis was tackled by Judge and ultimately fumbled the ball in a vital position to give the ball and momentum back to the visitors.
Betts reached Meyer late in the second quarter, setting a new national team record with 18 sacks in a season. However, a misconduct penalty at the end of the play kept the Stampeders’ momentum going, and the visitors turned it into a point. Carey and Logan moved the chains twice on the ground before Begelton made a nice one-handed catch at the 1-yard line. Stevens finished the job with a running major, making it 17-0 with less than 30 seconds left in the first half.
Adams took advantage of that brief moment to connect with MacInnis at the Calgary 33-yard line, where kicker Shaun White made it 17-3 going into halftime.
Evans replaced quarterback for the Lions to start the third quarter, but the offense went 2-and-out on the veteran’s first drive of the game.
A second sack by Betts was negated by a roughing the passer penalty, giving the Stampeders good field position on their first possession of the second half. Logan followed this play with a 27-yard run through the left hole to BC’s 2-yard line. Stevens capped off the visitors’ momentum with a touchdown run for a 24-3 lead with 10:58 left in the third.
Evans’ second drive was even more successful. The pivot made a third-and-seven with a pass to Lucky Whitehead that crossed midfield. A few successes later put the Lions in the top 10, and Hardy sealed the deal with BC with a short touchdown run. White scored the extra point to make it 24-10 with 4:23 left in the quarter.
Stutz took Evans on a deflected pass, giving his team another red zone possession. Meyer took advantage of the turnover and hit Begelton over the middle to score. After almost three quarters of play, the Stampeders took a 31-10 lead on Paredes’ score.
Judge added an interception in the visiting team’s fourth, and Paredes pushed the lead to 34-10 with 8:50 left on the clock.
The 2-point shot missed, but Kotoi scored a second-half touchdown on a pass from Evans to make it 34-16.
Logan’s touchdown in the fourth quarter made it 41-16, giving the visitors a commanding victory.
Calgary’s final, and perhaps most important, regular season game will be on Friday, October 27th against the Blue Bombers at McMahon Stadium.
The Lions are currently waiting to see who will face the Stampeders and Roughriders in the Western semifinals on Nov. 4.
