It was a game that the B.C. Lions literally couldn鈥檛 get a grasp of.
That鈥檚 the best way to describe the 25-24 loss to the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium on Sunday.
The game was there for the taking when Calgary receiver Jalen Philpot fumbled with 1:39 remaining in the fourth quarter but when B.C.鈥檚 Ciante Evans pounced on the loose football, it somehow squirted out and was recovered by Philpot at the B.C. 54.
If the Lions come up with the ball, they鈥檙e 15 yards away from getting into kicker Sean Whyte鈥檚 field goal range with the wind at his back.
Instead, it was game, set and match for the Stampeders.
鈥淢issed opportunities. We鈥檝e been on the other side where we are the team making the plays at the end to win the game. We didn鈥檛 do that. I鈥檒l give them credit. They鈥檝e got good coaches and good players and they made the plays necessary to win the game but man we had multiple chances to get the ball back and try and kick the game winning field goal,鈥� Lions head coach Rick Campbell lamented afterwards.
It was a game in which the Lions couldn鈥檛 ever get any momentum or flow.
Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. passed for a season-low 192 yards and had some missed throws in a game in which he went 17 for 31 passing. There was a stiff wind during the course of the game and even though he admitted on our CKNW 980 post-game show that it did have an effect on his passes when it was behind him, he also admitted that it was no excuse for his performance.
鈥淚 overthrew a few guys. I accept that. I just have to learn how to connect because those are some big misses. If we can complete on those, it鈥檚 a different ballgame,鈥� Adams said.
The Lions made plays on Sunday but they just couldn鈥檛 stay out of there own way with penalties and turnovers negating the positive plays they made.
Perhaps the best example of this was a sequence at the end of the third quarter in which the defence came up with an outstanding goal line stand.
With the score tied at 17-17, B.C. halfback T.J. Lee made a touchdown-saving tackle on Stamps receiver Marken Michel at the end of the third quarter which resulted in a turnover on downs.
B.C. got the ball on their own one-yard line after Lee鈥檚 stop. Adams Jr. attempted to get them out of a hole by trying hit receiver Justin McInnis on a pass but Lions tackle Kent Perkins was flagged for holding on what could best be described as a questionable call.
Holding is always a problem but even more so in the end zone, which resulted Calgary getting a safety to take a 19-17 lead and get the ball back.
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With 4:26 remaining and Calgary leading 25-23, the Lions got the football on their own 41. After a four-yard gain by running back William Stanback, Adams Jr. hit McInnis for a 15-yard gain for a first-and-ten at the Calgary 50.
Another first down and the Lions would be in field goal range. Adams Jr. went back to McInnis on the next play but this time was intercepted by Calgary鈥檚 Kobe Williams at the Stampeder 43.
Despite that turnover, the Lions still had a couple of opportunities to pull off a win on the road.
With 1:51 left in the game, a bad lateral by Calgary quarterback Jake Maeir to receiver Clark Barnes resulted in an eight-yard loss that put the Stampeders in a 2nd-and-18 situation at their own 32 but the Lions couldn鈥檛 force a punt as Barnes found a hole in the zone coverage and came up with an 18-yard reception and a first down.
On the very next play, any chance the Lions had to win the game was lost when the Evans couldn鈥檛 come up the ball on Philpot鈥檚 fumble.
鈥淲e beat ourselves. You鈥檝e got to give credit where credit is due to Calgary. They made key plays and executed in all levels of the football game and played complimentary football across the board. It was just a lot of self-inflicted wounds, self-made mistakes that you don鈥檛 normally see from a team of this caliber. It鈥檚 humbling and something we鈥檙e going to have to sit on entering into this bye week,鈥� defensive end Christian Covington told B.C.Lions.com.
OVERTIME
* Lions kicker Sean Whyte connected on field goals from 18,23 and 52 yards to extend his streak to 42 consecutive field goals, and in the process, break a tie with Calgary鈥檚 Rene Paredes for the second-longest streak at 39. Whyte has some work to do to overtake Ottawa鈥檚 Lewis Ward for the CFL record. Ward holds that mark with 69 consecutive field goals.
* Lee returned to the Lions lineup after missing the first six games of the season recuperating from a torn Achilles that he suffered in last year鈥檚 Western Final. Both Lee and receiver Keon Hatcher suffered Achillies injuries in that game. Hatcher is scheduled to return for the next game, which ironically enough, is in Winnipeg on Aug. 1. The Lions are also hoping that receiver Jovon Cottoy can return for that contest as well.
* The Lions and Stampeders entered the game as the two least-penalised teams in the CFL, but by the end of the day, they had combined for 23 penalties for 250 yards with B.C. being flagged 11 times for 70 yards.
* The Stampeders inducted Wally Buono into their Wall of Fame in a special half-time ceremony. Buono began his head coaching career in Calgary in 1990 and finished it with the Lions in 2018. He retired as the most successful coach in CFL history with 282 victories, and with five Grey Cup championships to his credit.
Veteran B.C. sports personality Bob 鈥渢he Moj鈥� Marjanovich writes twice weekly for Black Press Media.
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