I’m thinking with a heavy dose of Carey, Mills and Logan to start and soften the BC defence. Then there’s Tommy Stevens as well. Use the clock, keep the BC offence on the sidelines.”
The run game should set up the RPO nicely for Maier. If his line blocks well and he doesn’t get happy feet, he should be fine.
Might we see 2 qbs on the field at the same time also? It’s playoff time…open up the playbook.
Wednesday's Injury Report:
TORONTO — The Calgary Stampeders and BC Lions have submitted their first injury reports ahead of Sunday’s Western Semi-Final from BC Place.
The Stampeders started their week of practice without offensive lineman Joshua Coker (arm) and defensive backs Marcelis Branch (hip), Parnell Motley (illness) and Tre Roberson (knee). Defensive lineman Folarin Orimolade (hamstring), linebacker Josiah Schakel (ankle) and defensive backs Demetri Royer (hamstring) and Nick Statz (hamstring) were limited Wednesday.
In Vancouver, the Lions were without receiver Lucky Whitehead (ankle) and offensive lineman Joel Figueroa (shoulder) for their first practice. While defensive back T.J. Lee (hamstring) and receivers Javon Cottoy (quad) and Jacob Scarfone (hand) were limited and receiver Bryan Burnham (wrist) returned to practice in full on Wednesday.
No Whitehead would be a blow to the Lions.
Whitehead will be there with bells on so the QB not only sees him but heard him… That man got game.
Nope. Whitehead has been ruled out of Sunday’s contest thanks to the club’s idiotic decision to play him with an injured ankle last week in Winnipeg (which he, of course, reinjured). Joining him on the sidelines Sunday is B.C.'s best offensive lineman, LT Joel Figueroa. This is a big blow as he was tasked with protecting Rourke’s blindside against Calgary’s formidable D-line attack.
sad news then for the BC chances…The QB will already have his mobility limited as the game wears on
This, combined with BC's injuries, has me doubting my picking the home team.
Fingers crossed the crowd will be extra loud and wreak havoc on the Stamps' playcalling.
Most signs, especially injuries, seem to point to Calgary. I’m sticking with BC as well mainly because of the Rourke factor. Maier isn’t even close. Now if Rourke is reinjured or really isn’t well enough to perform up to his usual standard Calgary may take it relatively easily and we will look stupid. On the other hand if Rourke throws for 400 yards plus and we pick Calgary we will look equally stupid. It is a tough call.
I’m siding with the home crowd, BC’s superior clutch placekicking and Calgary’s penchant for falling just short in big games.
One more reason why I learned a long time ago to bet $$$ on sporting events. Have never regretted learning that.
As Fred Flintstone used to say… bet bet bet bet bet bet…
Gm #92 Calgary at BC:
Playoff Game #99 / 13-28-2 Road:
Calgary will be playing their 99th playoff game that ties them for the 3rd-most in league history back of Winnipeg (119) and Edmonton (107). They are even at 48-48-2 including a 13-28-2 ROAD record. Their 13 road playoff wins have come at Regina 7, Edmonton 3 & BC 3.
Calgary in Consecutive S/Finals:
The Stampeders will play in their 3rd straight S/Final - the last time they did that was 2005 to 2007 (all losses). The Stamps have lost their last 2 playoff games, their most recent win was the 2018 West Final.
Calgary in '21 S/F:
The Stampeders lost a tough one in the 2021 West S/Final, 33-30 at Regina in OT on a missed 44-yd FG. Ka'Deem Carey rushed for 117 yards and Reggie Begelton caught 5 passes for 105 yards to lead the way.
Nathan Rourke:
In his 2nd CFL season and first as BC's #1 QB, Rourke set an all-time CFL record with a 78.7% completion mark and ended up with the #2 Passer rating in league history: (min. for qualification 250 Atts)
Player Year Team Att Com % Player Year Team Rating
Nathan Rourke 2022 BC 324 255 78.7 Ricky Ray 2013 TOR 126.4
Ricky Ray 2013 TOR 303 234 77.2 Nathan Rourke 2022 BC 123.6
Ricky Ray 2016 TOR 298 222 74.5 Dave Dickenson 2005 BC 118.8
Jake Maier 6-3:
In his first season as Calgary's #1 QB, he went 6-3 as a starter and 1-1 vs BC. He has a 4-game TD pass streak and since throwing 3 early picks on Oct 14/22 vs Hamilton, now has 61 consecutive attempts without one.
RB Depth/100+:
The Stamps are the first since 2010 (EDM) to have TWO players with at least 3 games of 100+ rushing yards in a year. Ka'Deem Carey & Dedrick Mills each had 3 in 2022. Last time for Calgary? 1962: E.Lunsford 4, L.Coleman 3.
Playoff Experience:
Remarkably close, these two teams have many young players early in their careers and thus without much playoff experience. Calgary's projected starting lineup holds 47 total prior playoff games vs BC at 45 games. The leaders are: Joel Figueroa 9, Shawn Lemon 7, William Langlais 7, Bo Lokombo 6, Loucheiz Purifoy 6, and Derek Wiggan 6 GP.
Calgary Streaks:
The Stamps have made the playoffs for the 17th consecutive season (2005-2022), tying Winnipeg (1980-96) for the 4th longest in league history. The other is with 10 wins in 2022 they extended their record to 14 straight seasons above .500. That run ties Edmonton (1984-1997) for the longest in CFL history at .500+.
Season Series, 2-1 BC but ...:
Despite a Lions' triumph in the 2022 series, Calgary outscored them 94-83. The key difference in the 3 games was a huge 11-0 edge in Sacks Made for Calgary. The Lions' wins came by margins of 1 and 2 points.
Tommy Stevens 163 Yds:
Stevens became the 2nd QB to ever record the longest run in any season. His 85-yarder joined Rakeem Cato's CFL best 73-yard rush in 2016. Stevens is the ONLY QB in league history to record any season's single game rushing high total (163).
Whyte & Paredes:
Whyte is ranked #14 A/T in playoff scoring at 119 points. He is #8 making 26-of-31 FG Atts for 83.9% in 14 games. Paredes comes in at #21 all-time in playoff scoring with 101 points. Paredes ranks #11 all-time making 22-of-28 FG attempts for an 78.6% in 14 career games. He started his playoff career going 17-of-18 but has made only 5 of his last FG 10 tries.
#1 CFL Rankings:
The Stampeders got to 12 wins by leading the CFL in some key areas: Scoring 31.2 ppg, Yards per play on Offence 7.0 yds, Sacks Allowed (17, 12 fewer than any other team), Sacks 56, T/O Ratio +21, and Rushing Offence, 135.3 yards.
Bryan Burnham:
Is among BC's most playoff-experienced starters. He brings 4 playoff games with 10 catches, 156 yds, 1 TD.
James Butler:
The Lions rested Butler last week as he was held to just 3 rushes - he finished just 28 yards off the CFL lead.
Fast Starts:
The Lions scored first in 13 of their 18 games - they were 11-2 in those 13 games.
Strong 2nd Halves for Calgary:
The Stampeders led the CFL in 2nd half scoring margin. They held a 307-196 scoring margin: +111. Only Winnipeg was close at +95, and BC was +44.
I think Calgary has the edge based on significant improvement since the 2 close games they lost to BC. They did handle BC fairly comfortably in their last meeting but of course without Rourke in the game.
Obviously I'll cheer for Calgary but a big reason is I think they have the best chance to upset the defending champs. With 3 dynamic running backs and a backup running quarterback I think they have a formula that just might be able to pull off a win in what is likely to be a cold Winnipeg playoff game.
It should be a good game today.
Nearly 40k expected to be in attendance
