Roughriders lose in B.C. as McInnis goes off for Lions

The Saskatchewan Roughriders didn’t have much of an answer for a vaunted B.C. Lions passing attack on Saturday.

Lions slotback Justin McInnis, who is a former Rider, had 243 yards and a touchdown for B.C. as Saskatchewan lost their first game of the season with a final score of 35-20 at B.C Place in Vancouver.

The showdown featured two of the top teams in the CFL in a heavyweight battle.

Riders head coach Corey Mace said he felt like his team was in the thick of the battle for most of the game.

“If you looked at it as a title fight, I thought we were in that joker until the 10th and 11th rounds. Things got carried away from us towards the end there,” Mace said. “That’s the most disappointing thing … just seeing how we responded to adversity at the end of the game.

“Maybe it’s something that the guys think the game is over but it’s not.”

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Defensive back Rolan Milligan Jr., who had an interception in the game and now has four on the season, said they just didn’t have an answer for McInnis.

“Have to go back and watch the film and see why he was able to catch so many balls,” Milligan said.

Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who came into the week leading the CFL in passing, threw for 451 yards and one touchdown against the Riders’ defence. He also threw two interceptions.

“We knew this team lives and dies off of big plays,” Mace said. “There’s a lot we have to look at and that’s everybody starting with myself.

“It’s early in the season, so that’s a plus.”

‘Made some plays but missed a lot of plays’

Saskatchewan got the game to 22-20 in the fourth quarter after running back A.J. Ouellette’s second touchdown of the game.

After that play, Riders kicker Brett Lauther did a short kick and recovered his own onside attempt.

“I just thought with the flow of the game, their offence was moving the ball fluidly. I thought we had the momentum with our offence after they just went and scored,” Mace said. “It was a surprise onside, I don’t think anyone expected us to do it there.”

But just three plays later wide receiver Sam Emilus caught a ball and tried to get extra yards before having it knocked out by Lions defensive lineman Joshua Archibald and recovered by B.C.

Adams Jr. then led a drive that ended with him rushing the ball in from 12 yards out to take a 28-20 lead.

The Riders drop to 4-1 on the season as the Lions improve to 5-1 and are riding a five-game winning streak. Saskatchewan was the last remaining undefeated team in the CFL.

Milligan Jr. said Saskatchewan’s defence just wasn’t good enough in the game, surrendering 504 yards of total offence to the Lions.

“Up and down day … made some plays but missed a lot of plays. Just have to be more consistent with what we are doing,” Milligan Jr. said.

One of the bright spots for the Riders’ defence was that it only surrendered two touchdowns in the game despite a lot of big B.C. plays.

But Lions kicker Sean Whyte remained perfect on the season, hitting all seven of his field goal attempts. He is now 21-for-21 on field goals in 2024.

Lauther hit two of his three field goal attempts.

Riders quarterback Shea Patterson, who was making his second career CFL start, threw for 278 yards and an interception in the loss.

“We just came up short to a pretty good B.C. team,” Patterson said. “I thought they made some key plays to give them the victory tonight. There’s some key plays I want back and some key plays that everyone on the team wants back.”

Patterson said there were a lot of players who were mad at the result after the game.

“There’s a sour taste in our mouth right now,” Patterson said. “We’re keeping our heads high. We were down 22-20 in the fourth quarter to one of the best teams in the league with a chance to win it.

“We came up short, we’re going to learn from it and come back stronger and ready to go next week.”

Ouellette had 72 yards and two touchdowns for the Riders.

Despite the fumble, Emilus led the way for Saskatchewan’s air attack, hauling in eight catches for 161 yards.

Jermarcus Hardrick on crutches

One of the big losses for the Riders could be right tackle Jermarcus Hardrick. Hardrick left the game with an apparent leg injury and was seen on the sideline with crutches.

Mace didn’t have an update on the seriousness of Hardrick’s injury Saturday.

While it was the team’s first loss of the year, Mace said it was one they needed to have.

“I told these guys from the one of the first meetings in training camp I don’t want to go undefeated. I’ve never seen it in this league. I’ve been part of a team that was 16-2 and that’s the closest I have ever been but even that is still two losses,” Mace said. “You learn a lot about yourself and your team with how you respond to that.”

The Riders (4-1) will take on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2-4) at Mosaic Stadium on Friday.

Read more

• Marcus Sayles faces former team as Sask. Roughriders meet Lions
• Nelson and Boseko Lokombo to face off as Riders meet Lions
• Riders lead the way in CFL defensive takeways