The B.C. Lions (9-9) concluded the regular season on Saturday night hosting the Montreal Alouettes (12-4-1) from B.C. Place Stadium. B.C. started Vernon Adams Jr. at quarterback needing a spark to carry momentum into the playoffs.
There was nothing on the line for this game as Montreal already clinched a first-round bye and B.C. will finish in third place. They will either play the Winnipeg Blue Bombers or the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Western Semi-Final in two weeks.
First Quarter:
The B.C. Lions got the football to start the game from their 29-yard line. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed a 43-yard pass to Justin McInnis to reach the Alouettes’ 17-yard line. Two plays later, he threw a 14-yard pass to Keon Hatcher to reach the Alouettes’ three-yard line.
Running back William Stanback got them closer to the end zone with a two-yard run then Adams Jr. finished it off with a one-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead with 11:56 left capping off a five-play drive for 60 yards in less than three minutes.
Montreal started its first drive from their 37-yard line. Running back Sean Thomas-Erlington started the drive with a two-yard run, followed by quarterback Cody Fajardo completing an 8-yard pass to Cole Spieker but the play was wiped away after Tyler Snead was called for an offside penalty. Then, Fajardo completed a 5-yard pass to Charleston Rambo to reach their 39-yard line short of the first down. B.C.’s offense took over on their 40-yard line with 9:56 left.
B.C. running back William Stanback rushed for a gain of six yards, and quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. rushed for 8 yards to reach their 54-yard line. Then, Adams Jr. completed a four-yard pass to Justin McInnis before the drive stalled. Montreal got the ball on their 16-yard line with 7:46 left of the first quarter.
Montreal running back Sean Thomas-Erlington had two carries for six yards but fell short of the first down. B.C. returner Terry Williams returned a 57-yard punt by Joseph Zema for 14 yards to reach their 45-yard line. On second down, B.C. quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed a 13-yard pass to Keon Hatcher to reach the Alouettes’ 52-yard line. Then, Adams Jr. threw a 52-yard touchdown pass to Stanley Berryhill III for a 14-0 lead with 4:10 left of the first quarter capping off a three-play drive for 65 yards.
Montreal quarterback Cody Fajardo completed two passes for 15 yards and rushed for two yards but an unnecessary roughness penalty on Montreal forced third down. B.C. got the ball back with 57 seconds left from their 23-yard line.
Running back William Stanback started the drive with two carries for 11 yards then quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed an 11-yard pass to Ayden Eberhardt to reach their 45-yard line to end the first quarter up 14-0.
B.C. had 165 yards on offense (137 yards passing, 28 yards rushing), 8 first downs, 1 for 1 in the red zone, and the team had no penalties. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 7 of 9 passes for 137 yards, one touchdown, two carries for 9 yards, and one touchdown.
Montreal had 32 yards on offense (20 yards passing, 12 yards rushing), 1 first down, no red zone opportunities, and the team was penalized two times for 20 yards. Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 3 of 3 passes for 20 yards, and one carry for two yards.
Second Quarter:
In the second quarter, the B.C. Lions continued to march down the field until reaching the Alouettes’ 26-yard line. Kicker Sean Whyte made a 33-yard field goal extending B.C.’s lead 17-0 with 8:12 left before halftime.
On the second play for Montreal, B.C. defensive lineman Mathieu Betts sacked Cody Fajardo for a 10-yard loss forcing third down. B.C. got the ball back on their 37-yard line with 6:24 left. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed a six-yard pass to William Stanback and that was all they got before punting the ball back to Montreal with 5:01 left of the second quarter.
Montreal quarterback Cody Fajardo completed three straight passes for 39 yards to reach the Lions’ 24-yard line. Next, Fajardo rushed for 14 yards then threw an 8-yard pass to Kaion Julien-Grant to reach the Lions’ two-yard line. Third-string quarterback Dominique Davis came in for a quarterback sneak but he was sacked by Ben Hladik for a one-yard loss. On third down, Fajardo’s pass intended for Charleston Rambo was incomplete and B.C. took over on downs.
B.C. quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed two passes for 43 yards to reach their 44-yard line. Then, he threw two more passes for 21 yards to reach the Alouettes’ 45-yard line. On the next play, Adams Jr.’s pass was intercepted by Wesley Sutton at their 8-yard line with 51 seconds left. Running back Sean Thomas-Erlington had two carries for seven yards to end the first half as Montreal trailed B.C. 17-0.
First Half Stats:
B.C. had 274 yards on offense (224 yards passing, 53 yards rushing, 3 yards lost), 15 first downs, 1 for 1 in the red zone, and the team was penalized one time for two yards. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 15 of 20 passes (75%) for 224 yards, one touchdown, one interception, four carries for 20 yards, and one touchdown. Running back William Stanback had six carries for 28 yards, and two catches for six yards.
Wide receiver Justin McInnis made four catches for 79 yards, while Stanley Berryhill III made two catches for 63 yards and one touchdown. B.C.’s defense made two tackles for loss and two sacks.
Montreal had 88 yards on offense (67 yards passing, 33 yards rushing, 12 yards lost), 5 first downs, 0 for 1 in the red zone, and the team had no penalties. Quarterback Cody Fajardo finished the night completing 7 of 9 passes (77%) for 67 yards, and two carries for 16 yards. Running back Sean Thomas-Erlington had six carries for 17 yards, and two catches for 15 yards.
Wide receiver Kaion Julien-Grant made two catches for 24 yards, and Tyler Snead made two catches for 23 yards. Montreal’s defense made one sack and one interception.
Third Quarter:
Montreal got the ball to start the second half from their 40-yard line. Davis Alexander was the new quarterback for Montreal. Alexander completed one pass to Cole Spieker for six yards and that’s all they got before punting the ball to B.C. with 13:38 left.
B.C. started its first drive of the second half from their 29-yard line. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed a four-yard pass to Keon Hatcher to reach their 33-yard line then the drive stalled. Montreal’s offense had the ball on their 45-yard line. Quarterback Davis Alexander completed a six-yard pass to Charleston Rambo to reach their 51-yard line then the drive stalled again.
B.C.’s offense started to put together a good drive with quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completing three passes for 36 yards and rushing for 19 yards to reach the Alouettes’ 22-yard line. Two plays later, Adams Jr.’s pass was intercepted by Tyson Beverette, who returned it for 22 yards to reach their 29-yard line with 5:55 left of the third quarter.
Montreal running back Stevie Scott III started the drive with a seven-yard run to reach their 36-yard line. Then, quarterback Davis Alexander completed 2 of 3 passes for 10 yards then the drive stalled. B.C.’s offense had the ball on their 39-yard line to begin their next drive.
B.C. quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. started the next drive by completing three straight passes for 61 yards to reach the Alouettes’ 10-yard line. Then, Adams Jr. completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Alexander Hollins for a 24-0 lead with 51 seconds left to cap off a four-play drive for 71 yards.
Montreal quarterback Davis Alexander completed a 9-yard pass to Nate Behar, followed by Stevie Scott III’s five-yard run to reach the Lions’ 19-yard line to close out the third quarter down 24-0.
Fourth Quarter:
In the fourth quarter, Montreal’s offense continued to move the ball up to the Lions’ 1-yard line then kicker Jose Carlos Maltos kicked a 14-yard field goal and Montreal trailed B.C. 24-3 with 11:06 left of the game.
On second down, B.C. quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed a 33-yard pass to Keon Hatcher to reach the Alouettes’ 37-yard line. Then, running back Jeshrun Antwi had one carry for 19 yards. He did have an 8-yard run but it was called back on a holding penalty by B.C. Vernon Adams Jr. completed two passes for 17 yards before kicker Sean Whyte made an 18-yard field goal for a 27-3 lead with 7:17 left of the game.
Montreal quarterback Davis Alexander began the next drive by throwing a 9-yard pass to Stevie Scott III to reach their 49-yard line. Alexander completed four more passes for 22 yards and had two carries for 27 yards, while Steve Scott III rushed for five yards to reach the Lions’ two-yard line as the three-minute warning hit. Montreal had three chances to get into the end zone but B.C.’s defense stopped them all and took over on downs from their one-yard line with 2:32 left.
Chase Brice was the new quarterback for the B.C. Lions. Running back Jeshrun Antwi had four carries for 46 yards to end the game. The B.C. Lions defeated the Montreal Alouettes 27-3.
Final Stats:
B.C. had 526 yards on offense (393 yards passing, 143 yards rushing, 10 yards lost), 27 first downs, 2 for 3 in the red zone, and the team was penalized three times for 14 yards. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 26 of 36 passes (72%) for 385 yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions, five carries for 39 yards, and one touchdown.
Running back William Stanback had six carries for 28 yards, and two catches for six yards, while Jeshrun Antwi had six carries for 71 yards. Wide receiver Keon Hatcher made 8 catches for 117 yards, and Justin McInnis made 7 catches for 106 yards. B.C.’s defense made 39 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and 7 tackles on special teams.
Montreal had 216 yards on offense (134 yards passing, 94 yards rushing, 12 yards lost), 13 first downs, 0 for 3 in red zone opportunities, and the team was penalized six times for 65 yards. Quarterback Davis Alexander completed 11 of 16 passes (69%) for 67 yards, and four carries for 28 yards. Running back Stevie Scott III had 7 carries for 33 yards and three catches for 20 yards.
Wide receiver Tyler Snead made three catches for 28 yards, and Kaion Julien-Grant made three catches for 27 yards. Montreal’s defense made 42 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, and four tackles on special teams.
Next week, the Montreal Alouettes host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday at 3 pm on CTV and CFL+, while the B.C. Lions are on the bye week. Subscribe to Fubo to watch all of the 2024 CFL Season. Purchase CFL tickets today on StubHub.
