Adam Gagnon/CFL.ca
HAMILTON – If you haven’t bought stock in the 2016 BC Lions yet, you may just be running out of time.
The Lions continued their hot start to the season on Friday night, not just defeating but dominating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 28-3 at Tim Hortons Field in a Canada Day showdown.
Don’t look now but the Lions are 2-0 and sit atop the CFL West Division through two weeks, something almost no one could have seen coming – almost no one.
“We’re not surprised,” linebacker Solomon Elimimian, who made six tackles in the win, told BCLions.com. “Everybody else is surprised, but we’re not surprised.
“We know we have a good team and this is just the tipping point.”
» RELATED: Lions stifle Ticats in convincing Canada Day win
Craig Roh gets to Jeremiah Masoli in the Lions’ win over the ‘Cats (Dave Chidley/CFL.ca)
The Lions were at the top of their game in every facet, holding the Ticats to just three single points while winning the time of possession battle by a 35:53 to 24:07 margin.
Winners of just seven games last season, the Lions may have been the least-talked about team in the West Division coming into this year.
The Stamps and Eskimos both went 14-4 last season while Riderville was rocked by the addition of Grey Cup-winning coach Chris Jones, who wasted little time knocking down the foundation and rebuilding the Riders. Then there were the Bombers, projected to improve after the additions of Weston Dressler, Andrew Harris and Ryan Smith, among others.
But the Lions made some key changes as well, including bringing Wally Buono, the CFL’s all-time leader in wins, back to the sideline. So far the early returns couldn’t be better.
“It was huge,” said Jonathon Jennings, who protected the football in throwing for 228 yards and a touchdown on 16-of-27 passing. “It was huge for our offence. It all starts with the offensive line, we always talk about it and we were intense in practice all week and they came out and busted their tails and got it done.”
An electrifying player in his rookie 23-year-old season a year ago, Jennings hasn’t been flashy but has done all of the little things, including sustaining drives and avoiding turnovers. The Lions managed only seven points and a five-point lead through the first 30 minutes but their patience on offence allowed them to pull away later.
Shaq Murray-Lawrence and Emmanuel Arceneaux scored second-half touchdowns as the Lions’ offence continued pressing. Meanwhile, Elimimian and his battery mate Adam Bighill wouldn’t give the Ticats’ anything, stopping the run and throwing different looks at Jeremiah Masoli all evening.
“I don’t want to talk about the defence, I want to talk about the whole team,” Buono said afterwards. “This was a great team victory and the offence did a great job of possessing the football, giving us momentum.
“It was a combination of all three facets of our team and to come on the road and win, to come into Hamilton and win is always very impressive.”
If one thing’s certain it’s that no one will take the Lions lightly – not after the last two weeks. The Lions didn’t just beat anyone, they beat a Stampeders team that has lost only seven games over the last two seasons and a Ticats team that is next to impossible to topple at home.
Another test comes back at home next week against Ricky Ray and the Argos.
“To battle another undefeated team this early in the season – we were both 1-0 – but to beat a team like this at their place is huge,” said Jennings. “It makes a statement and allows everybody to know, we’re here for real.”
“There’s lots to build on, but a lot of people are on the fence wanting to see what kind of football club this is,” added Buono. “Hopefully they’ve seen that this club’s going to play hard, it’s going to play physical and hopefully it’s going to play enough exciting football to get BC Place full again.”
– With files from BCLions.com
