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KELOWNA — The BC Lions clawed their way to their first victory of the 2026 season defeating the previously undefeated Edmonton Elks 36-24 on FanDuel Canada Day Weekend Saturday night.
James Butler served the Lions’ fans in Kelowna his best game of the year, as talk around this game was centered around the undefeated Elks and CFL leading rusher Justin Rankin. Butler and Zander Horvath dominated on the ground with 162 yards and three rushing scores, as the ground game was clicking for the Leos.
Nathan Rourke and Cody Fajardo both amassed 300-yard passing nights, but it was the BC rushing attack and defence that stole the show.
CFL.ca brings you three key stats from the BC Lions’ 36-24 win over the Edmonton Elks in FanDuel Canada Day Weekend action.
FROM STATS TO IMPACT
» James Butler delivers in BC victory over Elks on FanDuel Canada Day Weekend
» Depth Charts: EDM | BC
» Edmonton, BC by the numbers
» CFL x World Vision Partnership Hub
» About World Vision Canada
135 – JAMES BUTLER RUSHING YARDS
James Butler came into this game with 39 yards per game rushing, but he showed out for the Lions’ fans in Kelowna Saturday night. The 31-year-old running back had 86 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone and would finish the night with 135 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 15 carries. The Leos’ tailback also brought in three of his four targets for 27 yards to finish with 162 yards from scrimmage in the contest.
3 – BC TAKEAWAYS
Coming into their matchup with Cody Fajardo and the Edmonton Elks, the BC Lions defence was allowing 41 points in back-to-back games and not recording a single takeaway on the year. This would change in a big way in the Touchdown Kelowna finale. Jackson Findlay, Ronald Kent Jr., and Darnell Sankey all recorded interceptions for the Leos’ defence.
24 – POINTS AND RUSHING YARDS ALLOWED BY BC
While the rushing attack was the headline stealing the show, the Lions’ defence put on their best performance of the year holding the Elks to just 24 points and 24 total rushing yards. Justin Rankin came into this game leading the CFL in rushing averaging 129 yards per game and was stymied by a Leos’ defence that honed in on the star tailback and took the run game out of the Green and Gold’s offensive playbook. The Lions’ defence held Rankin to just 19 yards on seven carries and at the half had the Elks’ rusher in negative yardage on the ground.
