Nathan Rourke passed for 375 yards and his B.C. Lions held off the Saskatchewan Roughriders for a crucial 31-24 victory on Friday.
asserted
Lions → pass → Friday
The Canadian quarterback connected on 22 of his 28 attempts with four touchdowns as the Lions (8-6) climbed into second place in the CFL’s West Division.
asserted
Lions → connect → Division
The result saw B.C. win the three-game season series between the two sides 2-1, and could be the tiebreaker if the Lions and Riders finish the season with identical records.
uncertain
Lions → see → records
Keon Hatcher Sr. reeled in a pair of TD passes, while Jevon Cottoy and Jermaine Jackson also found the end zone, and Sean Whyte made a 14-yard field goal.
asserted
Whyte → reel → goal
The Riders (8-6) got some key pieces back on Friday, including running back A.J. Ouellette, who amassed 77 rushing yards and a TD in his return from a knee injury that saw him sidelined for seven games.
asserted
him → get → games
Trevor Harris put up 302 passing yards, throwing a touchdown to Dylan Djete in the second quarter.
asserted
Harris → put → quarter
Kicker Dawson Hodge chalked up three field goals for Saskatchewan, including a 32-yard strike.
asserted
Hodge → chalk → strike
The Riders looked dangerous on their first possession of the game, with Harris working his way up the field.
asserted
Harris → look → field
Looking to connect with a teammate in the end zone, the QB sent a pass off of the upright and Saskatchewan settled for a 27-yard field goal to open the scoring.
asserted
Saskatchewan → look → scoring
The Lions responded swiftly.
asserted
Lions → respond → ?
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Rourke lobbed a massive pass up centre field to Stanley Berryhill III for a 56-yard gain, then followed up with a toss to Hatcher in the end zone.
asserted
Rourke → get → zone
Whyte’s single-point convert gave the home side a 7-3 lead.
asserted
convert → give → lead
A 31-yard field goal from Hodge cut Saskatchewan’s deficit to a single point early in the second quarter.
asserted
goal → cut → quarter
The Lions worked their way back into the red zone, but took a penalty for a time count violation and turned to Whyte for a 14-yard field goal.
asserted
Lions → work → goal
With just over two minutes to go in the quarter Harris spotted Djete alone near the sideline and hit the unencumbered wide receiver with a 13-yard pass.
asserted
Harris → go → pass
Djete darted over the goal line and Hodge made the single to put the Riders back on top by a score of 13-10.
asserted
Hodge → dart → 13
The lead didn’t last until halftime.
asserted
lead → last → halftime
Rourke made five passes up the field to put B.C. at Saskatchewan’s 19-yard line, then tossed a short ball to Hatcher, who avoided a tackle from Mike Rose en route to the end zone for his second major of the night.
asserted
who → make → night
Whyte’s convert gave the Lions a 17-13 lead with 16 seconds to go in the first half.
asserted
convert → give → half
Hatcher registered 66 receiving yards on the night and hit 1,015 for the season.
asserted
Hatcher → register → season
It’s the fifth season in his CFL career that the American receiver has surpassed the 1,000-yard mark.
asserted
receiver → ’ → mark
The Lions boosted their advantage midway through the third after Rourke came up big with a giant pass to Justin McInnis that gave the home side a first down in the midfield.
asserted
that → boost → midfield
Saskatchewan head coach Corey Mace challenged the play for offensive pass interference but after video review, officials determined the call on the field would stand.
asserted
call → challenge → field
Rourke continued to push his team up field and capped the drive with a pass to Cottoy just above the goal line for another TD.
asserted
Rourke → continue → TD
Another single-point conversion from Whyte gave B.C. a 24-13 lead.
asserted
conversion → give → lead
The final play of the third quarter saw the Lions’ defence stymie Harris and his side deep in B.C. territory.
asserted
defence → see → territory
The Riders’ short yardage team tried to extend the drive but instead turned the ball over on downs.
asserted
team → try → downs
Saskatchewan continued to push but struggled to break through the Lions’ back end.
asserted
Saskatchewan → continue → end
Another field goal from Hodge — this time a 32-yard kick — made it 24-16 for B.C. midway through the fourth quarter.
asserted
it → make → quarter
The crowd at BC Place jumped to their feet late in the final frame when Rourke scrambled out of the pocket under pressure, sprinted up field and delivered a long bomb into the hands of McInnis.
asserted
Rourke → jump → McInnis
The Canadian receiver was hauled down, but Rourke found Jermaine Jackson for yet another major on the next play to give the Lions a 31-16 lead.
asserted
Rourke → haul → lead
With just over two minutes left on the game clock, Saskatchewan finally made its way back into the end zone with a two-yard plunge from Ouellette.
asserted
Saskatchewan → leave → Ouellette
The Riders gave themselves hope when Tommy Stevens made it through the fray for a two-point conversion that left the score 31-24.
asserted
that → give → score
At least one provincial politician made room in his busy election campaign schedule to attend the game.
asserted
politician → make → game
Newly minted B.C. Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson was spotted at field level with former B.C. Premier Christy Clark before kickoff.
asserted
Doerkson → mint → kickoff
UP NEXT
Riders: Host the Calgary Stampeders on Oct. 2.
Lions: Visit the Toronto Argonauts on Oct. 3.
asserted
Lions → host → Oct.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2026.
asserted
report → publish → Press
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