BC Lions hope to capture Grey Cup
Posted Nov 27, 2011 05:18:39 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The BC Lions come into today’s Grey Cup game as winners in 11 of their last 12 games, while the Winnipeg Blue Bombers boast a nasty defence led by the men of Swaggerville. Kick off is at 3:30 at BC Place.
The Leos had the most productive offense in the league this season, while the Blue Bombers had the CFL’s best defence, but the Leos were a close second.
Since the newly renovated BC Place has opened, the Lions have outscored their opponents 178-99, averaging just over 35.5 points per game.
With the pressure of playing on home turf, BC can count on 14 players that are over the age of 30. Only four squads have won the championship on their home field. The 1994 Lions were one of those teams, as Lui Passaglia kicked the winning field goal with no time remaining on the clock in a 26-23 win over the Baltimore Stallions.
Expect the Bombers to try and control the pace of the game by running the ball like they did in the Eastern Final. In the 19-3 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Winnipeg ran the ball 40 times, gaining 271 yards in frosty Manitoba.
The quarterback match-up features the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player Travis Lulay of the Leos and the Bombers pivot Buck Pierce. Pierce was let go by Wally Buono after the 2009 season.
The combatants played twice this year with the Bombers winning 25-20 at home on July 28th, and then again just over two weeks later at Empire Field, 30-17. Since that game on August 13th, BC has lost once.
The last time these two clubs met in the title game was 1988 in Ottawa, when the Bombers edged BC 22-21. BC last won the title in 2006, when they knocked off the Montreal Alouettes 25-14 in Winnipeg. The Blue Bombers’ last championship was 21 years ago at BC Place over Edmonton 50-11. It is currently the longest non-championship drought in the CFL.
Kick-off is just after 3:30 p.m.
