CALGARY — The Calgary Stampeders will have redemption on their minds when they host the B.C. Lions at McMahon Stadium on Sunday night.
Playing the second of three regular-season games against the Lions (5-1), the Stampeders (2-3) are looking to avenge the 26-17 setback to their CFL West Division rivals at Vancouver’s BC Place on June 16.
“It was a bad taste in our mouths a few weeks ago,” said Calgary quarterback Jake Maier. “We felt like we had every opportunity to win the game obviously, but we (have) felt that every week.
“We’ve been as competitive as anybody in this league. Any time you have that going for you, you feel really good about whoever you play and it’s no different this weekend.”
Following two straight road losses, the Stamps are hoping that home-field advantage will be on their side this time around against the Lions.
“We’ve been having good crowds,” said Calgary coach Dave Dickenson. “People have been getting into the games. The last time we played B.C., I think the silent cadence was tough on our guys. They had a big crowd with (rapper) 50 Cent in the building.
"It was a big home field advantage and kind of got us a little bit out of our groove in the fourth quarter."
As far as being the visiting team this time around, B.C. coach Rick Campbell said he and his staff have prepared their players to tune out all the noise.
“When the ball gets kicked off when you’re the road team, the crowd kind of goes away as far as you just focus on the task at hand,” Campbell said. “We know it’s going to be a tough one. We expect it to be a tough, close game and we just want to try to find a way to win.”
The same two teams will finish out their season series with another game in Vancouver on Oct. 4.
Both of Calgary’s victories this season have come at home — a 32-24 triumph over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Week 1 and a 22-19 overtime win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on June 29.
“We’ve been playing well at McMahon,” Dickenson said. “We know it’s a big challenge, but we’d like to get out of here with a win and show people we can play with anybody.”
Following a pair of heartbreaking road losses — 30-26 to the Montreal Alouettes on July 6 and 41-17 to the Bombers six days later — the Stamps are eager to return to their winning ways in front of their hometown fans.
“We have to be able to establish a culture at home where we play our best football here,” said Maier, who completed 20-of-31 passes for 316 yards to go with two touchdowns and two interceptions against the Bombers.
“We should have a great crowd, great turnout. If we want to be a championship contender, then this is the place where we’ve got to win and we’ve got to be dominant.”
They’ll also have to find a way to contain Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who completed 26-of-42 passes for an impressive 451 yards during a 35-20 victory over the previously unbeaten Saskatchewan Roughriders last Saturday at BC Place.
“We need a win is what we need to do,” said Stamps linebacker Micah Awe. “At the end of the day, we’ve just got to get our killer instinct.”
Awe's total of 134 defensive tackles last season was third best in CFL history behind only his former B.C. teammate Solomon Elimimian, who finished with 144 in 2017 and 143 in 2014.
One key to victory for Awe and the Calgary defence will be to pressure Adams, who threw one touchdown pass against the Roughriders in addition to a pair of interceptions.
“This league, the talent margin is so little,” said Awe. “At the end of the day, there’s going to be a play that it’s not going to come out to how athletic someone is. It’s going to be did you hustle or did you not hustle, because Vernon, a lot of his plays are hustle plays.
"That’s what’s going to have to happen is that margin of difference is literally going to be a hustle play. It’s going to be heart. It’s not going to be muscle.”
After starting the season with a 35-27 road loss to the Toronto Argonauts, Adams has led the Lions to five straight victories.
“His off-season, he wasn’t messing around,” said Campbell about his starting quarterback. “He was in shape, taking extra time to talk to players, all those things. He’s a motivated guy and we’re lucky to have him.”
According to Adams, much of his success has come from his concerted efforts to be prepared for each game he plays.
“I don’t try to do anything out of the ordinary," Adams said. “I try to just go through my reads, use my legs if I need to, but I just want to be as mentally sharp as possible so I’m ready to make any checks or any throws or anything I need to do to help us win this game.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 20, 2024.
Laurence Heinen, The Canadian Press