Lions Outlast Elks 24-21

Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. says winning doesn’t need to be so hard for the B.C. Lions. 

Sean Whyte kicked a 42-yard field goal in the dying seconds as the Lions battled from behind to defeat the Edmonton Elks 24-21 in a back-and-forth CFL game Thursday night.

“We’ve got to clean it up,” said Adams. “We’re way better than that. We’ve got to make those plays early and not make such a tough game. It can be a little bit easier for us.”

Edmonton had tied the game 21-21 on a 52-yard Boris Bede field goal with just over a minute left to play. 

The Lions took over the ball and their final drive was aided by a face-masking call against the Elks. Whyte calmly kicked the winning points for his 28^th consecutive field goal. 

Rick Campbell, B.C.’s head coach and co-general manager, said Whyte did the expected. 

“The cool thing about Sean Whyte is you just totally expect him to make it and it’s not a big deal,” said Campbell. “But I know it’s a big deal. “He’s money in the bank. It’s comforting when you’re making decisions knowing that the odds are pretty good. Get him anywhere in field-goal range and he’s going to knock it through.”

Whyte also connected on kicks of 29 and 24 yards. Fullback Davie Mackie made up for an earlier fumble by scoring on a one-yard plunge late in the fourth quarter to give the Lions a 19-18 lead. 

The B.C. drive was aided by an Edmonton pass interference call on the Elks’ five-yard line. Justin McInnis made a fingertip catch for a two-point convert to make the score 21-18.

The win improved the Lions’ record to 3-1. The Elks, playing just five days after losing in Toronto, dropped to 0-4. It was the third consecutive week Edmonton had lost a game by three points.

“Pretty damn tough,” said Chris Jones, Edmonton’s head coach and general manager. “It’s the first time I think I’ve ever lost a football game on the last play.”

Jones said his team is “in a hard sport” but saw positives despite the loss. 

“We have to realize that we’re not very far away,” he said. “What we’re going to do is continue to dig and keep doing the things that we did to get out of wherever we came from.”

UP NEXT

Edmonton: The Elks host Ottawa on July 14.

B.C.: The Lions, who play one home game over the next eight weeks, are in Hamilton on July 7.

NOTES: The Elks last defeated the Lions at BC Place on Aug. 19, 2021. …The 36 points Edmonton scored in a 39-36 loss to Toronto last week was the most points by the Elks in a loss since they lost 45-37 to Ottawa on June 25, 2016. … In their last eight games, the Lions have outscored the Elks 289-103. 

(CP)