REDBLACKS head west in search of critical two points

Carlos Verde

@Carlos77Verde

The Ottawa REDBLACKS will cross the Rockies this week for a critical cross-divisional matchup against the BC Lions on Saturday night at BC Place (7 p.m. ET).

The REDBLACKS (5-9-1) must shake their second-half demons from last week’s 18-17 loss on home turf against Saskatchewan; BC (6-7) enters the Week-16 matchup on a slide of its own, having lost five of its last six and plummeted to the bottom of the ultra-competitive West Division.

Quarterback Trevor Harris took first-team reps throughout the week and appears set for a return from the injured list; the 31-year-old Ottawa gunslinger led the CFL in passing yards and touchdowns prior to his Week-12 injury against Hamilton.

The REDBLACKS offensive line, excellent in the first half last week against Saskatchewan, will need to be strong early for Ottawa to establish a run game and protect Harris in his return.

STORYLINES

Return of the Numero Uno — Harris’s offensive numbers prior to suffering a shoulder injury against Hamilton spoke for themselves; the confident captain of the REDBLACKS offence ranked ahead of Mike Reilly, Bo Levi Mitchell and co. in most major passing categories. If he picks up where he left off, offensive coordinator Jaime Elizondo’s job becomes a lot easier.

The Wi-Po Show (Again) — It seems like we’ve been talking about William Powell every week for the last month because we have been. Now 100 per cent healthy, Powell has rushed for 100-plus yards in three-straight games and re-established himself as a premier running threat.

Sliding Squads — Both the Lions (1-5 in their last six) and REDBLACKS (1-3 in their last four) have found themselves in the loss column more often than not as of late, and will see their meeting on Saturday night as a key opportunity to turn the page entering the home stretch of the 2017 CFL regular season.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

The Lions offence has struggled to score consistently; quarterback Jonathon Jennings is sporting a 55.4 QUAR rating — the lowest amongst current starting quarterbacks — while star dual-threat running back Jeremiah Johnson has failed to find the end zone in five of his last seven contests.

Similar to the REDBLACKS, Wally Buono’s football team has the pieces — athletic playmakers like Manny Arceneaux on offence and Loucheiz Purifoy on defence — but just hasn’t been able to put it all together in 2017.

In terms of league leaders, Elimimian is as per usual near the top of the league (currently second) in tackles (95), while BC D-end Craig Roh sits tied for second in the CFL with seven sacks.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

“You play football to play football, not to watch it and be on the (injured reserve). Missing three weeks was an eye-opener for me, it gave me a lot of perspective. I feel like we’re right where we need to be; we’re playing pretty good football and it’s just a matter of closing this out. Call me crazy, but I don’t see a team out there that we can’t beat.” — QB Trevor Harris

“We’ve lost a remarkable number of close games, and that’s on us at the end of the day. At the same time, I’ve reminded (our team) that (with) the position we’re in with three games to go, there’s no reason we can’t do some great things. It’s literally all in front of us, and we just have to make sure we give ourselves every opportunity to cash in.” — HC Rick Campbell

GAME INFO

Ottawa REDBLACKS at BC Lions | Week 16 — October 7, 2017
Kickoff — 7 p.m. ET | BC Place

BROADCAST INFO

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