The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will play host to the BC Lions on Canada Day in the first regular season game of 2016 at Tim Hortons Field.
Both the Ticats and the Leos leapt out of the gate to start the year and are each coming off of impressive Week 1 wins heading into the July 1st matchup.
Many questions surrounding Hamilton’s lineup were answered in the CFL season opener on June 23 as the Black and Gold pounced on the Toronto Argonauts in a decisive 42-20 victory at BMO Field.
If there was any doubt surrounding Jeremiah Masoli’s ability to take control of the Ticats offence, the San Francisco, California native temporarily silenced his critiques. Masoli completed 27-of-37 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns in Week 1 and will look to build off his strong start against BC.
Chemistry also did not appear to be an issue for the Ticats new-look defence as they were on top of Ricky Ray all night. The defensive unit accumulated six sacks while Simoni Lawrence picked up right where he left off last season with two sacks, a fumble recovery, and a pick-six on the night. The reigning East Division Defensive Player of the Year earned CFL Top Performer of the Week honors for his impressive display in the season debut.
Lawrence called the accolade a “team award.”
“I have to pass all the credit to my teammates of course,” said Lawrence. “In a team game like this it’s so hard to take individual awards just because you’re dependent on 11 other guys who do their job so you can be successful.”
Hamilton will have even more help on defence this week with the return of defensive tackle Ted Laurent. The two-time CFL all-star was sidelined during the pre-season and Week 1 with a lower body injury but will make his 2016 season debut on Canada Day.
Brett Maher won the kicking battle in training camp and proved why he deserved the spot by completing all four of his field goal attempts against the Argos. His longest of the night was from 50 yards out.
The Ticats were strong in all three phases of the game and will look to carry that momentum into the home opener. Head Coach Kent Austin says the team now must turn their focus to the Lions; a team who’s playing style differs from the Argos.
“They’re different teams,” said Austin. “Different personnel. Different schemes. They play differently defensively and offensively so you just tailor a plan to what they do.”
The Leos were the comeback kids of Week 1 by making up an 11-point deficit late in the third quarter to grind out a 20-18 win over the Calgary Stampeders on June 25. Chris Rainey shone in the Lions’ home opener by notching two touchdowns, including a 72-yard punt return he ran into the house. Jonathon Jennings completed 24-of-42 passes for 248 yards but no majors while 2015 Defensive Player of the Year Adam Bighill registered nine tackles and a sack in the win.
Lions defensive coordinator Mark Washington said that facing the Ticats offence will be a good test for his unit.
“Right now Masoli is playing very well,” Washington told BCLions.com. “He’s controlling the offence. He has good mastery of the offence… The receivers, Owens, is really playing well for those guys. Gable is a great running back. We’re going to have our hands full but I’m sure our guys will be up for the challenge.”
The Lions are the only team in the West with a tally in the win column heading into Week 2 after the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Edmonton Eskimos dropped their opening games of the season. Lions defensive back Ronnie Yell said that starting the season on a positive note energized the team.
“We had a great week,” Ronnie Yell told BCLions.com. “You’re normally going to have a good week [after you win] because the team’s pumped up. The team’s ready to go… This week of practice was full of confidence. Everybody’s flying around.
“We’re just trying to keep this train rolling and get started 2-and-0.”
The Lions and Ticats split the season series last year, each taking a game a piece. The last time the Ticats played their home opener against the Lions was back on June 29, 2002. The Ticats emerged victorious with a 27-15 win.
Quick Facts:
– The Ticats defeated rival Toronto for the fourth consecutive time in last week’s opener at BMO Field. They return home this week where they have won each of their last two home openers (2014-15).
– The Ticats defence led by Lawrence contributed six QB Sacks, the most by any club in Week #1. The impact of those six sacks came on six different Toronto drives forcing a kick each time.
– The Lions defence held Calgary without a single rush of 10+ yards last week and only one 8-yarder to Jerome Messam. Calgary was held without a 10+ yard run only once all last season (Sept 7, 2015 vs EDM).
