Marquee Matchup: No room for error as Stamps visit Lions

TORONTO — There is a lot on the line when the Calgary Stampeders visit the BC Lions on Friday at the BC Place.

The home team is playing its final game of the regular season looking to stay alive in the race for first place in the West Division. The Lions need to win and hope the Winnipeg Blue Bombers drop their final two games to claim a spot in the Western Final. A loss would put an end to that goal and lock BC in second place.

Meanwhile the visitors have even more at stake with almost no room for error. A victory would set up a win-and-in scenario in Week 21 against Winnipeg while a loss would put their fate in the hands of the Saskatchewan Roughriders who play on Saturday against the Toronto Argonauts.

Calgary should have the return of Reggie Begelton who practised fully all week and will be available on Friday. The star wide receiver missed the game against the Riders in Week 19 as the Stampeders had to rely on their defence to secure the win. BC has already claimed the season series with wins in the last two matchups in Weeks 1 and 10 by a combined 62-24 score.

Who will keep their hopes of ascending the standings alive on Friday night?

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Game Notes:

• -12 Playoff Year?: The Stampeders can make the playoffs even with a 6-12 mark. The only West team to EVER make the playoffs with six wins or less in an 18-game season is Edmonton in 1999 (6-12). BC made it at 7-11 in 2015 and Calgary got in at 7-10-1 in 2007.
• BC’s Wins in 2023: They have gotten progressively closer across 2023 – their first seven wins were by an average margin of 19.7 points. Their last five have all been tight averaging just 6.2 points.
• It’s a Fact: There has NEVER been a year in Western Football history where at least one team from Alberta did not make the playoffs. That run goes back to 1938 when Edmonton first joined the WIFU against Winnipeg, Regina and the old Calgary Bronks.
• Playoffs on the Line: For Calgary at 5-11 they must win at least one game to remain in contention. With a win they would move up to third place for at least Friday subject to the Riders result against Toronto on Saturday. Calgary holds a 17-season long playoff streak which continues to be on the line each week.
• Calgary Sub .500 Playoff Years: The 5-11 Stampeders can finish no higher than 7-11 but still control their own playoff destiny. They have made the playoffs four times before with a losing record: 1960 (6-8-2), 1961 (7-9), 2001 (8-10) and 2007 (7-10-1).
• 2023 Season Series: The Lions have won the season series over Calgary for 2023 and did so in 2022. At BC Place Stadium they have won the last two games but before that Calgary had won seven times in a row.
• Last Week’s Win at Hamilton: BC led much of the way but were tied with Hamilton late at 30-all. They drove 32 yards on five plays including a holding penalty to set up Sean Whyte‘s game-winning 48-yard ‘walk off’ field goal. It was BC’s narrowest win of 2023
• Last Week’s Win vs Saskatchewan: In a true ‘must win’ situation, Calgary overcame a 13-point deficit to remain in playoff contention. They outscored the Riders 21-3 over the last 21 minutes and like BC, broke a late tie with a late game score to win. Calgary drove 89 yards for a touchdown and then forced two Riders’ turnover on downs to secure the victory.
• Ben Hladik 95 Def. Tackles: He needs five more to become the first National player to reach 100 for BC in a single season and become just the fourth National in CFL history after Kevin Eiben, Henoc Muamba and Alex Singleton.
• Dane Evans: Came off the bench last week to run a fourth-quarter game-winning drive. His 4 passes were his first in a span of 71 days back to August 3.
• Vernon Adams Jr.: Needs 347 yards to become the fifth BC passer to reach 5,000 yards in a season. In order going back: Jonathon Jennings 2016, Casey Printers 2004, Dave Dickenson 2003 and Doug Flutie in 1991. Adams leads the CFL with 10 games of 300+ yards and is 15-6 in starts for BC. Overall he is 32-18 in 50 career starts. He leads the CFL with 52 completions of 20+ yard depth. Adams is on a current streak of nine consecutive games with a touchdown pass.
• Mathieu Betts 17 Sacks: The BC Club record (and also the CFL mark) for most Sacks by a National was set by BC’s Brent Johnson at 17 in 2005 and tied by Jamaal Westerman (WPG 2015). Mathieu Betts has joined them with 17 Sacks in his first 17 games to lead the CFL and rides a 4-game streak with at least one.
  

  National Player	Year	Team	Sacks
  Brent Johnson	2005	BC	17
  Jamaal Westermann	2015	WPG	17
  Mathieu Betts	2023	BC	17

• Jake Maier: Led the Stampeders to a win last week to move his record to 12-16 in 28 career starts (5-8 road, 1-3 vs BC). He leads the CFL with 542 pass attempts and 347 completions and is the ONLY QB to start all of his team’s games. Maier comes in on a current streak of 83 consecutive attempts without an interception.
• Micah Awe: Leads the CFL with 113 defensive tackles. He has joined Alex Singleton, Doug Landry and George White as Stampeders with 100+ tackles in a season. His 113 tackles is tied for #24 all-time and with eight this week he can reach the top 10 season totals (121).
• Last two wins: The last two Calgary wins each involved big comebacks – from 15 and then 13 points behind to win late in the game.
• Terry Williams: Leads the CFL with 2,315 combined yards and 2,304 yards from kick returns.
• Sean Whyte: Made all four of his FG attempts last week including the game-winning kick from 48 yards. He has a current streak of 17 made FGs in a row. Across his 213-game career he ranks second at 87.8%.
• Rene Paredes: Has made 48 of 54 FG attempts this season (87%) and now ranks eight all-time with 542 made for his career (Sean Fleming is seventh at 553). Paredes ranks third all-time at 87.6% made.

It’s anyone’s guess as to who will take this one in this week’s Pick ‘Em Marquee Matchup. Who are you siding with?

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