Arthur Ward/CFL.ca
REGINA — The Western Semi-Final will feature the BC Lions traveling to Regina to face the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday, November 2.
These two teams have been through ups and downs in 2024 on their way to finishing second and third in the West Division to set this matchup.
It’s a battle between two teams that finished third and fourth in net yards of offence, but with a drastically different turnover differential.
On defence, Riders and Lions also finished third and fourth respectively in yards allowed in what promises to be a hard-fought game.
CFL.ca brings you three stats that could loom large in the Western Semi-Final.
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+26 – TURNOVER RATIO
Saskatchewan finished with the best turnover differential in the league with 26 more takeaways than giveaways in 2024. It’s a team that takes good care of the football, with 14 interceptions and only five fumbles lost while also taking the ball away a league-high 47 times. Defensive back Rolan Milligan Jr. finished first in interceptions with eight and will be looking to pick off BC’s pivots on Saturday.
BC meanwhile finished with a minus-six differential, throwing 18 interceptions, losing seven fumbles and turning it over on downs 11 times, while only forcing 30 turnovers.
1,469 – RECEIVING YARDS
It’s impossible to talk about any matchup involving the Lions without mentioning their passing attack. Justin McInnis led all receivers with 1,469 receiving yards even amidst uncertainty at the pivot position. Vernon Adams Jr. and Nathan Rourke split time and had mixed results, but the Leos still found ways to put up yards and points through the air with McInnis leading the way.
Alexander Hollins finished with 937 yards and Ayden Eberhardt offered production from the WR3 spot with 639 yards. Keon Hatcher also returned halfway through the season to register 608 yards, offering options for offensive coordinator Jordan Maksymic to find ways to matchup against a strong Roughrider defence.
80.3 – RUSHING YARDS PER GAME ALLOWED
Speaking of the Riders defence, Saskatchewan allowed only 80.3 rushing yards per game, second best mark among all teams in 2024. That means it’ll be a challenge for William Stanback and co. to find a way to move the ball on the ground against one of the best defensive fronts in the CFL.
Edge Malik Carney – who joined the team in the off-season – was one of the best run defenders in the league this season with an 83.0 grade. The defensive lineman missed only three tackles all season and registered 10 stops to finish as the top rated edge defender against the run. Interior defensive lineman Miles Brown also graded high against the run (82.7) and missed only two tackles in 28 atttempts in run defence.
