B.C. Lions grind out 27-22 victory over Toronto Argonauts

Nathan Rourke knows his B.C. Lions weren't at their best on Friday night. 

It didn't matter. 

The Lions (8-7) withstood a late push from the visiting Toronto Argonauts (5-10) and ground out a 27-22 victory for their third straight win. 

“Not pretty, but sometimes good teams find a way," Rourke said of the performance. "And I think we're feeling right now that we're playing some good football as a team. If we’re struggling in one area, other parts can pick you up. And I think our defence did that tonight, so hats off to them.”

The Canadian quarterback threw for 235 yards, connecting on 16 of his 25 attempts with one touchdown and three interceptions. He also drove in a pair of short-yardage majors. 

Justin McInnis reeled in his sixth TD of the season while Sean Whyte made two field goals and three converts. 

After missing Toronto's 21-19 loss to the Montreal Alouettes last week, Nick Arbuckle started under centre for the Argos (5-10) and put up 281 passing yards, going 28-for-38 with a touchdown pass to Makai Polk and one interception. 

Kicker Lirim Hajrullahu made five field goals, including three 50-yard strikes, and one conversion. 

The Argos fought, said head coach Ryan Dinwiddie, but ultimately came up short. 

“We were beat up on the O-line and the receivers," he said. "So I'm proud of their effort and their toughness. It’s a tough loss. But I thought, offensively, too many penalties, too many seconds and longs. But the defensive effort was there. They played good enough football for us to win. I thought special teams did their part, too.”

B.C. took a 12-point lead early in the final frame before the visitors mounted a late comeback.

Rourke added his second rushing TD of the night two-and-a-half minutes into the fourth, finding space along the outside of a pileup on the goal line and diving through the bodies into the end zone. Whyte's single put the Lions up 27-15.

Toronto got a boost midway through the quarter when Lions defensive lineman Levi Bell was handed a 25-yard penalty for roughing the passer after he caught Arbuckle with a spear.

Another costly call came minutes later when B.C.'s Bradlee Anae was called for unnecessary roughness, giving the Argos a first down at the Lions' two-yard line.

Arbuckle sent a seven-yard toss to Polk in the end zone for the touchdown and Hajrullahu made the extra point to cut B.C.'s lead to 27-22. 

The Lions found some breathing room with less than three minutes to go in the game when Mathieu Betts sacked Arbuckle. B.C. linebacker Josh Woods recovered the ball and darted up the field.

Lions head coach Buck Pierce liked what he saw from his defence on Friday. 

“I thought they kept everything in front of them for the most part," he said. "We didn't give up a lot of explosive plays. I think the majority of their chances came on some penalties that we took. I thought later in the game, the second half, they did a good job of tackling and rallying and running to the ball.”

Both teams struggled to get their offence going early in the game, and Toronto opened the scoring with a long field goal from Hajrullahu midway through the first quarter. 

Minutes later, Rourke escaped from the pocket, got a few steps in and lobbed a ball toward McInnis just over the goal line, only to see the pass picked off by Willie Drew. 

The Argos suffered a similar fate on the next possession. Arbuckle launched a rainbow from deep in Toronto territory and rookie Lions defensive back Jackson Findlay jumped up to make the catch. 

“When that ball was coming, it seemed like it was coming in slow motion," Findlay said, adding that his parents and some friends were in the stands to see the play. 

"I probably could have stayed at my feet when I caught it, but it was a pretty cool moment. Went down with it, my teammates surrounded me. Stadium kind of went quiet for a second and thought maybe something had happened. But no, pretty cool moment for sure.”

Rourke also hit a major milestone on Friday, passing Gerry Dattilio and climbing into second place on the CFL's list of all-time passing yards by a Canadian QB. The 27-year-old from Victoria, B.C., now has 10,054 across his career.

“Obviously, any time that kind of stuff happens, I think it does give you a moment to pause and say, ‘This is cool,'" Rourke said of the accomplishment. "There's a bigger thing than just this season, being able to represent Canadians in football and a lot of great Canadian quarterbacks."

"Every time I think I'm learning a little bit more about the game and the players that came before me, and that's always something special for me, so I'm honoured. It’s not something you're shooting for, I would say, but it's always something cool when it happens.”

NOTES: Toronto was limited to 28 rushing yards on 12 carries. … The Lions took five penalties for 49 yards in the first quarter. … Several B.C. players marked milestones in the game, including Butler (passed 1,000 rushing yards on the season), McInnis (passed the 1,000 receiving yards mark) and linebacker Micha Awe (passed 100 defensive tackles). 

UP NEXT

Lions: Host the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday, Oct. 4.

Argos: Face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Toronto on Saturday, Oct. 4.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2025.