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Lions Out, Eskies Go To Grey Cup

By 250 News

The day the music died....

Lion’s starter, Dave Dickenson’s quarter backing efficiency has become a game of annual one- up-man-ship, capped off this season with yet another CFL record.

2005 Dave Dickenson (BC) 118.8-Record
2004 Casey Printers (BC) 115.0-Record
2003 Dave Dickenson (BC) 112.7
2002 Anthony Calvillo (MTL) 111.1
2001 Dave Dickenson (CGY) 114.1-Record

With these kinds of numbers it boggles the mind to see the futility and frustration being lived out by these two super stars.

The team is bloated with talent, built to win it all, and nothing less than at least appearing in the big game would meet their own expectations along with those of their faithful following.

The game would be played before a house of 37,000 who were anxious to do their part. Like children waiting for the arrival of Christmas, ready to drown out any communication Edmonton quarter backing hoped to have with their offense.

The table set.....hotdog vendors well stocked with help on hand to handle the halftime rush...”children left unattended would be sold in sandwiches”.... the two team’s ready to have their on field performances do the talking.

The Leos were a “pit bull on the pant-leg of opportunity”.........

Game on:

Like so many outings in the last third of the season this one too started badly for the Lions when the Bret Anderson opening kickoff was returned to the BC 45 yard line.

Ricky Ray wasn’t able to accomplish anything of importance in his first possession resulting in a FG by Sean Fleming.

In the next series of downs by the Lions, Mark McLaughlin was able to return the favor with a 40 yarder of his own to tie it.

Just minutes later Jason Tucker hauled in a 51 yard pass and run play to the BC 25. Another Edmonton two and out results in Fleming making it a 6-3 ball game.

Late in the opening quarter a pass interference penalty by Sam Young on Jason Tucker in the BC end zone put the Eskimos on the Lions one yard line and Ray made them pay with the major score...14-3 Edmonton.

To this point the Eskimos had sacked Dickenson twice in the first 10 minutes. Edmonton pressure resulted largely from the BC QB’s abandonment of the running game, effectively neutralized by the Eskimo defensive attack and considered no longer an option for
Dave D.

Western Division all-star DB Otis Floyd left the game early in the second quarter with what was believed to be a torn muscle and left a big hole in the BC defense.

BC were also killing themselves in the first half with penalties...7 for 68 yards vs. none charged against the Eskimos. For the most part the penalties were a factor of having to react to getting beaten on plays.

On the defensive side of the ball their deep pass coverage were taking a beating as Eskimo receivers found themselves open in behind them.
Fortunately for the Lions, Edmonton receivers couldn’t hang onto the passes.

With four minutes left in the half, Ricky Ray would run in his second keeper from the BC one yard line making it 21-3...and it seemed the game was getting out of hand for the lions.

To this point in the second frame the Leos previous 5 possessions ended in punts.

With just one minute left in the half DB Baron Miles intercepted Ray on the Edmonton 39 yard line and on the next play Ryan Thelwell gathered in a Dickenson pass for a 27 yard scamper to the Eskimo’s one.

Printers was sent in to finish the deal and he would score at the 48 second mark giving his team some badly needed momentum to end the half 21-10

Ray and Dickenson finished the opening two quarters 14 of 22 and 13 for 17 respectively.

Dickenson started the second half by putting his team right back into the thick of things with a 90 yard TD to Geroy Simon....21-17 Esks.

Five minutes later Mark McLaughlin would split the uprights again putting the Lions within one and the game took on a whole different look at that point. Ray had again stalled as the Leos scored 17 unanswered points since 4:06 of the second quarter.

With just 50 seconds remaining in the third O’Mahony hit a 50 yard single tying it up.

The Eskimos had given up 10 points off turnovers and a sputtering Ricky Ray who had now gone seven games without a passing TD was for a second time in his last two games pulled for Jason Maas. This following a Steven Marsh interception of a Dave Dickenson pass midway through the fourth quarter.

It took Maas just two minutes to make the Lions pay as he went to Trevor Gaylor for a 15 yard major to end his first series, putting his team up by seven....28-21 Eskimos. These were the first points scored by the Esks. since the second frame.

Coach Wally Buono also chose to replace his starter at this juncture, and Casey Printers on his first call burned DB Malcolm Frank on a spectacular 47 yard pass to Paris Jackson all the way to the Eskimo17. The Lions had new life.

This however would be short lived with a Keyuo Craver interception on his own one yard line as Printers was flushed out of the pocket and in a poor decision threw into tight coverage.

A Jason Maas series ended in a Sean Fleming single making the score 28-22, followed by Printers going three and out on his own 35.

Edmonton chose to pin the Lions as Fleming kicked his FG try into the stands deep in the Lions end.

Printers would manage to get his team quickly down-field without too much resistance as the Eskimos sat back in a prevent defense. At the 21 sec. mark he threw into triple coverage on the Edmonton three and the Eskimos were flagged with pass interference.

On a final BC attempt, a catch by Geroy Simon in the end zone would have given the Lions the win but the ball sailed beyond his reach.

The dream was dead.....
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