The last meeting between the Edmonton Elks and the B.C. Lions on July 29 was the low point for the green and gold.
For the second time in six weeks, the Elks suffered a shut-out at the hands of the Lions by a score of 27-0. The Elks fell to 0-8 on the season which included a 22-0 loss to the Lions on June 18.
Fast forward to the present and things have dramatically changed for the Elks who will get the chance to exact some revenge on the Lions when the two teams meet at Commonwealth Stadium for a Friday night matchup.
Since the Elks loss to the Lions seven weeks ago, Tre Ford took over as the starting quarterback and Jarious Jackson is calling the plays on offence and the changes have reaped great results. The Elks in their last six games have a 4-2 record, have averaged 29.2 points scored, have scored 20 touchdowns, and have averaged 224 rushing yards. A far cry from their first eight games where as an offence they averaged just 12 points a game and scored 11 touchdowns.
Elks quarterback Tre Ford on the solid play of the Eugene Lewis and facing the Lions who like the Elks, enjoyed a comeback victory of their own last week
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The Elks have the best second-half record in the CFL at 4-1 but their 0-9 start has been a serious detriment to their playoff hopes. The Elks are still alive for a post-season berth but are sitting four points back of the Saskatchewan Roughriders for third in the west and they don’t have the benefit of a tie-breaker over the Riders. In the east, the Elks’ hopes for a crossover spot is equally as difficult. The Elks are four points back of both the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the Montreal Alouettes for third place the east.
Elks head coach Chris Jones says he knows the odds are long but his team’s job like it is every week is to win.
“Every game is critical in pro football and if we would have played a little bit better, here and there early in the season we wouldn’t be in the situation that we are in,” Jones said. “We are where we’re at and the kids have worked hard in developing a belief and now what we got to do is to go in and beat a good B.C. team.”
Elks head coach Chris Jones on his approach to the post-season, working with Tre Ford, and making no lineup changes vs. Lions
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Tre Ford will make is seventh straight start this season and has thrown a touchdown pass in each of his previous six games. Ford sits third in the CFL in completion percentage (69.2 per cent) and quarterback rating (106.9). The Elks defence will need to be on their toes against Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. who has passed for at least 300 yards in five straight games and has eight in total this season.
The Elks will not make any lineup changes for this game.
The following are the projected offensive and defensive starters for the Elks:
Offence
Quarterback: Tre Ford
Running back: Kevin Brown Fulback: Tanner Green
Offensive line: Martez Ivey, David Foucault, Mark Korte, Tomas Jack-Kurdyla, Brett Boyko
Receivers: Eugene Lewis, Gavin Cobb, Manny Arceneaux, Dillon Mitchell, Kyran Moore
Defence
Defensive line: Jake Ceresna, Cole Nelson, Kony Ealy, A.C. Leonard
Linebackers: Adam Konar, Nyles Morgan, Mark McLaurin
Defensive backs: Kai Gray, Ed Gainey, Loucheiz Purifoy, Darrius Bratton, Marcus Lewis
You can hear live coverage of the Friday’s game between the Elks and Lions on 630 CHED starting with Countdown to Kickoff with Brenden Escott at 6 p.m. The opening kickoff from Commonwealth Stadium will be at 7:30 p.m with Morley Scott and Dave Campbell calling all of the live action. Hear analysis from former Edmonton Football Team offensive lineman and two-time Grey Cup champion Blake Dermott. David Boles will be reporting from the Elks sidelines.
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