The BC Lions beat the Saskatchewan Roughriders 31-24 at BC Place on Friday. Quarterback Nathan Rourke threw for 375 yards and four touchdown passes. Defensive back Robert Carter Jr. played three days after re-signing with the Lions following a stint at Indianapolis Colts training camp.
Head coach Buck Pierce was asked about Rourke's night after a reporter called it the quarterback's best performance of the season. Pierce credited more than the quarterback for the result.
"Just happy for him. He works so hard. He deserves every bit of it ... he's playing some good football, and it's my job to continue to have him progress and see where it goes," Pierce said.
Rourke Outside the Pocket
Rourke extended plays outside the pocket, and Pierce pointed to early explosive plays. "If you get those big explosive plays like we were able to do ... that's part of our plan," Pierce said. "I thought he ... got all the way through his progressions. If the first one was there, he was decisive. If he got all the way through them, nothing was there, he made plays with his legs."
Rourke said the difference came down to decision-making. "I think in general, when I'm decisive, I think I'm at my best," Rourke said. "I think earlier in the year, I would agree with you. Watching that tape, I don't think I was as decisive as I would like to be, and just committing to whatever I'm seeing out there. Certainly I feel like today was one of those days where I was trusting what I was seeing out there."
He broke down a second-down play on which he escaped pressure and completed a pass to Justin McInnis. "They're only rushing 3, so knew I was going to be able to go through it at least," Rourke said. "At that point in the game, you're thinking no turnovers, don't want to force the ball down the field. So certainly wasn't looking for a tight window to throw it. It went through my progressions, ended up going to the left there, and just kind of let the instincts take over at that point."
Asked about his left hand, Rourke said it was not a concern. "It's good. We'll finish the game, have probably some more answers in a couple of weeks or days. If I can play through it, I'm not too worried about it."
The Standings
Both Rourke and Pierce were asked about the game's weight in the West Division race. The clubs split their first two meetings, and the winner on Friday claimed the season-series tiebreaker.
"We know Sask is going to be right there in it. Ultimately, going into this stretch, we knew that we controlled our own destiny. And so any type of win, especially against a West team, is huge for us," Rourke said. "You can't ask for anything else when you control whether or not you get a playoff game or where you fall in the standings."
Pierce kept the focus on process. "Obviously it's big in the standings, and the West is as tight as it's been in recent years," Pierce said. "We feel when we play at home, we should win, and that hasn't changed. We're just really trying to narrow our focus on the things that are going to help us improve."
Pierce took responsibility for a penalty at the goal line. "I'll take that on me. That can't happen, and we got to be better than that. I think I got the personnel group in late. Wasn't quite sure where the ball was, so I just got to clean that up."
Rourke on Hatcher and "Mrs. Momentum"
Rourke was asked about receiver Keon Hatcher Sr., who caught two of Rourke's four touchdown passes. "I love Hatch. He's one of my favorite teammates just of all time in my career," Rourke said. "I trust him implicitly, just with everything ... I think at his stage in his career, everyone's looking for a reason not to have him around, and he continues to prove that he belongs here. He's one of the best, if not the best, in the league."
Rourke brought a recurring lucky charm to the podium. "This is Mrs. Momentum, partner of Mr. Momentum," Rourke said. "Started showing up sometime around where we started winning, and we've kept them around, and they've started quite the family."
Carter Back From the NFL
Carter called the win unbelievable. "The win, being with the guys, I think that's the biggest part," Carter said. "I always talk about brotherhood with this team, and that's the biggest thing for me is like being on the field playing comfortable with my brothers."
Carter said learning the Lions' playbook in a matter of days was the harder part of the transition. "It wasn't that hard, honestly. I think it was more so like learning the plays in 2 days, 3 days, in which most of the plays I still remember. It was still difficult just trying to move out the NFL plays and bring in the BC Lions plays."
Asked whether the coaching staff simplified the scheme for him, Carter said no. "We didn't simplify it at all. We played ball. I feel like we pros, and I feel like that's my job. I got to learn the playbook," Carter said. "If I had any questions, my brothers on the field, so I would easily ask them like, hey, what I got on this one? And they communicate, and we did great communication all night."
Carter explained a pass breakup on a ball he said he could have intercepted. "It's new lights in BC Place that I was not aware of. As I'm looking up, I'm seeing bright lights, and then I happen to look into it and the ball falls out of it," Carter said. "I was like, well, I'm not going to be able to catch this, so I at least need to get the pass breakup."
Pierce and Carter on the Defence
Pierce was asked about his defence after roster changes during the week. "Our defence is playing really well, really well. They're running to the ball," Pierce said. "I thought they came out in the second half, was excellent. Offense couldn't move the ball at certain times. We had some bad field position, some tough field position, and defence held them. Once again, another massive 3rd-and-1 stop from our defence."
Carter was asked how the unit limited Saskatchewan late. "At the end of the day, we all pros, so they're gonna get theirs, but the thing is, we got to get more than they get. And that's what happened today," Carter said. "Communication was the biggest thing for us."
Watch the Full Videos
BC Lions: BC Lions Head Coach Buck Pierce | Post-Game | Sep.25.26
BC Lions: BC Lions Quarterback Nathan Rourke | Post-Game | Sep.25.26
BC Lions: BC Lions Defensive Back Robert Carter Jr. | Post-Game | Sep.25.26