SURREY – On Saturday night in Regina, the B.C. Lions were 11 seconds away from advancing to the Grey Cup for the first time since 2011.
Instead of planning for the championship game, players and management grappled with mixed emotions Sunday as they cleaned out their lockers at the team’s training facility following a 24-21 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the West final.
“It was a tough one for sure,” said wide receiver Keon Hatcher Sr. “That one stings, to have it right there in the palm of your hands and just slip away like that. That definitely hurts.”
Saturday’s defeat was the Lions’ first loss since Sept. 5. The Roughriders will play the Montreal Alouettes for the CFL championship on Nov. 16 in Winnipeg.
It was a fresh start for the Lions this season. Ryan Rigmaiden was elevated to general manager, former Lion Buck Pierce took on the dual role of head coach and offensive co-ordinator and Nathan Rourke was once again the undisputed starting quarterback.
Under the new regime, B.C. started 5-7 before winning their last six regular-season games to claim second place in the West Division at 11-7, a two-win improvement over 2024.
In a thrilling West semifinal on Nov. 1, the Lions advanced with a 33-30 win over the visiting Calgary Stampeders.
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Despite the abrupt and disappointing ending to his first year at the helm, Rigmaiden highlighted the organizational improvement that has occurred.
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“What Buck and the rest of his staff have brought, the players bought in right away,” Rigmaiden said. “You’re never happy when you don’t win the Grey Cup. But at the same time, the progress that’s been made here has been absolutely awesome.”
Up next, Rigmaiden and his staff will conduct their reviews of players and staff before making decisions on how to adjust the roster for next season.
Pierce believes there’s a solid foundation in place.
“The biggest takeaway is a sense of gratitude,” he said. “I’m proud of the way the guys grew throughout the course of the season. We’re going to do our best to keep this team together and I truly believe that the strides that we made this year will help us in the future.”
Rourke is a tremendous foundational piece. With a career-best 5,290 regular-season passing yards, the 27-year-old Victoria product also led all quarterbacks with 564 rushing yards despite missing two early-season games with an oblique injury.
He’s the West Division finalist for most outstanding player and most outstanding Canadian. The CFL awards will be handed out Thursday in Winnipeg.
“It’s kind of bittersweet,” Rourke said. “Individual awards are never what you set out to do. I do think — and hopefully other guys feel like this — It’s a reflection of the group, even though there’s one name on it, of what we accomplished this year.
“I hope they’re proud of that.”
After leaving the Lions following the 2022 season to try forge a path in the NFL, Rourke reaffirmed Sunday that it would take “a lot” to make him consider leaving again.
“The progress that I made this year as a quarterback, I feel like I made more steps this year than I did in the year and a half when I was down in the NFL,” he said. “Ultimately I just want to see growth personally and I want to be able to continue to give back to our organization that’s put a lot of faith in me and a lot of confidence in me, and I just want to continue to get better.
“I feel like there is something special here, and I want to be a part of that.”
With FIFA World Cup games taking over BC Place in the spring, the Lions will play a pre-season game in Langford, B.C. and hold their first two regular-season home games in Kelowna, B.C.
“We’re going to have to be road dogs,” Rigmaiden said. “But with the culture shift and what Buck has brought, I think it’s going to be the next thing that we rally behind.
“Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us, and we’re going to keep moving forward.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
