Kick-off: 1930 PDT, 26/08/2022
Stadium: BC Place
TV: TSN/ESPN
BC are backed to cope without injured quarterback Nathan Rourke when seeking a third straight win over Saskatchewan this season.
Stand-in signal caller Michael O’Connor will take heart from the way the Lions’ offensive line dominated in two convincing head-to-head victories this term.
We’re sticking with the hosts to cover four points on the spread at 1.91 for our first BC Lions vs Saskatchewan Roughriders prediction.
BC Lions Odds
Rourke put in yet another outstanding display as BC beat the Roughriders 28-10 on the road last week to reach 8-1.
The 24-year-old completed 22 of his 31 passes for 375 yards and two touchdowns before suffering an ankle injury in the fourth quarter.
He posted similar figures when the Lions prevailed 32-17 at Mosaic Stadium in Week 8 and his dual-threat ability will obviously be missed.
“It’s always tough to see someone like Nathan go down,” said DB Loucheiz Purifoy. “He’s a leader on our team.
“But we know it’s man down, man up, so we’ve got his back through it all. Until he gets healthy, we’re going to have his back. We’re going to play 100 per cent for him.”
O’Connor has very limited playing experience but a couple of seasons backing up at Toronto and Calgary should stand him in good stead.
He made five straight short passes after coming off the bench a week ago and we’re backing the former University of British Columbia stand-out to hold his own.
Looking at the BC Lions vs Saskatchewan Roughriders odds, let’s go with 4.6 for a home win by 7-12 points.
Saskatchewan Roughriders Odds
Saskatchewan slipped to 5-5 with that defeat and also face uncertainty under centre after pulling off Cody Fajardo before half-time.
He had thrown a couple of interceptions before being replaced by Mason Fine, who went 16-26 for 210 yards, a touchdown and a pick.
However, head coach Craig Dickenson appears set to stick with his number one and even suggested Fajardo will be given more freedom to make plays.
“We want to be a playoff-calibre team and we want to go in on a hot streak, so this is a big game for us,” declared Dickenson.
“Our guys have put in a good week of practice, so hopefully it’ll pay off in the game.
“I think we’ve got to show up from the get-go, we’ve got to start fast and play good the whole game. We’ve got to show some mental toughness.”
The Riders need to find a way to break down BC’s impressive defence, though, as they failed to score after half-time in both encounters on home turf this term.
It is worth noting that the second quarter produced the most points in each of those games and 2.45 for that trend to continue completes our BC Lions vs Saskatchewan Roughriders betting tips.
Additional stats
Last result:
SASKATCHEWAN 10-28 BC LIONS
Previous head-to-head: Saskatchewan 17-32 BC Lions, BC Lions 24-31 Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan 33-29 BC Lions
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