The Edmonton Elks played their first road game of the season in Vancouver on Saturday night, falling 22-0 to the BC Lions at BC Place Stadium.
Running back Kevin Brown led the Elks with 59 yard total offence, including 41 yards rushing and 18 yards from two receptions. First-year Elk Steven Dunbar Jr. was Edmonton’s top receiver, hauling in five passes for 40 yards. Taylor Cornelius had 92 yards on 13/22 passing for the Green and Gold.
For the second consecutive week, the Elks defence held the opposition to just one touchdown. Edmonton locked down BC in the redzone, where the Lions went just 1/4.
“We’ve got to be better for our defence, our defence played great tonight,” Cornelius said during a post-game interview on 630 CHED, radio home of the Edmonton Elks. “We left them out there way too long.”
Elks defensive tackle Kony Ealy sacked Vernon Adams and cornerback Ed Gainey intercepted the Montreal quarterback. Nyles Morgan, the 2022 CFL leader in tackles per game, had a game-high eight defensive tackles.
Caution: Elks charging ahead ⚠️#CFLGameday | @GoElks pic.twitter.com/bmUfc1snBm
— CFL (@CFL) June 17, 2023
Edmonton was outgained 419-140 in total offence, as the Green and Gold suffered their first shutout since August 15, 1976, a 40-0 road loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The first points of the game didn’t come until 3:10 into the second quarter, when Sean Whyte connected on a 16-yard field goal to give BC a 3-0 lead. Two more field goals from Whyte late in the second quarter gave the Lions a 9-0 lead at half.
BC extended its lead to 19-0 entering the final quarter, following a Whyte 51-yard field goal and a touchdown toss from Vernon Adams to Dominique Rhymes in the third. Whyte’s fifth field goal, at 7:39 of the fourth quarter, closed the scoring.
“We’re obviously super disappointed with the way that went,” veteran Elks linebacker Adam Konar said on CHED. “We were expecting a lot more than that out of us. We’ve just got to come back together and figure out what we need to fix on defence, special teams and offence, and get this ship turned around.”
The Lions improve to 2-0 and move into a tie with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for first place in the CFL West Division. Edmonton, which lost its season opener 17-13 to Saskatchewan on June 11, is now 0-2, and will have a week to prepare for their next game, at home against the 2022 Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts at Commonwealth Stadium on June 25.
Be there Sunday, June 25 at Commonwealth Stadium when the Edmonton Elks host the Toronto Argonauts for ’90s Night. Being part of the action has never been more affordable, with tickets starting at just $15. Click here to get your tickets now and be part of the tradition.
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