The BC Lions 2005

[TheRob]

While scoping the talent at the FeLions Dance Squad tryouts I got a good look at the new unies for 2005.

I like them.

[Dial 9-1-1]

Not bad, but I still prefer their previous uniforms. The previous uniforms were a throwback to their earliest years. These are a throwback to the 70s/80s. I think retro is now defined as anything older than 20 years but not older than 35.

~Retro Dial

[Reccos]

I liked these uniforms as they continue to link to the entire existence of the Lions. I didn't dislike the black (which they will bring in this year apparently) and the silver helmets.

The Lions may have had some bad teams in the past, but they have always had good uniforms.

[TheRob]

Lions to trade WR Frank Cutolo

TSN.ca Staff
6/14/2005 2:05:57 PM

Frank Cutolo's days with the B.C. Lions are at an end.

The team told the veteran wide receiver that they are working to trade him, and had a deal on the table with an East Division team that fell through in the last minute on Monday.

Last week, Sherrod Gideon became one of the first cuts at Lions' training camp, leaving Cutolo as the favourite to fill the starter's role.

Cutolo was named CFL Most Outstanding Rookie after a successful 2003 season. He finished second in the league in combined yards with 2,339 and tied for second in punt return yards with 553, playing in all 18 regular season games.

Last season, Cutolo totaled 47 catches for 786 yards and nine touchdowns.

Prior to his time with the Lions, Cutolo had stints with both the New Orleans Saints of the NFL and the Frankfurt Galaxy of NFL Europe.

In other Lions' news, the team made 10 cuts, the most notable being defensive end Mawuko Tugbenyoh. Tugbenyoh had six sacks for the Lions last season, second on the team behind Brent Johnson (10). Tugbenyoh had spent time with both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears before joining the Lions.

Also gone are longsnapper Bill Chamberlain, cornerbacks Sam Cunningham and Jerome Acy, wide receivers Pierre Brown, Herb Haygood, Scott Lunde and Stephen Stokes, defensive tackle Nigel Tharpe and defensive back Scott Plummer.

Meanwhile, linebacker Kelly Lochbaum may require surgery after suffering a separated shoulder in Sunday's exhibition game against Saskatchewan, while the team managed to make another trade, sending defensive back Da'shann Austin to Ottawa for future considerations.

Too bad. I always thought Cutolo was a good player.

On another note, I thought their unies looked great the other night. Really sharp. The white helmets look sharp.

[Yoda]

He must be good, he played for the Frankfurt Galaxy!
Who were they trading for? Another Quarterback?

[TheRob]

Dickenson racks up the yards on Stamps

Canadian Press
6/17/2005 12:50:03 AM

VANCOUVER (CP) - It was a new experience for Dave Dickenson.

The wily veteran threw for over 300 yards in just less than three quarters and showed some slippery moves when being chased as the B.C. Lions defeated the Calgary Stampeders 32-16 in a CFL exhibition game Thursday night.

"This is the most I've ever played in a pre-season, ever," said Dickenson, who has loudly answered any questions about who will be the Lions starting quarterback when the regular season opens.

"I needed it though. I feel like I got better in the pre-season. I needed to get to know our receivers and I think that helped a lot."

Dickenson played about 2.5 quarters in the Lions 37-23 win over Saskatchewan on Sunday.

With just five days rest the 32-year-old still looked like a spry rookie Thursday as he completed 22 of 27 passes for 311 yards. He threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Geroy Simon on the Lions third play of the game and was intercepted once near the end of the first half.

"I didn't feel as fresh as I did against Saskatchewan but I saw the field better much today," he said.

Maybe more importantly, Dickenson looked nimble on his feet after missing eight games last year due to knee surgery.

In the second quarter Dickenson twice scramble out of the pocket, avoiding tacklers and gaining yards. He also got up and walked away from a brutal hit when two Stampeders tried to break him in half.

"I am going to have to run some," he chuckled.

"I'd like to make a few plays with my legs. That can break down defences like no other position."

Running back Antonio Warren scored twice for the Lions on short runs before a crowd of 23,753.

"Our O-line opened up a few holes and Dave threw me a few good passes," said Warren, had 53 rushing yards on eight carries.

"I felt real good out there today."

The Lions showed they have even more depth at quarterback when Buck Pierce completed 11 of 17 passes for 101 yards in just over a quarter of play.

"Every day I'm getting more and more comfortable with the offence," said Pierce.

"I'm still making a lot of mistakes out there. I have to keep working."

Duncan O'Mahony kicked field goals of 44, 35, and 30. He also boomed singles of 61 and 48 yards off punts.

Calgary's Henry Burris threw a 50-yard strike to Jermaine Copeland. He finished the night competing 14 of 24 passes for 218 yards before being replaced by Jason Gesser in the fourth quarter.

Rookie kicker Sandro DeAngelis hit on field goals of 26, 48 and 41 yards.

Calgary coach Tom Higgins was frustrated the Stamps didn't score a point in the second half.

"We're pleased that we played them well in the first half and in the second half we got a little bit spotty," he said.

When Dickenson was injured last season sophomore quarterback Casey Printers took over the Lions reigns.

Printers threw a league-high 35 touchdowns, led B.C. to first place in the West and was named the CFL MVP.

Training camp was supposed to be a battle royal between Dickenson and Printers for the number one spot.

But Printers has been hobbled all camp recovering from off-season toe surgery and a sore shoulder. His only action during the exhibition games was holding on converts and field goal attempts.

Lions coach Wally Buono said Printers could be ready to play by B.C.'s season opener June 25 in Toronto.

The Stampeders opened the exhibition season with a 18-14 win over Saskatchewan on June 7.

Notes: It was the first game on the new FieldTurf at B.C. Place Stadium, the same artificial surface the Expos used during their last season in Montreal. ... It was also the home debut for the Lions new orange and white uniforms. ... Linebackers Kelly Lockbaum (shoulder) and Carl Kidd (knee), quarterback Jarious Jackson (thumb) and cornerback Jason Crumb (knee) were all on the sidelines for B.C.

Almost 24,000 at a pre season game. Looks like it is going to be a big year attendence wise for the Lions.

I see a future TTP Event on the horizon.

[Dude]

TheRob...I was thinking the same thing. I'll make an effort to get to a game or two this season.

[Regs]

The field turf looks pretty good in BC Place as well. Would love to get out to a game this year.

[walls]

great game last night. that peirce kid has a fcukin CANNON!!!!!!! i got season tix this year, 2nd row in the corner(right in front of the felions) and let me say i like the new kits the gals were sportin.........especially in the 2nd half.

i love camera/video phones!!!!!

[Reccos]

Walls- I hope you weren't part of the dummies behind us in section 21 who were trying to start the wave when we were on offence. That was hard to believe. I guess it couldn't be you because they left early and they didn't see the good things Pierce did with his short debut.

Buono is a bit of an idiot when it comes to QBs as he played Dickenson too long last night just like the Grey Cup when he didn't play Printers at all. It's that coaches ego thing with him.

I agree that Buck Pierce looks like he will be a good CFL QB if he gets a chance to develop and play some - depends on Jarius Jackson getting better too I assume and how well he will play. Buono is known for developing and keeping happy good QBs. He had Flutie, Garcia and Dickenson all at the same time with no problems that became public anyway. If Flutie were #2 there would have been trouble though.

I heard on the post game radio show that Pierce was on the internet looking for free agent camps to attend when he noticed that the Lions were holding one that SAME day in Oregon so he jumped in his car and drove up from Northern California and got signed. Not too bad.

Pierce sure looked better last night than did Washingston State Rose Bowl QB Jason Gesser who wouldn't sign with BC because of our QB situation. Of course, BC has a way better offense than Calgary so Pierce was working with a better team last night.

Henry Burris looked good but other than Jermaine Copeland WR and the running back Joffrey ? Reynolds #21, Calgary has a long way to go to be a contender this year.

Their place kicker looks like he could hit 'em from 60 yards! He is a good one. O'Mahony for us looks a lot stronger too and is really hitting it long. Caravatta was saying that his last year kick off average was 53 yards and last night it was over 60 I think. His FG kicking looks like he is off to a better year. The last FG the Lions missed was the guy on the tryout from U of Manitoba so he was just getting a reward for coming to camp.

Should be a good season - lots of interest in town again.

[Reccos]

Correction - if you were in the second row - Walls definitely wasn't behind us about 20 up...lol. Got on the phone and kept adding between calls.

One other thing. Can that idiot Dan Russell talk anything but football. I know that Dunigan and Glen Suitor came on as I switched between 730 and 1040 where the games are done but about a half hour after the game the clown was talking golf and hockey. You sort of figure that a sports talk show from Vancouver would take about the local football game that night.

[walls]

Originally Posted by Reccos

Henry Burris looked good but .......

did you guys hear the field announcer in the 2nd quarter when burris threw one over the lions bench and almost into the stands?? he said "PASS FROM BURRIS COMPLETE TO SECTION 41!!". absolutely fcukin classic!!!!

i was in section 4 row 2, but i saw those clowns you're talking about.

matt dunigan was right beside us doing a promo for TSN so i yelled at him, "hey dunnigan, why aren't you coaching this year!!!" the crowd loved it. Dunnigan didn't. he gave me a stern look and shook his head at me, i flipped him the bird, and he left our section for the rest of the game.

anyone else have season tickets????

[Regs]

You flipped him the bird?

You should have tea bagged him or screwed his missus

[Dapotayto]

Originally Posted by walls

I yelled at him, "hey dunnigan, why aren't you coaching this year!!!" the crowd loved it. Dunnigan didn't. he gave me a stern look and shook his head at me, i flipped him the bird, and he left our section for the rest of the game.

The crowd loved it, eh? Did they chant your name, do the wave or just cheer wildly? It's just speculation of course but I have a feeling that if Dunigan wanted to he could pull your arms and legs off and stuff the rest of you up Jenna Jaimeson's fanny, never to be seen again. Nice seats though. Have the Felions do a cartwheel for me would you.

[Argyle]

Got the seasons tickets and are ready for game one!

Not sure if these are the same guys, but there were about 10 drunk morons that were trying to start the wave late in the game down in section 1!

The guy with the large red cowboy hat was not much better...trying to blow his buddies horn! Section 4...near the top though!

What time is the game this Saturday in TO?

[Reccos]

Watched the Lions practice the other day plus saw the Calgary exhibition. The BC receiving corp looks explosive and some burners too. Printers took less snaps at practice than did Buck Pierce so who knows if Buono will put Printers in other than for holding for FGs.

Game is on CBC at 3:30 pm Saturday - but I thought the kickoff was 4 pm but can't tell by the CBC tv schedule. It maybe the pre-game show for 30 min.

I intend to take in most if not all games again this year but normally go to most most years.

[Coach]

Hey TheRob and Regs.

I think we need a TTP game later on in the season.

I will orginize a game and time that will suite everyone?

Sounds good....................................Great, done and done.

B.C...........B.C.............B.C.............B.C........... ........B.C............!!!!!!!!!

[Regs]

Sounds good to me Coach!

Just give me the number for Buono so I can ask him to postpone the game you pick when we only get 3 or 4 committed leading up to the event

Just kidding

~Regs.

PS. Don't pick August 27th!

[TheRob]

Lions upend Argos in Grey Cup rematch

Canadian Press

6/25/2005 11:54:21 PM

TORONTO (CP) - Dave Dickenson and the B.C. Lions crashed the Toronto Argonauts' party Saturday night.

Dickenson engineered an impressive 16-play, 89-yard drive that Antonio Warren capped with a one-yard TD run with 1:12 remaining as B.C. rallied for a wild 27-20 win over Toronto in a rematch of last year's Grey Cup. The Argos beat the Lions 27-19 in Ottawa last November and celebrated that victory Saturday night by raising their championship banner prior to the contest.

Noel Prefontaine's 45-yard field goal at 9:31 of the fourth put Toronto ahead 20-19. But Dickenson moved the Lions, who led 19-6 early in the third, down the field smartly and hit Geroy Simon for the two-point convert after Warren's TD.

"We outplayed them in the first half but had lost all the momentum and didn't get it back until that final drive," Dickenson said. "We hadn't kicked field goals as well as we could have so we worked to put it into the end zone for the lead."

B.C. kicker Duncan O'Mahony had earlier missed field-goal tries from 29 and 28 yards. So instead of leading 23-20 when Prefontaine connected in the third, the Lions trailed by a point.

Bashir Levingston brought the Rogers Centre gathering of 30,712 to its feet when he appeared to return the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown. But he was ruled out of bounds at the Toronto 50-yard line.

The Argos got to the B.C. 17-yard line before Otis Floyd recovered Damon Allen's fumble with six seconds remaining.

Before the opening kickoff, the Argos hoisted their Grey Cup banner to the rafters during an elaborate 20-minute ceremony. With the roof closed, fans were treated to fireworks, a laser light show, video sequences on the stadium's video scoreboard and ring presentations as part of the celebration.

All the while, B.C. remained in its dressing room, patiently waiting to take to the field. But Dickenson said he and his teammates weren't offended by the festivities.

"I didn't notice the presentation," he said. "I respect their team and they just wanted to celebrate with their fans, then start the year."

Dickenson had a gutsy performance for B.C. His passing numbers weren't spectacular (22-of-28 attempts for 260 yards and a TD) but Dickenson stood tall against the Argos' rugged defence. A traditional drop-back passer, he was sacked six times but also ran for 55 yards on seven carries.

"Dave is Dave," Lions coach Wally Buono said. "He's tough, gritty.

"He takes his shots and makes the plays, each one adds to the confidence of the team."

Tempers flared with nine minutes to play as a melee broke out, with Argos tackle Bernard Williams hurling both a Lions' helmet and a mouthguard downfield. Once the smoke had cleared, Williams and B.C.'s Jojuan Armour were ejected.

Toronto head coach Mike (Pinball) Clemons was disappointed his team didn't take advantage of its scoring chances.

"We had a lot of opportunities but we foiled a lot of them," he said. "Quite frankly, we kicked too many field goals.

"The first game of the season is essentially a third pre-season game but the challenge is that it counts. But we put ourselves in a position to win the football game."

Allen, who was named the 2004 Grey Cup MVP, finished 22-of-35 passing for 284 yards and had a 21-yard TD strike to R. Jay Soward. But he said turnovers were the key to the game.

"Early in the season I've found teams that lose the turnover battle have tough times winning games," he said. "We lost the turnover battle and that was pretty much the difference in the game.

"There wasn't anything they did as a defence to stop us, we stopped ourselves."

Simon also had a touchdown for the Lions. O'Mahony had two converts, a field goal and two singles.

Prefontaine finished with four field goals, a convert and single.

Notes - Allen was at quarterback for B.C. in 2000 the last time the club won a Grey Cup. ... It might've been the first regular-season game for both teams, but there were no penalties in the first quarter. ... The defence that Toronto fielded Saturday consisted of the same 12 starters who faced B.C. in the Grey Cup. ... Dave Ritchie, fired midway through last season as Winnipeg's head coach, was B.C.'s defensive co-ordinator.

That was a good way to start of the year for sure, but SIX freaking sacks?

The only thing worse than that is the fact that O'Mahony can't hit anything under 30 yards. That guy is terrible and I can't believe they didn't go out and find someone who could kick consistantly over the off season. It could come back to bite them in the ass. It almost did Saturday.

Nice to see big crowds all over the league for opening weekend.

[Regs]

Big work needed on the O-line and I agree with the O'Mahony shout... his punting is shite as well!