‘He’s a good quarterback’: Riders prepare for O’Connor-led Lions

The B.C. Lions will have a new leader of the pack Friday.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are preparing to face a Michael O’Connor-led Lions team after Nathan Rourke suffered a foot injury in last Friday’s CFL game between the teams, a 28-10 win for B.C.

Kickoff for the third game of the season between the teams is set for Friday at 8:30 p.m. in Vancouver. The Green Zone pre-game show begins at 6:30 p.m.

Rourke was injured when defensive end Pete Robertson got to the 24-year-old quarterback for Saskatchewan’s only sack in the game.

Rourke, who was considered the favourite to win this year’s most outstanding player award, had thrown for 3,281 yards, 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in just nine games.

“Any situation where a young quarterback goes down like that, especially since he’s having a crazy good year, it’s upsetting,” Riders linebacker Darnell Sankey said after Wednesday’s practice. “He was bringing a lot of notice to the CFL and I know he was doing great things.”

Sankey has been having an outstanding season in his own right with 59 tackles, one behind teammate Larry Dean and Hamilton Tiger-Cats linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox for the league lead.

With the injury to Rourke, O’Connor is expected to be the Lions’ choice to start at quarterback this week.

The 6-foot-5, 223-pound O’Connor, who was drafted in 2019 by the Toronto Argonauts and spent 2021 with the Calgary Stampeders, has dressed for 24 career CFL games and thrown for 236 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

“He’s a great dude, first and foremost,” said Sankey, who was O’Connor’s teammate in Calgary last season. “I think he’s a really smart quarterback, really tall and a bigger body, wants to sit in the pocket and really (throw) it.

“He has a really good arm, it’s strong and he can hit the deep ball. He’s a good quarterback for sure.”

Riders head coach Craig Dickenson also had praise for the Lions’ quarterback.

“He can make every throw on the football field,” Dickenson said. “He’s got better athleticism than you think. I know when he was in Calgary, Dave (Dickenson, the Stampeders’ head coach) was on the fence between him and Jake Maier.

“(O’Connor) is a very good quarterback and I think they will have some growing pains with him but he’s definitely a good enough quarterback to win some games with them.”

Despite the Riders’ defence only getting one sack in its last game against the Lions, Saskatchewan still leads the league with 33 over the season.

The Riders’ defence has been able to get turnovers in the passing game, with a league-leading 13 interceptions. But Saskatchewan has given up a league-high 2,922 yards through the air.

While O’Connor will be a new piece for the Riders to defend, the rest of the Lions’ offence will pose a challenge.

Lions receivers Dominque Rhymes (810 yards), Lucky Whitehead (738) and Keon Hatcher (629) are all in the top 10 in receiving yards in the CFL this season. Rhymes also has a league-leading nine touchdown receptions.

Slotback Bryan Burnham, who missed four games due to a rib injury, has been a solid target for the Lions in the three games since his return, hauling in 19 passes for 314 yards and three touchdowns.

“They are real talented all around the ball,” Sankey said. “We’ve just got to do what we’ve got to do and we know what we’re capable of. I’m confident — I’m confident in this team and confident in this defence.”

NOTES: Dickenson said a decision still needs to be made when it comes to slotback Kyran Moore and wide receiver Shaq Evans joining the lineup this week. Both practised all week but Dickenson said Moore had something happen Wednesday. Dickenson remains hopeful both will play Friday … Defensive tackle Anthony Lanier II (illness) has been ruled out for the game. Defensive end Charleston Hughes will be added to the game-day roster … The CFL announced Wednesday that Roughriders defensive tackle Garrett Marino had been fined for unnecessary roughness on Lions offensive lineman Peter Godber in Friday’s game. On the fourth offensive play in Marino’s first game back after a four-game suspension, Marino hit Godber when the Lions were flagged for illegal procedure.