VANCOUVER — Running back James Butler returned to haunt his old B.C. Lions teammates on Saturday.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats avenged their loss to Edmonton last week with an impressive 30-13 win over the Lions at B.C. Place.
Third-string Ticats' quarterback Taylor Powell went 18 of 23, throwing for 222 yards and one touchdown.
Butler shredded through his former team's defence, consistently finding space through the defensive line.
The American running back spent two seasons with the Lions before signing with Hamilton in February 2023.
"It was personal for me. My old team, my old home where I kind of rejuvenated my CFL career. I got hurt on this field, played hurt on this field, scored a lot of points and had a lot of ups and downs on this field, so it felt real good to come in and get a win," Butler said.
He credited his performance to his offensive line and receivers providing blocking coverage.
Butler opened the scoring for Hamilton (4-6) at the start of the second quarter, vaulting his way into the end zone. Butler followed that up in the third quarter by scoring the first passing touchdown the Lions (7-4) have conceded at home during the 2023 regular season.
The Tiger-Cats entered the game second-last in the league in rushing yards, but Butler finished with 21 carries and 118 yards.
"We got pushed around," said Lions head coach Rick Campbell about his defensive line's attempts to limit Butler's output on offence. "He's a good player … but we were getting pushed around up front. There were times we knew they were running the ball and we still got pushed around."
B.C. started the game missing a third down and inches attempt on the opening drive, with Campbell saying he thought his team looked "flat."
"I thought the energy Hamilton brought was better than ours, and that's not typical of our guys. I sure like this football team but I didn't like the way we came at it today, and I'm not sure why that was," he said.
Vernon Adams Jr. threw for 326 yards, one touchdown and one interception, but said he'd trade the yards in return for a win.
"I felt like we were moving the ball pretty good but we just weren't finishing," said Adams after the game. "I hate losing. I hate it more than I like winning."
The Tiger-Cats' offence held the Lions' defence on the field for extended periods as they worked on long scoring drives, including a 13-play, 94-yard scoring drive in the second quarter as well as a nine-play, 69-yard scoring drive in the third.
"We need to give our defence a rest," said Adams. "I said it last week, when we start out fast, we love to receive, go down there and score. And that gives our defence motivation."
Lions receiver Keon Hatcher got the only touchdown of the game for B.C. in the fourth quarter, with the subsequent onside kick attempt recovered by Hamilton's Tim White and returned for a touchdown.
The Lions had previously only lost back-to-back games once in the last 29 contests.
UP NEXT
Hamilton will host the Eastern Division-leading Toronto Argonauts (8-1) on Sept. 4, while the B.C. Lions will head to Montreal (6-4) on Sept. 2 to square off against the Alouettes.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 26, 2023.
Nick Wells, The Canadian Press
