VANCOUVER — The Saskatchewan Roughriders’ recent struggles against the B.C. Lions don’t concern slotback Bakari Grant.
The CFL’s Roughriders have lost six straight regular-season games to B.C., including three in Regina and three in Vancouver.
“Out of 70 guys (in the locker room), how many know that? I bet none. Maybe one,” said Grant, whose team is to face the Lions today at BC Place (5 p.m., TSN, CKRM). “You can’t pay attention to it.
“We have to stay focused on our game plan. If we minimize the errors — especially pre-snap penalties — and play a solid game from first quarter to fourth quarter, we’ll see what happens.”
Saskatchewan’s last victory against the Lions occurred Aug. 24, 2014, when it prevailed 20-16 at BC Place. Since then, the Roughriders have been outscored 213-127 in their six straight losses to the Lions — three in 2015 and three in 2016.
Like Grant, Roughriders running back Cameron Marshall isn’t fazed by the team’s recent lack of success against B.C.
“This is a new batch of guys from last year’s team,” said Marshall who, having signed with Saskatchewan this off-season, is one of those new players.
“The Lions are a good football team — I’m not discrediting them — but this is a new batch of guys. We played them in the pre-season (losing 42-10 in Vancouver on June 16), but we haven’t played them yet in the regular season. We’ll see how it goes after that.”
“We can’t control anything that has gone on in the past,” added guard Brendon LaBatte. “If we execute, eliminate the mental mistakes and put together a full 60 minutes, I think we’ve got a good chance.
“When you look at 0-and-6 against them recently, that doesn’t really carry much weight because each game is a different game and each year is a different year.”
The Roughriders are 1-7-0 in their last eight games against B.C., but they won three of the teams’ four meetings before that. That includes a 29-25 decision over the Lions in the West Division semifinal in 2013.
The Roughriders enter today’s game with a 2-3-0 record this season, having won two of their last three games. They beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 37-20 on July 8 and the Toronto Argonauts 38-27 last Saturday, with a 27-10 loss to the Calgary Stampeders on July 22 sandwiched in between.
The Lions, meanwhile, are 4-2-0 this season and will provide a stiff test for a Saskatchewan side that is eager to make some noise in 2017.
“We’re not really worried about the end result because we’re worried about right now, just taking care of business right now,” said Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones. “(We have a) short-term focus, so the B.C. Lions are what we’re talking about.
“We’ve got to be able to go on the road and beat a solid, quality western opponent.”
Ah, yes – the West.
The Roughriders have lost both of their games against division opponents this season, falling to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (43-40 in overtime on July 1) and the Stampeders. But those losses are part of a trend for Saskatchewan.
The Roughriders went 1-9-0 against West Division teams in each of the past two seasons and lost five of their last six divisional games in 2014. That means Saskatchewan is 3-25-0 in its last 28 regular-season games against the West.
The Roughriders also have lost 14 straight road games against West Division teams, a skid that dates back to a 30-24 victory over Winnipeg on Sept. 7, 2014.
Saskatchewan’s struggles against the West didn’t surprise defensive tackle Eddie Steele, who knows what the division is all about.
“It’s a great measuring stick every time you play a western opponent; it’s always going to be a battle,” he said. “Every time you play anybody in this league, it’s going to be a battle, but it’s always really good football in the West.
“We’ve just got to string together some well-played games and play consistently and the wins will come.”
Today’s game is the first of five straight for the Roughriders against West Division teams. They play host to B.C. on Aug. 13 and then, after a bye week, visit the Edmonton Eskimos on Aug. 25, entertain the Bombers on Sept. 3 and visit Winnipeg on Sept. 9.
It’s an important stretch for Saskatchewan, but LaBatte doesn’t think it will make or break the Roughriders’ season.
“I wouldn’t say that at all,” he said. “Each game is its own deal. The goal doesn’t change each week, so you can’t start thinking long term.
“Being division games, there’s a lot riding on them, but (this stretch of games) is definitely not a make-or-break, backs-up-against-the-wall thing like a playoff game. We just have to be loose and execute.”
The first chance to do that is today at BC Place, where the Lions are notoriously tough.
“They’re not invincible, but they play very good, tough, solid football,” Jones said. “We’ve got to match that physicality.”
