At the beginning of the season, across the country, the majority of the chatter surrounding Nathan Rourke was the details of his passport. But after a month of being the Lions starting quarterback, all of the talk around Rourke has been the numbers on his stat sheet.
Rourke was a guest on Monday’s edition of the SportsCage with Michael Ball.
The Lions are coming off of a win against the Hamilton Ti-Cats last Thursday. The offence have been largely responsible for the Lions success in 2022 but it was the defence who led the BC to the 17-12 win over the Ti-Cats. Rourke said he was disappointed that the offence didn’t play up to their usual standard but added it’s comforting to know that the defence on his team is capable of winning a game like they did.
Along with Rourke, the top performer in the BC backfield in 2022 has been running back James Butler. Butler attended training camp with the Riders in 2019 before being released by the green and white. The running back is on pace to a career season as he has picked up 319 yards rushing along with 167 yards receiving. Rourke says Butler is a special weapon out of the backfield.
“He’s also shown he’s a playmaker out of the backfield as well and I think that puts stress on the defence when the running back is kind of a sixth receiver out there. The more you can do, the more valuable you are and he’s certainly proved that this year.”
Even without their one of their top receivers Byron Burnham in the lineup, the offence has not slowed down in 2022. One of the reasons have been able to pile up the points on the board this season has been other receivers stepping up in Burnham’s absence including Jevon Cottoy. The former Langley Ram has been a big help for the Lions offence in several aspects according to Rourke.
“He does a lot of blocking for us because he’s a big dude, but when he gets the ball in his hands, it’s going to take more than one defender to bring him down.”
After storming out of the gates with seven touchdowns and no interceptions over the first two games of the season, Rourke has thrown seven touchdowns and six interceptions during his last three contests. The Canadian quarterback says not turning over the ball is something he wants to work on.
“Last couple of games, I’ve had multiple turnovers and that’s not going to cut it especially like a team for Saskatchewan, they’re very good at forcing turnovers.”
Rourke’s first action in the CFL happened last season at Mosaic Stadium when he filled in for Michael Reilly in Week 1. The QB tossed 194 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions in the loss to Saskatchewan. Rourke says it’s always noteworthy when he plays in Regina.
“Mosaic is such a special place regardless of whether it was my first start or not, I mean you just look at that stadium, how passionate the fans are, and look at the historic greatness of the Saskatchewan Roughriders it’s a just a place you want to go in and win as an opposing team.”
Across the country, Rourke has been the talk of the CFL including here in Saskatchewan. Riders QB Cody Fajardo says Rourke has been on his radar for quite some time.
“The first time I saw Nathan Rourke was at a bowl game this was two years or three years ago, (the 2020 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl) they were playing University of Nevada and he kicked our butts and I was like, who was this quarterback. ”
As Riders Head Coach Craig Dickenson gets ready to game plan for Rourke, he says the Quarterback is a very talented player.
“I think everyone knew he was a special player, regardless of nationality, everybody could see those are the types of guys who have success in our league, smart, tough, he can throw the ball better than you think and he can certainly run with it.”
With the Lions and Riders set to play three times over the next month, Rourke says it’s a very important stretch for the men in Orange and Black similar to the path that’s currently facing the green and white.
Rourke and the BC Lions will make their first visit to Mosaic Stadium on Friday when they meet the Riders, you can catch the game on 620 CKRM with an opening kickoff at 7:00.
