Photo: Tanner Piper/Piper Sports Photography/3DownNation. All rights reserved.
The B.C. Lions appear to have experienced remorse over a recent celebratory social media post, as the team deleted it after it went viral.
Instead of a standard schadenfreude-esque meme, the club released an official-looking statement after beating the Ottawa Redblacks at TD Place Stadium on Sunday night.
“The B.C. Lions have decided to respectfully refrain from posting win memes tonight out of an abundance of caution for the well-being of the Ottawa Redblacks and their fanbase,” read the post.
“Please know the B.C. Lions are excited about their win but extend the deepest of sympathy for all those who experienced another loss tonight.
The Road Team, please enjoy yet another lemon.
Thank you.”
The statement drew mixed reviews from users on social media. In one reply, the team indicated it was intended in “all fun and games!”
The Lions politely declined 3DownNation’s request for comment regarding their decision to delete the social media post.
B.C. knocked off the Redblacks by a score of 45-24 on Sunday, as Zander Horvath rushed 24 times for 164 yards and four touchdowns to be named 3DownNation’s Offensive Player of the Week. Nathan Rourke completed 22-of-25 passes for 355 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The loss extended Ottawa’s losing streak to 17 games, which is the longest in modern CFL history. The team is the fifth in league history to start a season 0-11, alongside the 1981 Toronto Argonauts, 2003 Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 1979 Saskatchewan Roughriders, and 1994 Shreveport Pirates.
Jake Maier, the team’s quarterback, became the first player at the position to lose 11 straight starts to begin a CFL season.
The Lions have now won five-straight games to sit over .500 for the first time this season. They currently rank third in the West Division standings.
Coincidentally, B.C. practiced at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa on Tuesday in preparation for this week’s game in Montreal.
The B.C. Lions (6-5) will visit the Montreal Alouettes (9-2) at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium on Friday, September 4 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT. Last week, the Lions crushed the Ottawa Redblacks to win a fifth-straight game, while the Alouettes snapped their seven-game winning streak with an upset loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The weather forecast in Montreal calls for a high of 21 degrees and a 30 percent chance of showers. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS in Canada, and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on 730 CKNW (English) or Sher-E-Punjab Radio AM 600 (Punjabi) in Vancouver or TSN 690 (English) or 99.5 Montreal (French) in Montreal.
